 He played the clarinet in the "Royal Harmony of Thorn".He studied conducting and the clarinet at the Conservatory of Maastricht and completed both studies with a "Prix d'Excellence".Between 1972 and 1977, he was the first clarinet of the "Nederlandse omroeporkest" (Dutch broadcast orchestra), and starting in 1977, he was the solo clarinet player at the "Residentie Orkest" in Den Haag.