Echoes of Nothing

Fringe programmes in collaboration with Conservatorium van Amsterdam

Inspired by the quote ‘Every something is an echo of nothing’ by composer John Cage, three students from the Conservatorium van Amsterdam are curating their own concert series.

On a regular basis there are special out-of-the-box mini concerts in the Entrance Hall of the Muziekgebouw, before and/or after a concert in the Grote Zaal. The mini concerts reflect on the programming in the Grote Zaal and offer a new perspective on the concert experience.

In collaboration with

Yumi Augustine is a Japanese-American composer and performer located in Amsterdam. She is currently enrolled in the Conservatory of Amsterdam, and composes for various ensembles, voice, and has a passion for adding theatricality into her music. In 2024 she had her piece for recorder quartet Ama no Iwatogakure premiered in a concert series in France. Recently, she was selected as a finalist for the Alba Rosa Vietor / Calefax composition competition , where her piece Family Dinner Rhapsody was premiered by the Calefax reed quintet. Currently she is fascinated by how text can be utilized in music, and plans to compose pieces experimenting with this idea. She is currently working on a monodrama, with Helena Rasker as the singer. Moreover, Yumi is also active in performing. She was the narrator in ZAP! by José Nuno Miranda, where she performed with an orchestra at Muziekgebouw Amsterdam, TivoliVredenburg Utrcht, and Stadsgehoorzaal Leiden.

Spanish-born Jaime Peña (2002) is a versatile clarinetist and composer active in the Netherlands and abroad. As a freelance musician, he performed with Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra, Nederlands Blazers Ensemble, Phion, Atlas Ensemble, and the Lucerne Festival Contemporary Orchestra among others. He has been invited as a member of the Pacific Music Festival (Japan), Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival (Germany) and the Lucerne Festival Academy (Switzerland). In 2024, Jaime is instrumentalist in residency in Festival du Aix-en-Provence, in which he collaborates with musicians from Ensemble Intercontemporain. Current chamber music engagements include clarinet and piano recitals with taiwanese pianist Vicky Juo and Ensemble Mondfleck, a septet that performs Arnold Schoenberg’s Pierrot Lunaire and original arrangements for voice and ensemble. Jaime also is a committed composer, taking sounds from day to day life and recontextualizing them in electronic tape alongside his clarinet. In October 2024 he premiered (Not) an Answer, a new program for clarinet, electronic music and live visual art incollaboration with visual artist and drummer Guillermo Martín-Viana. Jaime graduated cum laude from the Conservatorium van Amsterdam, where he was taught by Arno Piters (Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra) and Hans Colbers (Residentie Orkest).

Federico Martínez (1999) is a Spanish classical percussionist based in Amsterdam, currently pursuing a Master’s degree at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam after completing his Bachelor studies in Murcia, Spain. Alongside his musical career, he holds a Computer Science degree from the University of Murcia, which has enabled him to combine both passions and bring fresh perspectives into the musical world. Although primarily focused on orchestral performance, he continues to explore a broad range of musical styles such as live electronics, early music, chamber music and others.

Concerts with Echoes of Nothing fringe programme