Slowind is a woodwind quintet made up of soloists from the Slovene Philharmonic Orchestra - Aleš Kacjan - flute, Matej Šarc- oboe, Jurij Jenko - clarinet, Metod Tomac - horn and Paolo Calligaris - bassoon. The Quintet members have studied with prominent teachers such as Irena Grafenauer, Heinz Holliger, Vinko Globokar, Jean-Marc Volta and Stefano Canuti.
The repertoire of the Slowind ensemble includes both classical and 20th-century contemporary music, primarily recent works by modern composers. Slowind has performed at music festivals such as Ars Musica in Brussels (Belgium), the International Contemporary Music Festival in Opatija (Croatia), Musicora in Paris (France), Musica Danubiana and Slovene Music Days in Ljubljana (Slovenia), and the Twentieth Century Chamber Music Festival in Radenci (Slovenia). In 1999 Slowind participated at the 'Roaring Hoofs', the first international festival of western contemporary music and Mongolian national music in Ulaan Baatar, Mongolia. In 1999 and 2001 the ensemble toured the United States, and in 2002 it also ventured into Canada, presenting the most recent music by Slovene composers under the artistic mentorship of Robert Aitken in Toronto.
The Slowind Quintet runs its own concert series in Ljubljana, featuring international guest artists such as Aleksandar Madžar, Arvid Engegard, Diego Chenna, James Avery, Bernhard Wulff, Jorg Wyttenbach, Vinko Globokar and Heinz Holliger. It also gives woodwind masterclasses every summer in the medieval coastal town of Piran-Pirano. It has organised the annual Slowind Festival of Contemporary Music since 2003 and In October 2005 it co-operated with Accroche Note (France), SurPlus Ensemble (Germany) and conductors James Avery and Jurg Wittenbach. The Slowind Quintet received a Prešeren Award in 2003.
The Slowind Quartet has issued several CDs, including Made in America (live recordings), Slowind in Studio 14 (RTV), Composers of Our Time (live recording), and Chamber Music for Wind Instruments).