Concerts

Fred Hersch / Louis Sclavis Quintet - Lost on the way

2010-02-24T15:26:17+01:00

Vibrant folk songs alternate with elegant, zigzagging melodies and phrases with jagged rhythms. You can’t compare this music to anything else. “It’s poetic and explosive, and remarkable for its beautifully sculpted melodies and its young energy”, wrote De Standaard journalist Karel Van Keymeulen about Sclavis’s latest album L’imparfait de Langues, which he recorded in one single day. Sclavis effortlessly switches between powerful themes and subtle rhythms, without ever losing track of detail. On his latest album, Lost on the Way (on ECM), he unites young musicians from varied musical backgrounds and takes the listener on a trip to different worlds. With this new project, Louis Sclavis proves once again that he is one of the most captivating jazz composers / musicians of his time.

With an extra concert of Fred Hersch!

Mr Scruff

2010-02-02T14:44:17+01:00

Join us for an eclectic celebration injected with Latin music, African beats, jazz, reggae, hip hop, broken beats and dubstep. Mr Scruff is one of English label Ninja Tune’s biggest names, scoring hits such as ‘Get a Move On’ – featuring an unforgettable Moondog sample) and ‘Get on Down’.

Café Dansant: The Valerie Solanas & The Hired Guns + dj Ivan Scheldeman

2010-01-12T18:18:29+01:00

The sound of The Valerie Solanas is not easily categorized. It’s a blend of pop, jazz, swing, country, blues and big band music. The vocals and lyrics by Michaël Brijs – close your eyes and you think you’re listening to Frank Sinatra – provide a unique touch. They used to be a crooner cover band, but now they are more like crooners on acid!

On special occasions, Michaël Brijs (Andy and the Androids), guitarist Tom Tiest (Jan Fabre, Noppes, Trio Pino), bass player Filip Vandebril (Laïs, Antwerp Gipsy Ska Orchestra) and drummer Diederik van Remoortere (Electric Quartet, Squeezable Future, Lampekap Collectief) are joined on stage by Hired Guns, a three-piece horn section with all the energy of a complete big band.

DO IT YOURSELF!
Join us for a dance class from 13:00 to 15:00. Price: € 5 per person, registering is recommended. The ideal start for absolute beginners, dance aficionados, and a great way to brush up on your dance moves.

Lee 'Scratch' Perry Birthday Party & friends

2010-02-17T18:20:19+01:00

Dub and reggae genius Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry is probably the most influential living reggae artist in history. He has produced big names such as Prince Buster, The Skatalites, I-Roy and U-Roy and prepared Bob Marley for international fame. Perry has worked with The Clash, Robert Palmer, Moby, Beastie Boys and Paul McCartney. His influence as a pioneer of dub (remixed and manipulated reggae) is immense. Without ‘Scratch’, hip hop and dance would sound completely different. A selection of some of his most renowned productions include: ‘Chase The Devil’ by Max Romeo, sampled by The Prodigy in ‘Out of Space’ and ‘Heart of the Congos’ by The Congos, often cited as one of the best reggae albums of all time.

At the beginning of his 75th year, Perry has gathered some of his finest colleagues who will pay tribute to his work, consisting of over 3000 songs. He will be joined by On-U Sound producer Adrian Sherwood, the magnificent Congos and Max Romeo – a living legend, so don’t miss this unique chance of seeing him live!

Jazz & Sounds / Open Lab

2010-01-25T11:00:31+01:00

Researchers from the Ghent Conservatory (Hogeschool Gent) create a programme with their artistic experiments. Laura Maes her project ‘Oorwonde’ (ear wound) makes you feel and hear the soundtrack of a fictitious operation! Olmo Cornelis serves us his latest composition ‘Nelumbo’ where the voice is adjusted in real-time by the movements of the performers through sensors. Hans Roels lets some musicians demonstrate what a strange term like ‘hyper polyphony’ can mean musically. Liselotte Sels confronts the Western ear with various manifestations of Turkish folk music in Turkey and Ghent with each other. Daan Janssens lets Katrien Gaelens perform one of his solo flute works in which the transformation of timbre plays a prominent role.

