The Amstel Saxophone Quartet won the famous Kersjes van de Groenekan award, which consists of E50.000,- to be spend on further development of the quartet. The award ceremony will be on december 2nd 2004 in the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam.

A posthumous review on the first cd of the Amstel Saxophone Quartet in the Saxophone Journal of September/October 2004 'straight lines': 'Everything about this CD is superb.' Read the entire review here. (for review, please go to 'press', or visit www.amstelquartet.nl)

Friday 24 September at 21:08 on AVRO-television: registration of the Support Act of the Prinsengrachtconcert 2004 with o.a. Ties Mellema and Wijnand van Klaveren and the Romeo String Quartet.

The Amstel Saxophone Quartet was winner of the Uitmarkt 2004 Audience Prize in August. The audience had the oppurtunity to vote for the ensembles they liked best. Among the other ensembles were: Kaida Trio, Jenufa Quartet, Prinse Quartet, Farkas Quintet.

Ties Mellema was named 'Leader of the new generation of saxophonists in the Netherlands' by the AVRO national tv and radio.

Besides the new cd of the Amstel Saxophone Quartet, Ties Mellema and Wijnand van Klaveren will release a new cd, called DUOS, on August 12th of this year. This cd contains works by van Klaveren, Ravel, Poulenc, Debussy, Creston. Both cd's can be ordered here.

Ties Mellema and Wijnand van Klaveren will play the support act of the famous Prinsengrachtconcert in Amsterdam together with the Romeo Kwartet, Hanna Shybayeva, piano, Rick Stotijn, double-bass, Miriam Overlach, harp on August 21st 2004.