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B i o

There are not so many jazz oboists but Maripepa Contreras is one of the best.

Born in Spain (Almuñécar, 1989), Maripepa began her musical journey at the age of 5. Thanks to her mother, who would drove her to the conservatory since she was  11 years old, she earned a higher degree in oboe performance at the Conservatorio Superior de Música de Málaga (Spain), with teacher René Martín Rodríguez in 2011.

She ventured into the world of jazz in 2013, taking lessons with Ernesto Aurignac who guided her talent in a new direction and provided the motivation to further pursue  music.

In 2018, she was awarded the AIE Jazz Tete Montoliu scholarship to complete her bachelor’s degree in oboe jazz at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam, and in 2021, she achieved a master’s degree in oboe jazz.​ Today, she is dedicating herself entirely to music as a performer, composer, arranger and she is teaching "oboe jazz" online and onsite.

She has played in Festival such us North Sea Jazz Festival, “XXVIII Festival internacional de jazz de Málaga”, “34 Festival Jazz Terrassa”, “Festival de jazz de Sant Andreu”, Grachtenfestival in Amsterdam, 50 Voll-Damm Festival Internacional de Jazz de Barcelona, Jazzahara, Jazzfest Amsterdam, Jazzfestival Generations, Jazzfestival Delft, On the Roof, CityProms Leeuwarden, UJazzFest, Amsterdam Roots Festival, Breda Jazz Festival, Amersfoort World Jazz Festival, Jazzahead, injazz, etc.

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Maripepa Contreras © Foppe Schut _S233680---.JPG
© Foppe Schut
Orchestral  experience

She has performed as a soloist with Orquesta de Cámara Promúsica de Málaga, Orquesta de Cámara “Ensemble Elegance” de Málaga and Noordpool Orkest. As a member has performed with orchestras such as Orquesta Joven de Andalucía, Orquesta de Córdoba, Metropole Orkest, Het Promenade Orkest, Koninklijke Militaire Kapel ‘Johan Willem Friso’, NAtionaal Symfonisch KAmerorkest, Ricciotti Ensemble, Jong Metropole, academy of Metropole Orkest, academy of Orquesta Ciudad de Granada, Orquesta Sinfónica Provincial de Málaga, Orquesta Ciudad de Almería, Orquesta Sinfónica Ciudad de Atarfe, etc. She was principal oboe in Banda Municipal de Música de Motril.

 

Prices

  • First Price in the 'Muestra de jóvenes intérpretes de Málaga Crea 2014' with Al-Ándalus woodwind quartet

  • First special mention in the 'XXII Muestra de jóvenes intérpretes de Málaga Crea' competition with the Orquesta de Cámara Promúsica.

  • Second price in II Concurso “Portón del Jazz‏” de Alhaurín de la Torre with combo Pericles

  • Finalist in Leiden Jazz Award 2018 with Maripepa Contreras Quintet

  • Semifinalist in "Concurso Juventudes Musicales Jazz 91ª Convocatoria" with Maripepa Contreras Quartet

  • Semifinalist in "7 Virtual Jazz Club's Contest 2020" with Maripepa Contreras Quintet

  • Outstanding Performance and Outstanding Soloist in "44th Annual DownBeat Student Music Awards" with Maripepa Contreras Quintet

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Composer/Arranger

She has been composing for her group Maripepa Contreras Quintet and other jazz groups. For bigger ensembles she has written arrangements for het Nederlands Blazers Ensemble, Ricciotti Ensemble, All Stars double reed band, Nederlands Dubbelriet Ensemble, Banda de Música de Almuñécar, Ensemble de saxofones del Conservatorio Cristóbal de Morales de Sevilla, etc. She has written composition assignments for choir commissioned by Gaudeamus Festival and kamerkoor JIP, and for big band commissioned by the Jazz Orchestra of the Concertgebouw. Nowadays is one of the regular arrangers for Marmoucha Orchestra, where some of her compositions and arrangements have been recorded.

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Education

In the world of jazz she participated in IX and X “seminario internacional de jazz y música moderna de Alhaurín de la Torre”, taking lessons with Ernesto Aurignac, Tete Leal, Perico Sambeat and Pasquale Grasso. During the course 2013/2014 she studied jazz and improvisation in Escuela Municipal de Música de Alhaurín de la Torre with teacher Ernesto Aurignac. In the course 2014/2015 she studied jazz in Centro de Artes & Música Moderna de Málaga “Maestro Puyana” with teachers Ernesto Aurignac, Julián Sánchez and Tete Leal. She participated in Obomania academy (2015,2016,2018) with jazz oboist Jean-Luc Fillon.

On the other side, she has given jazz workshops in hobo- & fagotdag in Almelo (2017), Conservatorium van Amsterdam (2018), in the International Double Reed Society 47th Annual Conference in Granada (2018) and in the Conservatorio Profesional de Música "Ramón Garay" in Jaén (2019), Hoboplatform in the Netherlands (2021), Real Conservatorio Superior Victoria Eugenia de Granada (2023). Currently she is teaching in Muziekschool Amsterdam Noord and was a guest teacher in Conservatorium van Amsterdam and  Academy of Music and Performing Arts in Tilburg.

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CD recordings

​She has recorded as a jazz oboist with: Cacha Mundinho, I Compani, Julius Eastman Project, Mehdi Nassouli, Aline Morena, Alicia Tamariz, Marmoucha Orchestra (Modes of MaQamat and Sahara Koyo), Noneto Desconcertante...

As a classical oboist she has recorded albums with: Metropole Orkest, Louis Cole, Marmoucha Orchestra, Bernard van Rossum, Javier Ojeda, Ernesto Aurignac, Magda Mendes...

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Colaborations

She has performed with musicians such as: Perico Sambeat, Ernesto Aurignac, Carles Benabent, Jorge Pardo, Louis Cole, Mehdi Nassouli, Ben van Gelder, Reinier Baas, Ronald Snijders, Jesse van Ruller, Michael Moore, Maarten Hogenhuis, Carme Canela, Aline Morena, Rembrandt Frerichs, Sanne Huijbregts, Jean-Luc Fillon, Michael Rabinowitz, Jaume Llombart, Dee Jay Foster, Ramón Prats, Toni Belenguer, José Carra, Julián Sánchez, Morris Kliphuis, Timon Koomen, Remco Menting, Oene van Geel, Elizabeth Fadel, Rogério Bicudo, Pau Domenech, Enrique Oliver, Fernando Brox, Martín Melendez, Roger Mas, José Mercé, Montse Cortés, Abir el Abed, Alfredo Lagos, Gerardo Núñez, Fernando Egozcue, Andrea Bocelli, etc.

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