Jazz & Sounds / Impressions of a Blue Kind

2010-01-25T11:01:10+01:00

Students of the Conservatories of Ghent, Tilburg and Maastricht directed by Wolfgang Braun.

Miles Davis ‘So What’ meets Claude Debussy’s ‘Arabesque No. 1’.

Impressions of a Blue Kind is an exceptionally ambitious project. Six composers — students of Wolfgang Braun of the Conservatory of Maastricht — wrote pieces for orchestra, joining an impressive thirty musicians. Their task was to blend “Kind of blue” (the most famous Miles Davis recording from 1959) together with Impressionism. All themes will not be merely arranged: the composers used improvised recorded material, such as Bill Evans’ piano accompaniments, beside own ideas to develop something new and colourful.

Jazz & Sounds / De Hedendaagse klarinet in kamermuziek

2010-01-25T12:00:48+01:00

Chamber music students of the University College Ghent Conservatory directed by Filip Rathé and Kris Deprey. Soloist of the Brussels Philharmonic with Eddy Van Oosthuyze, clarinet

Two soloists, one singing clarinet.

Soloists of the Brussels Philharmonic perform together with Eddy Van Oosthuyze on clarinet the ‘Clarinet Quintet’ of the Finnish composer Magnus Lindberg en ‘Gumboots’ for Clarinet and String Quartet of he British-American composer David Bruce. Furthermore two masterpieces of Steve Reich, one of the most prominent American minimalists: ‘New York Counterpoint’ for solo-clarinet (Kris Deprey) and tape and ‘Eight Lines’ for ensemble.

Taxi Taxi / Isbells

2009-12-16T16:59:36+01:00

TAXI TAXI

If you like CocoRosie, Emiliana Torini and Joanna Newsom, you’ll certainly like the charming folk songs of Taxi Taxi. Swedish twin sisters Johanna and Miriam Eriksson Berhan are barely 20, but have already performed at Roskilde in Denmark, one of Europe’s biggest festivals, as well as at the Feeërieën at the AB in Brussels and have toured with Efterklang. The Swedish girl duo also released their 2007 debut EP on the record label of the latter. Their debut album ‘Still Standing At Your Back Door’ was released in late 2009.

“a tender treat for the ears” – from a five star review on soundslike.be

ISBELLS

Isbells was definitely one of 2009’s musical discoveries. Their tender songs on acoustic guitar and wonderful vocal harmonies bring to mind the late troubadour Nick Drake and Fleet Foxes. The perfect music to shake off the winter cold and hail in the spring!

“When we first heard a demo of Isbells four months ago, it sent shivers down our spine: pure songs with enchanting vocals, in which hope and doubt perform a shadow dance. Beautiful!”- Humo

Jazz & Sounds / dag 1 Vooruit

2010-03-08T12:19:16+01:00

18:30 Brugzaal – Docu Han Bennink: ‘Hazentijd’
20:00 Balzaal – Ben Sluijs, Jules Deelder & Remco Campert
20:00 Domzaal – Colin Stetson
21:00 Theaterzaal – Erik Truffaz / Malcolm Braff
22:30 Balzaal – Hairy Bones: Peter Brötzmann / Toshinoro Kondo / Massimo Pupillo / Paal Nilssen-love
and with performances KASK parcours throughout Vooruit

You’d like 4 days of Jazz & Sounds? With the 4day ticket you can go to all the concerts at Vooruit, Muziekcentrum De Bijloke and the conservatorium. Get the 4day ticket for €60 (€ 65 adk)

You’d like the 2 days at Vooruit? Get the 2day ticket for €35 (€40 adk)

Docu Han Bennink: ‘Hazentijd’

A documentary on artist and drummer Han Bennink

Han Bennink is a double talent: the global citizen who has over 40 years playing drums with everyone that matters in jazz and improvised music. He’s also the hermit who likes to work on his art in peace and quiet at his house in the Beemster, Amsterdam.

