Calefax Reed Quintet

“Calefax - five extremely gifted Dutch gents who almost made the reed quintet seem the best musical format on the planet.” – The Times – Five passionate wind players.
Virtuoso musicians and brilliant arrangers. The creators of a completely new genre: the reed quintet. They are a source of inspiration to a fresh generation reed players that follows in their footsteps. A classical ensemble with a pop mentality: meet Calefax.

The repertoire of Calefax spans many centuries of music. They breathe new life into classical chamber music by arranging it themselves to fit their own unique reed quintet line up: oboe, clarinet, saxophone, bass clarinet and bassoon. Next to that, approximately two hundred original works have by now been written especially for Calefax by composers from all over the world. During their many travels and collaborations, they have drawn influences from world music, jazz and improvisation.
The group publishes sheet music of their own arrangements for reed quintet under the name Calefax Edition, so that they play a pioneering role and put this new genre on the map. All over the world new reed quintets are springing up, following Calefax’ example; from Argentine to New-Zealand and from the United States to Europe. By offering master classes and workshops at conservatories and universities, Calefax passes its specific methods and musical experience on to the next generations. In this way, the group functions as an inspiring laboratory for musicians and composers alike.

Calefax also inspires fellow musicians and artists from other disciplines. In collaboration projects, Calefax is always in search of unexpected repertoire or innovative presentation forms..

Calefax has to date released 19 CDs. All of these have been received by the international press with great enthusiasm.  Calefax is regularly on tour, both home and abroad. International tours have included Russia, China, India, Turkey, Japan, South Africa, Brazil and the United States, performing on such prestigious stages as the Wigmore Hall, Het Concertgebouw and New York’s Frick Collection. In January 2013, Calefax had the honour of accompanying Queen Beatrix of The Netherlands on her state visit to Brunei and Singapore.