ABOUT US
Tantrum Saxophone Quartet is an energetic and ambitious ensemble formed by young professional saxophonists from Belgium and Portugal, based in The Netherlands. The mix of four varied personalities makes this ensemble a promising one.
Energetic
Modern
Young
All about Tantrum
With Belgian and Portuguese roots, Tantrum Saxophone Quartet was founded in 2020 by Artur Lopes (soprano saxophone), Dauphine Van der Velpen (alto saxophone), João Faustino (tenor saxophone) and Renato Almeida (baritone saxophone) in Tilburg, The Netherlands. The four saxophonists studied together at Fontys School of Fine and Performing Arts in Tilburg, with Ties Mellema and Andreas Van Zoelen. The saxophonists of Tantrum quickly felt a shared enthusiasm for chamber music. The saxophone quartet is a dynamic and unic ensemble because of the different styles and personalities that support and complement each other, whilst making music as well as next to it.
Artur, João and Renato are originaly from Portugal and started their musical carreer at the conservatory of Aveiro. All three of them found their way to Tilburg where they, next to their fantastic saxophone playing, brought traditional Portuguese music into the quartet. Dauphine is Belgian and started her studies at the Royal Conservatory of Ghent. She soon felt the urge to expand her surroundings, which brought her to Tilburg for the Master of Music. As well as Artur, Dauphine focusses mainly on minimal and modern music.
Tantrum was founded in mid-covid-19 times, which means that playing togehter, concerts and taking lessons were not always easy to do. Still, these musicians were persistent to give the quartet a proper start: with no more than six months of rehearsing and playing, the quartet got selected to audition for the Willem-Twee Toonzaal Chamber Music Contest and won the first prize at the final round in April 2021. This event and the Final Master Recitals of Artur and Dauphine gave the quartet's autumn program of 2021 a great start. Tantrum was asked to play in Muziekgebouw Eindhoven and Willem-Twee Toonzaal, amongst other locations.
The quartet is very approachable for various events because it focusses on minimal music, modern music, and fado music. In this way the different characters and styles of the Tantrum Saxophonists are formed into a fascinating combination.
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Meet The Team
Artur Lopes
Hi, I'm Artur!
I sometimes have the tendency to procrastinate, that's why there's still no little text about myself. Luckily Dauphine wrote something to hide the blank space.
João Faustino
Hi!
My name is João, but my friends call me Faustino. (There are a lot of João's in Portugal)
I consider myself a social and musical chameleon: adaptability, and openness towards new performative experiences, are some of the qualities I always search for in artistic projects.
Iria Garrido Meira
Hello!
Apart of being my daily thrive and motivation, music has a deeper meaning to me. It helps me assessing someone's personality: the way someone makes music represents who they are and how they act. This proves to me that music is a part of ourselves.