Han Bennink is a remarkable man. The drummer with a rare sense of timing and an incredible swing that is understood in both downtown New York as well as in the middle of Africa. His energy and dedication still remains in full force and is more focused than ever. He became a drummer because he stuttered and found it hard to express himself. Now that he is almost 65 years old he is verbally very clear. His fresh look at the world is inspiring, especially for the younger generation.

The film features a man who is a monument on the Dutch jazz scene simultaneously flowing with youthful hubris and still entering new paths – both in his music and his art.

Han is primarily known as a percussionist. He also has worked from age twenty as a visual artist. With a steadily growing body of work, both in The Netherlands and abroad, Han Bennink is frequently exhibited. There is not one without the other.

Jellie Dekker (director)

www.hanbennink.com

Ben Sluijs – Jules Deelder – Remco Campert

20:00 Balzaal

Music and literature are often united on stage, but this time the music plays first violin. On March 25, 2010 two poets and a musician find each other in their love for jazz.

Whoever hears jazz and literature, they think immediately of notorious jazz connoisseur and poet Jules Deelder. This author/actor fires off his staccato lyrics into the audience, occasionally with a big focus.

Similarly Remco Campert’s style is characterized by short sentences, simple word choice and that which keeps imagery to a minimum. He also written several poems tied to jazz – you can almost hear the sax in the background. Ben Sluijs, one of the greatest saxophone talents that Flanders has delivers rich tones, bringing the sax all the way to the forefront.

Ben Sluijs (saxophone), Jules Deelder (poetry), Remco Campert (poetry)

Colin Stetson

20:00 Domzaal

The Roger Federer of instrumental avant-garde music.

Tom Waits, TV on the Radio, Feist, Bon Iver, Laurie Anderson, David Byrne, Jolie Holland, Sinéad O’Connor, LCD Soundsystem and Anthony Braxton; the list of artists that saxophonist Colin Stetson has worked with is impressive. In addition, he has also played in rock bands such as Bell Orchestre and the Arcade Fire.

But is he mostly known for his performance of ‘solo saxophone music of New History Warfare’ in concert halls across the US and his appearances at Barack Obama’s campaign meetings. He’s often referred to ‘the Roger Federer of instrumental avant-garde music.’ This year, he played at the Melbourne International Jazz Festival and the Moers Jazz Festival and toured with Sway Machinery, Bell Orchestre and The National. “Colin Stetson is an absolute master of the saxophone. (…) New History Warfare, Vol. 1 is a truly impressive (…) and highly individual musical statement. (…) Stetson’s compositions and ability to tell a musical story are what make this a great album. You haven’t heard saxophone music quite like this.”- (Allmusic.com)

Colin Stetson (saxophone)

www.colinstetson.com

Erik Truffaz / Malcolm Braff

21:00 Theaterzaal

Trumpeter Erik Truffaz is not afraid to explore new paths now and then. He likes to experiment with rock, electro and even hip hop. He is probably most well-known for his collaboration with pop singer Ed Harcourt on 2007’s ‘Arkhangelsk’. One year later, Truffaz released the three-part album ‘Rendez-Vous’, for which he travelled to Paris, Mexico and Varanasi (India). For this last part of the album he was assisted by Brazilian/Swiss pianist Malcolm Braff. Braff studied classical music but fell in love with the freedom and the creativity of jazz music at the 1989 Montreux Jazz Festival. Braff has a passion for rhythm and improvisation. His masterpiece is a tribute to composer György Ligeti.

In 2008, Truffaz released the three-part album ‘Rendez-Vous’, for which he travelled to Paris, Mexico and Varanasi. For this last part of the album he was assisted by Brazilian/Swiss pianist Malcolm Braff. When Truffaz and Braff are on stage together, there is chemistry in the air!

Erik Truffaz (trumpet) & Malcolm Braff (piano)

Hairy Bones: Peter Brötzmann / Toshinoro Kondo / Massimo Pupillo / Paal Nilssen-love

22:30 Balzaal

Four charismatic, strenuous and energetic musicians. Their concerts are always dynamic and exciting, without losing track of technical virtuosity.

