"Through a long and distinguished career as one of the world's leading horn players, as a professor and celebrated cultural personality, Frøydis's work has been of tremendous value to the art of horn playing and its repertoire of contemporary music.” - International Horn Society.
After studying violin and piano Frøydis Ree Wekre took up the horn at the age of 17, having become fascinated by the sound of the horn and the idea of having her own voice in the orchestra. Her horn studies continued in Sweden, Russia, and the US. Frøydis first won a position with the Norwegian Opera Orchestra, then in 1961 she joined the Oslo Philharmonic and became co-principal in 1965. In 1991, she retired from the orchestra to be professor of horn and wind chamber music at the Norwegian Academy of Music, where she already held a part-time position. Her role as a teacher has been important to Frøydis, and dozens of her students play in major orchestras around the world. She has been offered professorships in several countries and received the Lindeman Prize in 1986 for her contributions as a teacher.
Christoph Ess has established himself as a significant voice in classical music and as one of the leading horn players of his generation. He received top prizes at national and international competitions such as the "European Classic Festival Ruhr", the "1oConcorso Internazionale per Corno di Sannicandro di Bari", the "International ARD Music Competition" in Munich and the "Richard-Strauss Competition". Besides being in high demand as a chamber musician, Christoph Ess has also performed as soloist with many of Europe’s leading orchestras including the Bavarian Radio Symphony, the Bamberg Symphony, the Berlin Radio Symphony, the Prague Philharmonia and the chamber orchestras of Munich, Stuttgart and Salzburg. Finally, from 2017-2020 Ess has been appointed Professor for horn in the Musikhochschule Lübeck. From the 27th of February until the first of March, he and Frøydis Ree Wekre will teach our students from their own experience and mastery.
This masterclass is co-organised by horn professor, Jeroen Billiet, and is a collaboration with CrB ( professor Jean-Pierre Dassonville). Thank you L'elephant Paris for the support.
