Certo visualiseert en verduidelijkt klassieke muziek. Door middel van infotainment programma’s (CerTopics) en muziekfilms (CertoCinema) richt Certo zich op de versterking van de muzikale beleving. Daarbij maakt Certo het muziekleven zichtbaar, wat zij ook voor jonge artiesten toegankelijk maakt door professionele live registraties: ConCerto.
Het belichten van achtergronden maakt een stuk begrijpelijker; door visualisatie wordt het verhaal van een compositie en componist zichtbaar. In alles wordt vanuit de bron gewerkt: de partituur. Door deze synergie in muziek en beeld ontstaan Visual Scores.
Doel van Certo is een nieuw publiek te bereiken voor klassieke muziek. Samenwerking met de jonge topmusicus staat hierin centraal waarmee gestreefd wordt naar inhoudelijke kwaliteit en progressieve uitvoering.
Certo wil dat al haar producties associatie hebben met de inhoudelijke opbouw van een nieuw te ontwikkelen digitaal podium: CertoTV.
BRENDAN WALSH (1979) studeerde cello, muziek en Duits aan de University of Huddersfield (GB) en vervolgde zijn studie aan het Utrechts Conservatorium. In die tijd leerde hij het octet kennen en sindsdien is het zijn droom om zich aan het octet te binden. Vervolgens behaalde hij zijn MSC in International Management aan ESCP Europe. Brendan heeft werkervaring in cultuurmanagement, financiën, muziekproductie, verkoop, marketing en management consulting door te werken bij respectievelijk Brussels Philharmonic, Société Générale, BIAM Artists, Linedata Services, L’Oréal Professionnel, Lausanne Consulting Group en het European Union Youth Orchestra (als Development en Marketing manager). Momenteel vervult hij naast de zakelijke leiding en productie van Cello8ctet Amsterdam, dezelfde rol bij Certo Productions; een functie waarin hij cultuur, media en bedrijfskunde met elkaar verbindt.
Filmmaker LUCAS VAN WOERKUM (1982) studied French horn at the Conservatory of Brabant and Audio Visual Media at the Utrecht School of Arts. Since he started studying film, he focuses on the relationship between music and image.
In 2003, Van Woerkum became the right hand of internationally acclaimed director Frank Scheffer, who made more than 20 films on composers of the 20th century. Apart from assisting Scheffer on music documentaries about the music of Elliott Carter, Tan Dun and Gustav Mahler, Van Woerkum had the chance to develop his editing techniques in short experimental films by Scheffer like Something Old, Something New in Red, Green and Blue (2003), Quintet (2004), Past Moments, Present Future (2005) and a live performance on American composer Elliott Carter at the Prada Store in New York.
Van Woerkum graduated with honors in 2004 with the film Mahler: Ich bin der Welt abhanden gekommen for AVRO Televison, based on the 9th symphony of Gustav Mahler . The 55 minute film pictures Riccardo Chailly conducting the 9th symphony with the Amsterdam Concertgebouw Orchestra. Apart from documentaries, Van Woerkum is specialized in dramatized music films. “Many composers are telling a story through music, especially those who write symphonic poems or program music. My goal is to transcend the story of the music to a scenario for a fiction film.” With his films Lento and Andante, he won prices for Best Music and Best Cinematography at the International 48 Hour Film Project. In 2008, the short feature Naar Anna (scenario: Anna Maria Versloot) was shown on Dutch television for NPS Kort! His film Sophia, based on the symphonic poem by Belgium composer Dirk Brosse, will be performed live at the Concertgebouw of Amsterdam in 2010.
Dutch pianist CHRISTIAAN KUYVENHOVEN (1985) won Third Prize at the prestigious International Franz Liszt Piano Competition in 2005. By winning the prize, Kuyvenhoven became the first Dutch laureate in sixteen years . As part of the prize, Christiaan Kuyvenhoven had numerous appearances as a concert pianist, both in and outside the Netherlands. In addition to concert engagements at all major Dutch concert halls, he was also invited to appear in Algeria, Germany, France, Trinidad & Tobago, Curaçao, Tunesia and the United States.
In January 2006, Kuyvenhoven went on tour with the National Students’ Orchestra of the Netherlands under the baton of Otto Tausk. The tour concluded with Christiaan’s debut performance in the large hall of Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw. In May 2006 he appeared in Paris and Algiers several times with the Dutch Matangi Quartet. In June of that same year Christiaan went on an extensive recital tour through China, followed by a tour through Indonesia in August. His busy schedule continued in the summer and fall of 2006 with performances with the Orkest van het Oosten (Orchestra of Eastern Holland) and The Hague’s Residentie Orkest.
In 2007 Christiaan went on a concert tour through South America, followed by various summer festivals in Holland and Belgium. For September he was invited to China again for a number of performances and masterclasses in Guangzhou and Shanghai. In October 2007 Christiaan made his debut recordings at the Fazioli Concert Hall in Sacile, Italy.
In 1998, Christiaan Kuyvenhoven won first prize at the Princess Christina Competition in The Hague; two years later he was named Young Musical Talent for 2000. In the same year, he had his debut with the Residentie Orkest under conductor Jaap van Zweden. In 2004 he became winner of the XII Concurso Internacional de Piano Maria Campina in Faro, Portugal. He studied with Michail Markov at the Twente Music School, the Van Zweden School of Music and the ArtEZ Conservatory in Enschede. Subsequently he had masterclasses with, amongst others, Menahem Pressler, Alexander Toradze, Ton Hartsuiker, Mitsuko Uchida, Dr. Leslie Howard and Dominique Merlet.