Hairy Bones brings together four charismatic, strenuous and energetic musicians. Their concerts are always dynamic and exciting, without losing track of technical virtuosity. The raw energy oozing from their eponymous album, a live registration of an Amsterdam concert, makes you wish you were there. So don’t miss this chance to see the band live at Jazz & Sounds. Kondo and Brötzman previously played in the mythical Albert Ayler tribute band Die Like a Dog. In Hairy Bones, Nilssen-Love’s driving drum rhythms and Pupillo’s (Zu) groove bass give an added dimension to Brötzman’s warm melodies and Kondo’s electric trumpet. Hairy Bones makes you want to shake your hips!

Peter Brötzmann (saxophone & clarinet), Toshinori Kondo (trumpet), Massimo Pupillo (bass) & Paal Nilssen-Love (drums)

Ill City: The opposites / support: NAG

2010-03-10T15:42:57+01:00

No English text available

Jazz & Sounds / Paneldiscussie over artistiek onderzoek

2010-01-25T12:01:14+01:00

Artistic research raises several questions. The artistic aspect is not always easy to reconcile with the scientific research done in universities. On the other hand some artists find that research interferes with the authentic experience of art. Enough reasons to put together a discussion panel with Luk Vaes (pianist, November Music, Orpheus Institute), Peter Swinnen (composer, Royal Conservatory Brussels), Florian Heyerick (conductor, Hogent) and Jean Paul Van Bendegem (philosopher, VUB). Marc Leman (IPEM-UGent) is the discussion leader.

Jazz & Sounds / dag 2 Vooruit

2010-02-26T11:59:42+01:00

20:00 Domzaal – Eric Thielemans & Josse De Pauw: Rops Snare
20:00 Balzaal – Joëlle Léandre
21:00 Theaterzaal – Flat Earth Society feat. John Watts
22:30 Balzaal – Elliott Sharp’s Carbon
and with performances KASK parcours through Vooruit

You’d like 4 days of Jazz & Sounds? With the 4day ticket you can go to all the concerts at Vooruit, Muziekcentrum De Bijloke and the conservatorium. Get the 4day ticket for €60 (€ 65 adk)

You’d like the 2 days at Vooruit? Get the 2day ticket for €35 (€40 adk)

Eric Thielemans & Josse De Pauw: Rops Snare

20:00 Balzaal

Actor/author Josse De Pauw and drummer Eric Thielemans guide you through a surreal story, a magical experience.

Actor/author Josse De Pauw and drummer Eric Thielemans first met each other during the rehearsals of Liefde/Zijn Handen, a performance by De Pauw for LOD with music by Jan Kuijken. During several late night talks, they discovered that they had a lot in common on a creative and personal level, and decided to work together. Rops Snare was born. The basis for the collaboration is a free verse poem written by De Pauw about the birth, life and the slaughter of a pig, it is not surprising that the story is told by the pig itself. As the text is inspired by Pornocrates, the colour etch by the Belgian painter Félicien Rops.

Thielemans accompanies De Pauw with perscussion, and at the end of the story (the pig is lashed to a ladder as his soul floats towards the skies above the snowy fields) Thielemans commences his. What follows is the steady crescendo of death. As the snare drum ruffles and rolls, the overtones are amplified by the voices of Eric and Josse.

Eric Thielemans (drums & percussion) & Josse De Pauw (spoken word)

www.myspace.com/ericthielemans

Joëlle Léandre

20:00 Domzaal

One of the leading figures of contemporary European jazz. Several composers, including John Cage, Giacinto Scelsi and Steve Lacy, have written music especially for her.

French double bass player Joëlle Léandre is one of the leading figures of contemporary European jazz. Several composers, including John Cage, Giacinto Scelsi and Steve Lacy, have written music especially for her. She has performed live with some of jazz’s biggest names, such as Derek Bailey, Anthony Braxton, Evan Parker, Fred Frith, John Zorn, etc. She has also composed scores for plays and dance performances herself. In her career of nearly 30 years, she has already made more than 150 recordings. She’s a member of the European Women’s Improvising Group and the feminist improvisation trio Les Diaboliques. As Les domestiques( with Jon Rose) she made one of the weirdest records ever: a collection of domestic noises set to musical effect.

