It's time for a celebration in the tuba department of the Royal Conservatoire. Coen van den Bos and Daniël Schwagermann, alumnus and bachelor student, are both hired at the Royal Military Chapel "Johan Willem Friso" (KMKJWF). Both tuba players followed the school for young talent and their bachelor's at the Royal Conservatoire. This happy news is asking for an interview.

Waar is jouw liefde voor tuba begonnen, en wanneer wist je dat je er professioneel mee aan de slag wilde?

When did you fall in love with the tuba, and when did you know you wanted to become a professional?

Coen: 'When I was 15 years old I started my euphonium studies at School for Young Talent. After 2 years I felt the temptation of the tuba, from the moment I switched to this instrument I knew I wanted to continue with the tuba professionally.

Daniël: 'When I was 9 years old I started to play euphonium. My mother is an amateur musician and took me to several concerts. My goal was to be able to play extremely low on the euphonium. At one point I was able to play lower on my euphonium than the tuba players in the orchestra could play on their tubas. At age 15 I switched to the bass tuba myself, and quickly after, I got accepted to the school for Young Talent. When I was 17 I started my bachelor's and now I am in my third year.'

What are you looking forward to most at KMKJWF?
Coen: 'Most of all, I am looking forward to the concerts and to getting to know this group of musicians. I already got to have a taste of the 'gezellige' atmosphere when I was standing in for someone a couple of times. I am happy that I can make a nice fundament under the orchestra together with my new tuba colleagues!'

Daniël: 'I am thrilled to get to work with this super young tuba section (3 players). We are the youngest section of the orchestra, with an average age of 24. The other sections are more experienced and I hope to learn a lot from them. The tempo is extremely high, and every week we play challenging new programs. The music is very versatile and we play a lot of different genres.'

What's special about working for KMKJWF?
Coen: ‘KMKJWF accompanies commemorations and ceremonies. This seems very special to me. To be able to play on the national remembrance day on the fourth of May on the Dam in Amsterdam makes this a remarkable job.'

Daniël: The versatility makes this orchestra unique. KMKJWF plays on a lot of different occasions. We play traditional marches, but also a lot of contemporary music. Playing so many different stiles of music on this high level is something magical!

What memories you made at the royal conservatory stuck with you most?
Coen: ‘I got to do multiple projects with the conservatoire orchestra, which were very important for my development as orchestramusicians. The 4th Symphony of Bruckner stood out for me, because of the challenging tuba part. Thanks to the support of my teacher Hendrik-Jan Renes this is a very nice memory for me.

Daniël: 'The Mahler 5 project we did last year is my favourite up untill now. It seemed like an impossible task, we didn't have enough rehearsal time for this symphony. But the conductor, Adam Hickox, really made it into an experience. I really wanted to do my best for him, and for the orchestra. I would have loved to play the piece again in the big hall of Amare instead of in the Conservatoriumzaal.

Are there concrete things you learned at KC which you could use during your audition?

Coen: ‘Hendrik-Jan Renes taught me important skills for an audition, but most of all to keep making music. Thanks again for this!'

Daniël: "Keep making music!" was the golden tip I got from everyone I spoke to. I kept these words in my head. After the audition the commision told me that they thought I played very musically, and that the musical line could be found throughout the whole audition. Because of this I got the job. On top of that structure has been very important. Nothing in the audition was a coincidence, everything was thought-through.
I want to thank my teachers, especially Hendrik-Jan Renes for the support of the last years. Thanks to you I have come this far!'