Jorgen van Rijen

View all CDs

Besides his work as the principal trombonist of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Jorgen van Rijen has become a frequently requested soloist with a special commitment to promote his instrument, develop new repertoire for the trombone and bring the existing repertoire to a broader audience. He has performed as a soloist in most European countries, as well as the United States, Canada, Japan, China, Korea, Russia, Singapore and Australia and has appeared as a soloist with various orchestras, including the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra and the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra. In 2004 he was awarded the Netherlands Music Prize, the highest distinction in the field of music from the Dutch Ministry of Culture. In 2006 he received the prestigious Borletti-Buitoni Trust Award, which is yearly presented to a selection of the most promising and talented young international soloists and ensembles. He won several other prizes, including first prizes at the international trombone competitions of Toulon and Guebwiller. In a review for his first CD, music magazine 'Luister' wrote: 'Van Rijen is a real ambassador of his instrument, which is still not often used as a virtuosic brass instrument among composers. But there are not that many trombonists that reach the brilliant level of Van Rijen. In sound, dynamic, color, musical understanding and expressiveness Van Rijen is unequalled...'.
Many new pieces have been written for Jrgen, including a trombone concerto by Theo Verbey, commissioned by the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra. Claudio Abbado asked him to perform the trombone solo of Mahler's 3rd symphony with the Lucerne Festival Orchestra. Jrgen teaches at the Rotterdam Conservatory and is an active chamber musician. He was one of the founders of the New Trombone Collective and the RCO Brass and is artistic leader of both of these ensembles.