Joëlle Léandre (double bass)

www.joelle-leandre.com

Flat Earth Society feat. John Watts

21:00 Theaterzaal

Premiere of the remarkable collaboration Flat Earth Society and John Watts, singer and guitarist of legendary rock band Fisher Z.

A big band and an old rocker? It works, as Flat Earth Society proves with John Watts, singer and guitarist of legendary rock band Fisher Z. At Jazz & Sounds, you can catch the premiere of this remarkable collaboration. What to expect? Old Fisher Z tracks newly arranged by FES head honcho Peter Vermeersch, old FES songs that have been refreshed and new FES songs with lyrics by John Watts.

Peter Vermeersch (clarinet), Bart Maris & Luc Van Lieshout (trumpet), Peter Vandenberghe (keyboards), Kristof Roseeuw (double bass), Marc Meeuwissen & Stefaan Blancke (trombone), Berlinde Deman (tuba), Tom Wouters (clarinet, vibraphone & percussion), Michel Mast (tenor saxophone), Bruno Vansina (baritone saxophone & flute), Benjamin Boutreur (alto saxophone), Wim Willaert (keyboards & accordion), Teun Verbruggen (percussion), Pierre Vervloesem (guitar) & John Watts (vocals & guitar)

Elliott Sharp’s Carbon

22:30 Balzaal

We had to wait more than 15 years, but in 2009 guitarist Elliot Sharp and his experimental rock band Carbon finally released their new album.

We had to wait more than 15 years, but in 2009 guitarist Elliot Sharp and his experimental rock band Carbon finally released their new album. Sharp has been one of the most important figures of the downtown New York experimental music scene, which constantly seeks to renew itself. Sharp calls himself a music and science nerd because he tries to apply geometrical concepts, genetic metaphors and even chaos theory to his music. He also likes to broadenhis horizons regularly by working with African musicians, such as Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and pop stars like Debbie Harry. For Carbon, he uses his guitar as a percussion instrument and creates a raw and dark sound. Zeena Parkins is another important figure in Carbon, not only as a harpist in a rock band, but also because of her past work with Björk, Jim O’ Rourke, Lee Ranaldo, Nels Cline and Courtney Love’s Hole.

Elliott Sharp (guitar), Zeena Parkins (harp), David Weinstein (electronics), Marc Sloan (bass) & Joseph Trump (drums)

www.panix.com/~esharp

Mintzkov / Waldorf

2010-03-15T19:07:31+01:00

Vibrant Belgian indie rock!

“Rising sun, setting sun” is an album with not one bad song or weak moment, and we can honestly say it’s near perfection. Worth a 5-star rating, and that should say enough.” – Cutting Edge

Jazz & Sounds / dag 1 Muziekcentrum De Bijloke

2010-01-25T12:10:30+01:00

16:00 Bibliotheek (for free) – Documentary Joëlle Léandre Continue Basse
18:00, continuously Bibliotheek – Documentary Charlie Haden
17:50 & 19:30 Mezzanine – Foyer – Françoise Vanhecke, More than a voice
18:00 Concertzaal – Sophie Alour – Jozef Dumoulin – Dré Pallemaerts
20:00 Kraakhuis – Ernst Reijseger
20:00 Auditorium – Re:new Music
20:00 Toegangsgebouw – B3B: Fred Van Hove/ Wilbert de Joode / Barry Guy
20:00 Bibliotheek – Project El Negocito Records/Logos: human and machine
21:00 Toegangsgebouw – Julius Eastman’s STAY ON IT olv Alexandros Markeas
21:30 Toegangsgebouw – Improvisation workshop Joëlle Léandre
22:00 Concertzaal – Miroslav Vitous ‘Remembering Weather Report’

You’d like 4 days of Jazz & Sounds? With the 4day ticket you can go to all the concerts at Vooruit, Muziekcentrum De Bijloke and the conservatorium. Get the 4day ticket for €60 (€ 65 adk)

You’d like the 2 days at Muziekcentrum De Bijloke? Get the 2day ticket for €35 (€40 adk)

Documentary Joëlle Léandre Continue Basse

16:00 Bibliotheek, Muziekcentrum De Bijloke, for free

Directed by Christine Baudillon, and shot by her and Francois Lagarde, the documentary follows Leandre during the past two years—at in her home in Paris and country home in South France, her residence at Mills College in California, various musical meetings throughout France and Belgium and her tour in Israel.

