Going Dutch 2016-2019
A host of new discoveries and the return of long-time favourites….
Click or hover on the images below to see more information about the artists, and scroll down to the bottom to see the full list of performances
ICP ORCHESTRA
ICP is a mixed ensemble: part jazz band, part chamber orchestra. On stage, the space between Misha’s piano and Han’s drums is occupied by a thorny string trio: viola, cello and doublebass. Across from them is a five-piece horn section, three reeds and two brass. As in Ellington’s band, distinctive, individual players can merge beautifully on the written material.
Indeed, given their individuality, the blending is remarkable. Sleek-sounding Mary Oliver brings the conceptual rigor of new composed music to the strings; Tristan Honsinger is the anarchist, testing limits; Ernst Glerum with his deep woody bass tone anchors the string and rhythm sections.
ERIC VLOEIMANS’ OLIVER’S CINEMA
A huge hit with promoters at the JPN annual conference in June 2017, returned to Galway in October 2018 – plus solo appearances at Dartington in August : “With Oliver’s Cinema, trumpet star Vloeimans finds himself in a chamber-ish space, working intimate, elegant, and refined music into shape with cellist Jorg Brinkmann and accordionist Tuur Florizoone. Together, these three float, fly, dance, soothe, and seduce.”
Eric Vloeimans (1963) is an improvising trumpet player and composer who finds the term ‘jazz’ too restrictive for his music. His work is characterized by a melodic and lyrical power, and a characteristic, individual sound that is called velvety or whispering in the more subdued pieces. His motto is: ‘I make music for millions, but I haven’t reached all of them yet’. However, he never gives in to the taste of the general public, and always remains himself.
SANEM KALFA & GEORGE DUMITRIU
www.sanemkalfa.georgedumitriu.com
The Turkish influence in Sanem Kalfa’s vocals (and her electronics) and the Romanian roots of George Dumitriu (guitar, viola) have made a strong impression on the Netherlands’ diverse and adventurous scene and undoubtedly on JPN members’ during recent visits to Rotterdam.
Turkish yearning, Brazilian melancholy, Persian wisdom of universal love, and an Italian philosophical perspective of the 4 seasons root the creative explorations of DANCE. A touch of electronics transitions the sound of the album towards a hypnotic dimension, where songs are beautifully crafted by the Turkish-Romanian duo. The identity of the project is inspired by Rumi, “the prince of sufi poets”, and expresses a simple, intimate, and honest exploration of music in a rich melodical and creative way.
NORDANIANS
Brilliant trio with genius viola-ist Oene van Geel, tabla maestro Niti Ranjan Biswas and guitarist Mark Tuinstra – a fierce mix of cultures….” fireworks, u-turns and cinematic tearjerkers”!
They love to play with the three of them but they also play with special guests from around the globe such as Fraser Fifield whistle / pipes, Jorg Brinkmann cello, Maarten Ornstein bass clarinet, Theo Loevendie sop sax, Druba Ghosh sarangi, Bruno Ferro Xavier da Silva bass guitar, Barbara Schilstra (vocals), Bao Sisoko (kora) and Benedicte Maurseth hardanger fiddle.
TRISTAN
Dutch five-piece Tristan’s music can be best described as feel-good vintage Acid Jazz, with the energy, vibe and sounds of today, performed by some of the best contemporary pop/jazz musicians from Europe.
Funky rhythm guitars, Hammond, Fender Rhodes and synths, and a rhythm section that has been performing together for decades playing solid grooves and tight, punchy arrangements that have since become their trademark.
Kaja Draksler
Kaja Draksler (1987) is a Slovenian pianist and composer. After her studies in the Netherlands (BA in jazz piano and MA in classical composition), she decided to stay in Amsterdam, where she became an active member of the improvisors scene, performing extensively all over the Europe. Kaja is interested in finding ways to merge the composition and (free) improvisation by working with different structures and musical logics. In the spirit of the Dutch jazz/improvised music legacy, she is drawn to the idea of erasing the stylistic and historical musical borders, and discovering personal expression and language through composition and improvisation.
Kapok
The first thing you notice about Kapok is the unusual instrumentation. There is no bass, Remco Menting’s drum kit is one of a kind, and Timon Koomen conjures up colourful sound worlds on his guitar. You might know the French horn as an instrument from the classical tradition, but in the hands of Morris Kliphuis this is quickly forgotten. Kliphuis, one of the few jazz hornists in the world, sings, growls and grooves on his instrument as if it was made for jazz. Onstage, the band interprets every song anew, which means no two concerts are ever alike.
