Ruben Hein & NJJO
Ruben Hein direction/compositions/vocals, Nana Kruger vocals, Manon van de Kempe violin, Noah Hassler Forest violin, Quirine Kingma viola, Astrid Reijnders cello, Mirthe van der Ham hobo/alto oboe, Pedro Gonçalves bassoon, Kasper Rietkerk alto sax/flute, Jeline Weening alto sax, Rik van der Made tenor sax/flute, Federico D’Angelo baritone sax/bass clarinet/tuba, Koen Ross trumpet/flugelhorn, Jochem van Hoogdalem french horn, Michiel de Boer trombone, Laurens Haverkate bass trombone, Yuri Rhodenborgh guitar, Koen Gijsman keys, Chiel van Rijn bass, Jens Meijer drums
In 2019 and 2020 singer, pianist, composer and band leader Ruben Hein is the artistic director of the Dutch National Youth Jazz Orchestra. Every two years this big band is reformed with the best young talents. The current 18-piece formation is touring with a program composed and arranged by Ruben Hein who will perform as a vocalist and soloist himself. The careers of the young band members will be boosted by the experience, intensive coaching and various collaborative projects over the course of these two years.
Ruben Hein is praised for his characteristic warm voice, his soulful songs and his singular piano playing. His musical development has brought him from his debut album released on Blue Note to major festivals and venues with, among others, Metropole Orchestra, New Cool Collective and Hans Teeuwen. He supported international stars such as Robin Gibb, Seal and Tom Jones. Previous artistic leaders of the NJJO include Benjamin Herman and Eric Vloeimans.