Albert Zuijderduin was born in Delft, Netherlands in a very active musical
family. After having played in the local band as well as the National Youth
Band he began his musical studies at the "Koninklijk Conservatorium" in The
Hague on tuba! The switch to trombone was made within a very short time when
he realized that the trombone could also be used in 16th, 17th and 18th
century music.
With a strong desire to learn and perform as many styles of music from as
many eras as possible, he could not have chosen a better instrument than
trombone. The possibilities of this instrument are endless, and in a densely
populated country as the Netherlands with its hyperactive musical scene
Albert was soon very active in brass quintet, big band, chamber music,
opera, solo recitals, and symphony. Even a circus was not avoided nor an
occasional performance with the Royal Military band and much, much more...
Mr. Zuijderduin joined the Hague Residentie Orchestra in 1972. This
orchestra appeared to be the best choice for Albert, who still lives only
two miles from the place where he was born. Of course all Bruckner and
Mahler symphonies were scheduled regularly, but a major part of the
orchestra's season was used to work with Messiaen, Boulez, Maderna,
Stockhausen, Kagel, Cage, and Berio. Also "new" areas of old music were
explored under the inspiring guidance of Norrington, Koopman and
Harnoncourt. Many productions were recorded, or performed in the wonderful,
traditional venues such as Vienna's Musikverein, New York's Carnegie Hall,
or Tokyo's Suntory Hall, but also on occasion in more exotic settings such
as with a gamelan orchestra on a beach in Bali.
A trombonist's life never is dull. Can anyone imagine another instrument
where you can chose from so many different musical areas? Some are happiest
if they can concentrate on just a few topics such as orchestral or solo
playing, and a select few of these reach the highest levels of performance
and are duly celebrated. Albert belongs to the category that instead has
chosen to collect as many different experiences at a professional level as
possible and pass these on to the next generation of trombonists for the
time when THEY have to decide how they want to use their talents.
For a teacher, it is always a pleasure and an inspiration to work with
students and guide them in making these important choices. This takes time
and cannot be done in one master class. For the academic year 2001-02,
Albert has been granted a sabbatical leave from both the Residentie Orkest
and the Faculty of Music of the Utrecht Art School and is glad to add a new
and exciting experience to his career: to be a full-time visiting professor
at Indiana University!
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