Alfred Feenstra

Alfred Feenstra is a composer and classical guitarist. He began his classical guitar studies at The Royal Conservatory of The Hague (Netherlands). An adventurous spirit -a characteristic trait of all musicians- led Alfred away from traditional education regimes, thus he found ways to express himself without resorting to classic music studies.

As his career progressed, he met master David Russel and saw a new window of opportunity; Alfred became his student, and travelled to the UK regularly to take lessons. He admires Russel greatly as a result of their relationship.

In 1981, Alfred Feenstra married Coks Jansen. They had their first child –Ramón– in Amsterdam a year later. With their second son Thomas on the way (1984), Alfred wrote and recorded his first álbum Nacido en Valencia (Born in Valencia), a title full of expression, tenderness, and emotion. In 1986, Alfred and his family moved to a small town near Valencia (Spain), and his youngest daughter Helena was born there a year later. Helena currently plays the flamenco guitar.

Recuerdos showcases 14 songs from his first album Nacido en Valencia, recorded in Holland 1984. Each of these songs (written by Alfred himself) is a tale of his own life, thus turning the album into a box of memories, a box of Recuerdos.

His notes carry a component of introspection and emotion that keeps the listener dreaming long with his creations. Despite his Dutch heritage, all of Alfred Feenstra’s compositions distill a Latin character. Dutch guitarist Susanne Mebes said: “His music makes you think of Spain and dream of Latin America while it brings Francisco Tárrega’s and Agustín Barrios’s sound back to life. Nevertheless, he has a unique style and above all, he makes his love of the guitar shine through every chord”.

Following a 20-year long period during which the guitar took second place in his life, in 2010 Alfred got back stronger than ever into the world of strings, harmonies and tuning forks. Alma is a collection of 11 of the songs that he wrote throughout 2013.

Benavites Tower, a historical landmark dating from the end of the XV century, witnessed the birth of Alfred’s pieces and their later recording – it is where he feels most inspired to produce true works of art. Each song tells a tale of the soul’s experiences, the Alma: love, the liberating power of dreams, lessons learned, birth, farewell…

In Dejarse llevar (Getting Carried Away) his last album (2014), Alfred sends an implicit message about the secret that he has been carrying along since very young, when he refused to take any academic guitar training, and made it in the music world by trusting his own intuitions. A great lesson in the form of music, a great life lesson. We can play our part by pushing play, closing our eyes, opening up our senses, and getting carried away…

Alfred’s music is characterised by its warmth, calm and depth.