HERMINE DEURLOO / REMBRANDT FRERICHS QUARTET
hermine-deurloo-rembrandt-frerichs
The remarkable chromatic harmonica player (undoubtedly the hit of the jazzahead showcase programme 2018 and of InJazz, Rotterdam) with award-winning pianist Rembrandt Frerichs, plus double bass drums – a band that proved perfect for Going Dutch and UK/Irish audiences. Hermine Deurloo also played the Ambleside Days festival in 2019 in collaboration with UK artists.
Sun-Mi Hong Quintet
A compelling new talent causing a big stir in the Netherlands, drummer Sun-Mi brings her international quintet and compositions to the heart of England’s jazz scene. After the debut album launch in 2017, her quintet has become a recognized and award winning ensemble that stretches the sonic envelope. Sitting on the periphery of tradition while often dipping her toes into the avant-garde, Sun-Mi is set on delivering a highly personal second album.
The album itself is aiming to toy with the emotions of the listener, as if walking through life’s swings and roundabouts. The compositions reflect moments of Sun-m’s past told in a present tense. These moments are not told through the actions of what happened, but more the feelings that happened. Sun-Mi is quite open with the fact that moving to Europe was a struggle in many ways. But also simply the greatest and most rewarding decision she ever made. This struggle colliding with the sheer elation of feeling welcome is reflected in the song writing.
Wolter Wierbos
Celebrated European trombone maestro Wierbos (also heard with ICP Orchestra and many others) brought his solo show and collaborations with UK improvisers.
Wolter Wierbos is considered one of the world’s leading trombone players. He has played throughout Europe, Canada, USA and Asia. Wierbos has many awards to his name, including the Podiumprijs for Jazz and Improvised music and the most important Dutch jazz award, the VPRO Boy Edgar Prize.
EvenSanne
EvenSanne started off as a duo in 2013 and developed into a quartet, culminating in the Edison Award nominated album What If (2017). Since then they have parted ways to pursue other projects.
Performances for the Going Dutch Project took place at Leeds College of Music and Manchester Jazz Festival.
JOOST LIJBAART’S UNDER THE SURFACE
Drummer Lijbaart (known for his work with Yuri Honing amongst others) with his new trio featuring Sanne Rambags (vocals) and Bram Stadhouders (guitar and electronics). The trio met in 2015 as an initiative of the Dutch foundation Beaux Jazz. This foundation offers young talents artistic support.
Their debut album was released in March 2017 on the Dutch label Challenge Records and got great reviews. The universal language in their music brought the group to major festivals in Mali, Mexico, China, Norway, India and the Netherlands. Drummer Joost Lijbaart (Amsterdam 1967) belongs to the top of the Dutch jazz scene, Bram Stadhouders (Tilburg 1987) is one of the most promising new young musicians in the European improvisation circuit and he received many awards and Sanne Rambags (Tilburg 1994) is one of the few singers of her generation who is able to improvise in a very open way, sometimes with self-written texts and poems, sometimes by positioning herself completely between the musicians.
NANI-NOAM VAZANA
Unique and multi-talented singer, pianist, trombonist with a multi-ethnic background and a musical programme to match, as seen and heard at jazzahead 2018 – in a new Going Dutch collaboration Both Sides of Africa with UK project partner Abel Selacoe – a project co-funded by Arts Council England which premiered at Manchester Jazz Festival in 2019.
LO-LANDERS
THE FIRST FULL-SCALE GOING DUTCH/JPN COLLABORATION BAND
Oene Van Geel/Fraser Fifield Scottish/Dutch Sextet
LoLanders rehearsed and devised new music in January 2019 and premiered at Celtic Connections, Glasgow on 22 January. This new Scottish/Dutch sextet went on to tour England, Scotland and the Netherlands in summer 2019 and plan to tour again in future.
Co-funded by Creative Scotland
Dominic J Marshall Dutch Trio
Dominic J Marshall has been sharing his life between the UK and Holland and so has been running two line-ups in parallel. ‘The Triolithic’ brings these two ensembles and experiences together for the first time – “A jazz‐record that twirls with energy” (NRC)
TIN MEN AND THE TELEPHONE
The piano trio that brought the smartphone into jazz – rave reviews from Ronnie Scott’s and Gateshead Jazz Festival amongst others – they also travelled back to the UK on several occasions to work on their new digital project.
See all Going Dutch performances