Stephen Altoft is dedicated to the creation of new repertoire for the trumpet. As a solo artist, and with percussionist Lee Ferguson as duo Contour, he has given concerts throughout Asia, Europe, the United States and Canada. He was a member of ensemble chronophonie (Freiburg) and ensemble linea (Strasbourg). For over twenty years he has been researching the microtonal possibilities of the trumpet with composer, Donald Bousted, and has developed a fourth (rotary) valve mechanism to enable the conversion of his existing trumpets into microtonal instruments. Since 2015 he has also been developing programmes for trumpet or flugelhorn with other chamber music duo partners such as Elmar Schrammel (piano) , Helga Zuccaro (flute) and Karin Fleck (accordion). Stephen teaches trumpet, baritone and general brass classes at the music school in Waldkirch, where he also runs an improvisation workshop.
Stephen studied at the University of Huddersfield (1991-5) where he was awarded B.Mus Honours and Masters degrees (in performance) and the Ricordi Prize for Contemporary Performance. This was followed by periods of private study and consultations with Markus Stockhausen (Cologne 1996-8), William Forman (Berlin 1998-1999, supported by the Music Sound Foundation), Jens Lindemann (Banff Centre for the Arts, 2002) and Marco Blaauw.
Stephen is co-director of Microtonal Projects, and Manages the EUROMicroFest. His latest album Time Dreaming is available on most digital platforms.
stephenaltoft.com