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Bassoonist sets out to ‘Save the Bassoon’

Bram van Sambeek
Bassoonist, Bram van Sambeek (Publicity photo by Andrew Rankin)

The polar bear. The black rhino. The bassoon?

Virtuoso bassoonist Bram van Sambeek warns that this joker of the orchestra could one day become "as endangered as the panda." He is leading 'Save the Bassoon'— an effort to emphasize the importance of this instrument and to encourage more young people to pick one up.

The campaign began in June as part of the Holland Festival, which is an annual arts festival held in Amsterdam. Its current artistic director, Ruth Mackenzie, commissioned seven short works featuring the bassoon, and van Sambeek promises other 'big plans' for upcoming bassoon events.

In a recent interview with The Guardian, van Sambeek stated that, “the name of the campaign is deliberately quite dramatic because we want people to think about whether the bassoonist could be as endangered as the panda. There is a danger. And there is a danger to the future of the orchestra as a result.” He continues,  “At the moment, only about 1% of people on the street can even recognize this instrument. I am always prepared for the fact that people won’t know what it is.”

Learn more about van Sambeek in the artist profile video below (and for a sampling of important bassoon works, check out our Audio Backpack bassoon playlist).

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