Nick Woud

Nick Woud studied Timpani and Percussion at the Amsterdam Conservatory of Music with Jan Labordus and Jan Pustjens, both of the Royal Concertgebouw. From the age of 18 he performed as timpanist and percussionist in the Concertgebouw Orchestra and in all major Dutch orchestras. At the age of 22 he joined the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, first as percussionist and in 1984 as Principal Timpanist. In May 2002 Nick Woud won the RCO auditions unanimously and joined the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra Amsterdam, sharing the position of Principal Timpani now with his former student Tomohiro Ando. Brought up in the Amsterdam School of Timpani, Nick has always used drums with calfheads and a setup in the Dutch/German way. Nick is one of the pioneers of baroque timpani playing, starting in 1975 with the early Bach recordings under Gustav Leonhardt. As a tutor Nick taught at the Hilversum and Utrecht Conservatory of Music. For the last 31years he has been Senior Tutor for timpani at the Percussion department of the Conservatorium of Amsterdam. He published 3 timpani methods and as composer several works for brass instruments in various settings and for timpani and percussion. Nick's focus is on developing a natural and sincere musicianship and technique with his students.

His interest in the technical side of the timpani resulted in a long term relationship with Adams Timpani as advisor [since 1977]. The development of Adams timpani have been made in close contact with Nick as a performing consultant. From the start of this relationship all types of Adams drums have been tested and experimented with in their rightful place: the large Symphony Orchestra and played upon by a professional in the many large concert halls of The Netherlands as well as being recorded for Radio and CD. The last project was the development of the Adams Schnellar timpani. For many years Nick Woud coached the percussion sections of the Dutch National Youth Orchestra, the NJO Summer Academy and the EUYO. Nick woud gives regurarly masterclasses in many countries.