Born in Dordrecht (The Netherlands), he started playing the trombone at age eight and later graduated at the Rotterdam Conservatory under George Wiegel. During his training, he spent three months with Michel Becquet at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Lyon, where he also studied the baroque trombone with Daniel Lassalle. After a brief stint as principal trombonist with the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra, he joined the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra in the same position in 1997.
He has performed as a soloist with orchestras including the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, the Czech Philharmonic, the Rotterdam Philharmonic, Taiwan National Symphony, Tokyo Philharmonic, Antwerp Symphony, Dallas Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre de la Suisse Romande and Nagoya Philharmonic. In coming seasons, he will make his debut with Hong Kong Philharmonic, Orchestre National de France and Philharmonie du Luxembourg, among others.
He was awarded the Netherlands Music Prize in 2004, the highest distinction in the field of music, by the Dutch Ministry of Culture. In 2006 he received the prestigious Borletti-Buitoni Trust Award, which is presented yearly to a selection of the most promising and talented young international soloists and ensembles. He has won other major prizes, including first prizes at the International Trombone Competitions of Toulon and Guebwiller.
Many new pieces have been written for him, including the Trombone Concerto by Theo Verbey, and works by Jacob TV and Florian Magnus Maier. He has premiered the Trombone Concerto by Kalevi Aho that was written for him as a commission from the Borletti-Buitoni Trust, with concerts with the The Hague Philharmonic, the Oulu Sinfonia in Finland and the BBC Symphony Orchestra. He performed the world premiere of the Trombone concerto by James MacMillan composed for him with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra conducted by Ivan Fischer. It will be followed by concerts with orchestras in the USA, Finland, Belgium, Switzerland and Germany.
He teaches at the Amsterdam Conservatory and has been appointed International Visiting Professor at the Royal Academy of Music in London. He is also an active chamber musician in ensembles such as the New Trombone Collective, RCO Brass and Brass United.