Saskia Apon was born in Rotterdam. She studied harp with Margot Flipse-Broeders at the Rotterdam Conservatory, where she graduated laude at the age of 16 (the youngest ever). At this age she taught at the Conservatory.
As a self-taught composer-arranger, she wrote many original works and arrangements for various brass combinations. Saskia Apon has arranged, among other things, for the:
Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra
Metro pool Orchestra
The Royal Mariniers Kapel
Brassband Rijnmond
She has also written for the Dutch Brass Championships.
She has also edited works by Prokofiev, about which she says "I chose to keep the visionary character of music in the first place. I don't want to copy music exactly for copper, but I've tried to keep the atmosphere and story behind the music. Furthermore, I focused on as many colours as possible that can be made by the ensemble. By adding melody percussion, euphonium, Flugelhorn, Wagner tuba and piccolo trumpet to the standard line-up, I tried to make the arrangements lively and colourful. I also wanted to achieve this with different dampers and by using many different instrumental combinations, muted or not. In the March and Scherzo arrangements, I emphasized the lightness of the music. In the Scherzo, the brilliance of the band is used to the maximum. In the Lieutenant Kije Suite, I tried to keep the illustrative character, the serenity in Kije's Birth followed by the festive Wedding, the beautiful Romance tune (bass trombone solo), and also the typical Troika Song."
Saskia has always composed from her soul and considered the possibilities of all instruments.
Because of this, her music is not always easy to play, it is fresh, thoughtful, and honest sincere music, which sounds beautiful when played in the way she intended.
Saskia was also not unknown to various amateur orchestras and, for example, in Hellevoetsluis, she directed and composed a piece about Jan Blanken.
On November 24, 2020, she died too early of a brain haemorrhage at the age of 63.
