Born in 1965, he has won international acclaim as a specialist in contemporary music. “I first heard New Music on television as a child. I saw how people in an audience covered their ears with their hands—the confrontation with the music made them want to shut themselves off, but at the same time they remained curious and were filled with wonder. I felt it was exactly what I wanted to do with music.”

Why the trumpet? “I’ve always had in mind the image of a troubadour, spreading news through music. I wanted to do that too— with my trumpet. I see a task for me: to further develop the instrument, its playing technique, and initiate new repertoire.”

This has resulted in premieres and upcoming works by composers such as Péter Eötvös, Hanna Kulenty, Georg Friedrich Haas, Olga Neuwirth, Wolfgang Rihm, and Rebecca Saunders; in intensive collaboration with Karlheinz Stockhausen; in many performances as a soloist; and in six solo CDs (his most recent CD Angels was awarded the Preis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik).

Marco Blaauw is a member of Ensemble musikFabrik.