The Youth Band Summer concert will be held in the magnificent Amaryllis Fleming Concert Hall of the Royal College of Music, London under the direction of Guest Conductor Maestro Martyn Brabbins with Guest Soloist Tim De Maeseneer (tenor horn).
Martyn Brabbins was recently appointed Chief Conductor of the Malmö Symphony and of the Symphony Orchestra of India, both starting in the 2025/26 season. He was Music Director of the English National Opera 2016-2023. He guests with top international orchestras such as the Royal Concertgebouw, San Francisco Symphony, DSO Berlin and Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony, as well as the Philharmonia, BBC Symphony and most other leading UK orchestras. He is a popular figure at the BBC Proms, who in 2019 commissioned 14 living composers to write a birthday tribute to him, released in 2024 on the BIS label. Known for his advocacy of British composers, he has conducted hundreds of world premieres across the globe. He has recorded nearly 150 CDs to date, including prize-winning discs of operas by Korngold, Birtwistle and Harvey. In 2023 he received the RPS Conductor Award for his “colossal” contribution to UK musical life. Martyn is also Artistic Advisor, Huddersfield Choral Society, Prince Consort Professor of Conducting, Royal College of Music and visiting Professor of Conducting, Royal Scottish Conservatoire.
Having studied under the expert guidance of Frans Violet in Brussels, Tim De Maeseneer moved to the Gent Conservatoire where he studied for two years under trumpet virtuoso Benny Wiame. Subsequently, Tim returned to Leuven to study at the LUCA (Leuven University & College of Arts) under saxhorn specialist Nick Ost. Special mention has to go to mentor/tutor Johan De Win, who always supported and taught with the upmost care. As guest soloist, Tim has performed with a number of different orchestras in Belgium and beyond, such as the Symfonie Orkest Vlaanderen Belgium, The Project Brass Band WDR (West Deutche Rundfunk Köln) Germany, European Youth Brass Band, Atlantic Brass Band USA, Brass Band Buizingen Belgium, Noord-Limburgse Brass Band Belgium ,The Wind Band of The Lithuanian Armed Forces, The Brass Band of the British Army Catterick Garrison UK as well as the The Green Brass Band Thailand. Having participated in a number of competitions, Tim has been awarded best tenor horn on multiple occasions. As tenor horn specialist he was appointed by the VLAMO organisation to give guidance to different bands to help improve horn sections.
