Emiel Stöpler

About Emiel Stöpler

Music with a story...

In the beginning there was... the recorder!

The music lessons during my youth, such as the not-so-popular recorder lessons, didn't exactly predict a career in music. But that was before I was captured by acoustic guitar when I was 17. I was immediately inspired and began to practice many hours a day. A few years later, I was accepted into the conservatory (music college) to study guitar and later composition. Although I learned a great deal, I never quite managed to get a degree in this formal institution. I have acquired proper guitar technique and the lessons in music theory (and the teachers) have helped enormously by finding my own compositional style.

As soon as I had started with guitar lessons, I felt the need to write my own music. This is an ongoing process - you're never "finished" - and it's always exciting to start with a fresh sheet of paper and new ideas to explore unchartered musical territory. I'm a composer and fingerstyle gitarist and have written over 100 pieces. I'm also the author of an autobiographical book Zwerftochten, that is published by uitgeverij SWP in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

Prizes

• Third prize in the Italian composition competition of Accademia della Chitarra di Brescia (2008).
• Honorable mention (with a publication) with a short story of Zwerftochten (not the book) by the writing contest of De pen als lotgenoot (2001).
• Second prize in the regional finals of the Prinses Christina Concours (1990).

Notable performances/commissions

• Collaboration with General Fuzz for his new album miles tones (2011).
• Providence Mandolin Orchestra - The PMO commissioned a piece, which I wrote during the summer of 2009. It's called The City Awakens and was premiered on December 5th. (Watch The City Awakens on YouTube.)
• Triobio - This talented Turkish guitar trio asked for a piece ("Zest"). It was premiered in Istanbul, Turkey in 2009.
• Strijktrio Sciolto - commissioned a piece, which became Kwart voor drie.
• Jan Bartlema - Dutch guitarist and one of my guitar teachers. I wrote a piece for him called Luminescence (1992), which was recently recorded for the German Daminus label (2012).
• Mark and Beverly Davis - American guitar duo performed "The Heart That Speaks" in a version for guitar duo.
• Students of the ROC Friese Poort performed a piece that I wrote for their class ("Screensaver").
• Het Frisian Museum of Nature has a multimedia display, for which I wrote the music.

Publications

• Les productions D'Oz (Escher's Dream).
• Book Zwerftochen published by SWP in Amsterdam (The Netherlands) in 2007.
• Short version of Zwerftochten, published in "De pen als lotgenoot - deel 5" in 2002, also by SWP Publishers (uitverkocht).

Feedback for Zwerftochten

"Yesterday, I read your book in one go and I was really touched! (...) For me, it's very good and useful to read and hear about the experiences of the people themselves. That makes it easyer to imagine their situation, so I can help them better! Your story has definitely contributed to this fact, and I advise anyone who's interested to read this!"

"Reading your book had given me more insight into what schizophrenia can do with you. An impressive story and great to read you're doing better now."

"It reads easily, although I had to put it aside from time to time, because it was too intense. Especially in the passages where you described your experiences and feelings in the psychosis (...). For me, it gives me some understanding how my brother may feel and experience things."