Brass Section

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Brass Section

For articles and videos about Roger Diederen and his son Romano, click HERE.

For articles and videos about Ruud Merx, click HERE.

René Henket (trumpet) married to Virgenie Wetzels (choir). He joined the Johann Strauss Orchestra in 1988. In 2012 the birth of son Cas was announced in the Orchestra, whilst touring Austria. In 2014 second son Youp was born.

November 2015: Article in the Limburg newspaper about René Henket’s trumpet collection. He possesses two cabinets full of trumpets. He always had an interest in baroque trumpets. Read the entire article in the Harmony Parlor. Click on the picture.

Léon van Wijk (bass trombone) married to Lara Meuleman (violinist). They have two sons: Daniel (2010) and Julian (2011).

Ton Maessen, bass tuba, married to Jet Gelens (violinist).

Lars Wachelder (horn), in Christchurch, New Zealand in 2016.

René Henket By André Rieu: “Years ago when I used to see the brass band marching on Sunday mornings with that little boy at the front blowing so proudly on his trumpet, I would not have dreamed that the same little boy would one day be joining me on concert tours all over the world! René’s youthful tone from then has matured into a powerful, impressive sound which comes through especially well on the higher notes. At home he has an amazing collection of trumpets in all sizes, materials, tones and ages. He knows everything about his instruments and has a library with virtually all the music ever written for the trumpet. It was in the orchestra that he met his wife Virgine. At home they love to sit in the beautiful garden that René maintains all by himself. He is a real expert when it comes to gardens, as he knows all the individual plants, and can even lay complete paved areas himself”.

February 17th 2019: Classical Evening. L1 radio program "Evening guests". Interviewer: Emil Szarkowicz. René Henket hails from a musical family and started playing the trumpet at the age of 8. His first trumpet teacher was Pierre Wilhelmus. In 1987 René went to the conservatory in Maastricht where he studied the main subjects trumpet, school music and HaFaBra conducting (the conducting of several types of brass/marching bands) with Jo Conjaerts. Henket completed and graduated his trumpet courses with Guido Seegers in 1993. School music and HaFaBra management followed in 1995. After his conservatory studies in Maastricht, René continued his studies at the Cologne Music Academy with Heinz Meures, where he obtained both his instrumental educational theory and artistic graduation. René has been a trumpet player with the Johann Strauss orchestra of André Rieu since 1988. He also collects teaching lesson methods for trumpet and since he travels around the world, this has become an impressive collection. This is in line with his motto: "Every student is unique and should be approached as such". He regularly gives workshops where the emphasis is mainly placed on “enbouchure” (the mouthpiece).

June 25, 2019. Interactive workshop about mouthpieces, at Adams Music Center. Trumpet player René Henket from the André Rieu Orchestra, will give a special workshop for all brass players in collaboration with Bert Damsma. This workshop takes place on Saturday June 29, 2019, from 1 PM at the Adams Music Center in Ittervoort (Limburg), under the mysterious title of “Bachology Mouthpieces”. "The title is a nod to Vincent Bach, the largest mouthpiece manufacturer for wind instruments. The workshop will be a combination of science (ology) and practical experience”, says René Henket. In the workshop it is explained which criteria you must use to come to the right choice for the mouthpiece. The free workshop is suitable for all brass players, from young to old, from beginning to advanced. The workshop is partly interactive. The question is asked and answered: “How you can best play on a wind instrument. What are the basic elements to play well as a wind musician”? The ideal mouthpiece has a major influence on this. Bert Damsma shows how mouthpieces are made, while Henket (through pressure measurement, spiro measurement and mouthpiece camera) shows which mouthpiece suits someone best. “Based on scientific data, I do advise wind musicians whether they use the right mouthpiece. And if not, what adjustments are needed to the mouthpiece to get the ideal mouthpiece".