Sasha Witteveen

At the age of five, Sasha got her first piano lesson. But when she was nine, she saw the movie “Some like it hot,” in which Jack Lemon played double bass in such a fun way. And at the age of ten, she switched to the double bass. In 2014, she took part in the television program “Het orkest van Nederland” (the Netherlands Orchestra) and made her debut as an eleven-year-old orchestra musician in the Great Hall of the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam.

From 2015 she studied with Peter Leerdam at the Sweelinck Academy of the Conservatory in Amsterdam. Since August 2018 she is a student of Prof. Olivier Thiery at the Conservatory in Amsterdam.

Sasha is a laureate of recognized soloist competitions. She won first prizes at the “Prinses Christina Concours”, the first prize in the “Vienna Bass Days” competition in Amsterdam, was a finalist at the “Koninklijk Concertgebouw Concours” and recently won the first prize in the international competition “Youth Bass Competition” in Lucca.

Sasha has already appeared as a soloist with various orchestras, including the Residentie Orchestra, the Orchestra Con Brio and the Kennemer Youth Orchestra with which she was on tour in Belgium and France.

She performs regularly at national and international podium events such as the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, the Haarlem Philharmonic, the Blackmore Music Academy in Berlin and major festivals such as “Klassiek op het Amstelveld”, the “Grachtenfestival” and the festival “Wonderfeel”.

She has gained chamber music experience at Amsterdam Sinfonietta and at concerts she has given together with members of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra. She was a member of the Dutch Youth String Orchestra and since September 2018 the renowned youth ensemble LGT Young Soloists.

Sasha has participated in masterclasses with Rick Stotijn, Matthew McDonld, Wies Deboevé, Dominic Seldis, Gary Karr and Burak Marlali.

Since February 2019 she plays a double bass by Sergio Scaramelli (Ferrara). This exceptional instrument is made available to her by the Dutch Foundation “Nationaal Muziekinstrumentenfonds” and was specially built for her.