North Sea Jazz Festival: MO conducted by Tijn Wybenga

Tijn Wybenga is a composer and conductor who combines orchestral colours with electronics and improvisation. His music contains elements of classical, hip-hop and jazz music, mixed with influences from South African, Turkish and Indian styles. He graduated from the Conservatory of Amsterdam and is currently active in the Amsterdam music scene, where he was Artist in Residence at the jazz club BIMHUIS from 2019 to 2021. After graduating, he founded the orchestra AM.OK, which was recently renamed Brainteaser Orchestra, after his last album Brainteaser (2021). Over the years, Wybenga received several awards, such as the Rogier van Otterloo Award for the best young composer, conductor and arranger in 2018.

This year Tijn, collaborating with Metropole Orkest, presents four new compositions at the North Sea Jazz Festival: one for Ambrose Akinmusire, one for Lizz Wright and two for them together. In addition, the ensemble will play music of the two guests that has been arranged for an orchestra, as well as compositions Wybenga wrote for Metropole Orkest last year. He will mix the inspiration he got from his two musical guests with his own ideas and the ones from members of Brainteaser Orchestra. This will be Wybenga’s first time conducting Metropole Orkest, which he considers “a true honour.”