Calefax started as a school ensemble at an Amsterdam secondary school and grew into a world-renowned ensemble — and the inventors of the reed quintet.
From a bold question to a new ensemble
It was November 1985. At the Barlaeus Gymnasium in Amsterdam, a school orchestra was rehearsing an opera by composer Willem van Manen. Four wind players from the orchestra had a daring question: would the composer write a piece especially for them? To their own surprise, he said yes — and even added a clarinet part himself. That was the beginning of Calefax.
What those students did not realize was that they were in the process of inventing an entirely new musical genre: the reed quintet — a combination of oboe, clarinet, saxophone, bass clarinet, and bassoon. It simply did not exist before. There was no repertoire, no tradition, no audience. Just five reed players and the curiosity to discover what they could create together.
“Five extremely gifted Dutch gents who almost made the reed quintet seem the best musical format on the planet.”
— The Times
“They invented an entirely new genre! As if that weren’t enough, they also serve as mentors for young groups like us — they open doors.”
— María Losada Burgo, Dianto Reed Quintet
Why does it sound so unique?
The secret of the Calefax sound lies in the relationship between the five instruments. Oboe, clarinet, saxophone, bass clarinet, and bassoon all share the same basic principle: a vibrating reed. That shared sonic foundation creates a blend that is difficult to achieve in other ensembles. Calefax is often praised for its “oneness”: the way the five voices merge into a single organism.
At the same time, each instrument has a distinctly individual character. The oboe is piercing and pleading, the bassoon deep and warm-blooded, and the saxophone jazzy and fluid. The strength of the ensemble lies in that tension between unity and diversity: simultaneously compact and immensely colorful.
- Around 1,000 arrangements spanning eight centuries of music history
- 23 albums released to widespread critical acclaim
- More than 80 reed quintets worldwide following in their footsteps
Pioneers without a repertoire
Anyone inventing a new genre must also invent its repertoire. Calefax began by arranging existing music for this new instrumentation. What started as an experiment evolved into a library of nearly a thousand works, ranging from medieval polyphony arranged for reed quintet to contemporary compositions.
Saxophonist Raaf Hekkema arranged an estimated half of that repertoire himself. One of his most celebrated projects was an arrangement of all 24 violin caprices by Niccolò Paganini for solo saxophone, which earned him the ECHO Klassik Award for Instrumentalist of the Year in 2007.
Alongside arrangements, Calefax commissions new works every year and organizes a composition competition that attracts dozens of submissions. The best arrangements are published under the name Calefax Edition, allowing the now more than eighty reed quintets worldwide — from Argentina to New Zealand — to perform them as well. Eleven of those ensembles participated in the anniversary festival Calefax Riet Festival in 2025.
“They invented an entirely new genre! As if that weren’t enough, they also serve as mentors for young groups like us — they open doors.”
— María Losada Burgo, Dianto Reed Quintet (NRC)
“Calefax are true pioneers — they paved the way for all of us. And now the path is branching out.”
— Yaroslav Sadovyy, Kalamos Reed Quintet (NRC)
From Bach to Nina Simone
Calefax draws no boundaries between genres or historical periods. In a single concert, they may effortlessly move from Johann Sebastian Bach to Duke Ellington, from Claude Debussy to Nina Simone. That breadth is not a gimmick but a conviction: all music is treated equally, regardless of origin or era.
Dutch newspaper NRC wrote about their album An American Rhapsody that Calefax’s arrangements are “not faithful translations or imitations of the original,” but instead add something new: “…allowing you to taste and discover new flavors in familiar music.” That is precisely the promise Calefax has fulfilled for forty years.
What now?
After forty years, Calefax has grown from a pioneering ensemble into an institution. Yet every concert still feels like a voyage of discovery. The curiosity that drove five secondary-school students in 1985 has never disappeared.
In September 2025, the ensemble announced that bass clarinetist Jelte Althuis would leave after 32 years of performing together. A new chapter is beginning. Anyone who knows Calefax a little knows they will write that chapter in their own unmistakable way.
In June 2026, Calefax joins forces with Cappella Amsterdam, Female Economy, and Troupe Courage for The Procession (De Stoet): a 2.5-hour music-theatre experience through Amsterdam Nieuw-West, featuring a four-metre-tall puppet, live music by Calefax and Cappella Amsterdam, and stories about grief, farewell, and the vitality of life.