The articulate and passionate Leandre shares her passion and her uncompromising conviction on behalf of her art—and commitment to free improvisation—in a series of anecdotes, interviews and daily chats with friends and associates. She speaks about the formative influence of iconoclastic free-thinkers and composers such as John Cage and Giancinto Scelci, the exemplary role of Derek Bailey, and the egalitarian and urgent character of genuinely free improvisation. She is seen and heard while discussing its burning passion, the never-ending, chaotic and serendipitous manner of finding one’s way, the need to look and be open for the unknown, and the scarcity of like-minded musicians (even this writer was captured in a brief scene, attempting to compare the state of mind of the free improviser as described by the artist with the Buddhist notion of emptiness). As a kind of summary of her art, he states: “improvisation is life.”

Christine Baudillon (director)

naar boven

Documentary: Charlie Haden – Rambling Boy

18:00 continuously in de Bibliotheek, Muziekcentrum De Bijloke

A documentary film by Reto Caduff.

Throughout his career, Haden has constantly sought to transcend the boundaries of modern music. Widely considered to be among the greatest ever jazz bassists, Haden has contributed pivotal music to a stunning scope of genres: avant-garde, small group, big band, world music, folk and gospel, to name but a few.

Haden’s deep resonance and rich melodicism helped Ornette Coleman introduce free jazz in the ‘60s. And it was his collaboration with Coleman that has put Haden on the map since then. In a career spanning five decades, Haden continues to create music that is at once revolutionary and uplifting.

He later led the Liberation Music Orchestra and formed his own Quartet West. Furthermore, he collaborated with jazz greats like Keith Jarrett and Pat Metheny and many others. His latest album titled Rambling Boy looks back at the americana and bluegrass he heard as a child on the radio.

From the get-go it was clear for both director and subject that the film had to go beyond the generic filmed music story: an intimate look at the music and life of one of the most inspiring and influential jazz musicians. With access to Haden’s own personal archive, film sequences shot during concerts and recording sessions, interviews with an incredible selection of friends and collaborators and great archival footage, the documentary will please diehard jazz fans as well as the newly initiated.

www.charliehadenfilm.com

Françoise Vanhecke, More than a voice…Much more

17:50 & 19:30 Mezzanine – Foyer, Muziekcentrum De Bijloke

Françoise Vanhecke, more than a voice..much more. She is a ‘soprano’ with many aspects. She is a contemporay, daring, power performing & creative artist.

Françoise Vanhecke is a versatile soprano, vocal artist, pianist, actress, vocal coach, as well as a composer (Irma Bilbao). She has perfected her art among top international artists and has been awarded with a number of varied prizes. She has performed in concerts throughout the world, working closely with composers. She is praised for her interpretations of contemporary music and invited invited to appear in modern works from song to opera. She is also a wonderful improvisator. She recieved a golden Palm at the Concorso Finale in Ligure (Italy) and the Orpheus competition reward for contemporary chamber music. She is a well known as the interpreter of Schönberg’s Pierrot Lunaire. Her first performance of this work was under the baton of Peter Eötvös at the Bartok Festival in Szombathehy, Hungary. Henceforth she performed Pierrot Lunaire throughout Europe and Brasil. She made several recordings of contemporary music for many different labels. In 2003 Françoise Vanhecke recieved a grant from the New York Women Composers Association. As a vocal coach she gives masterclasses all over the world.

Programma:
Cage, Aria
Berio, Sequenza III
Cathy Berberian, Stripsody

Françoise Vanhecke (vocals)

www.francoisevanhecke.be

Sophie Alour – Jozef Dumoulin – Dré Pallemaerts

18:00 Concertzaal, Muziekcentrum De Bijloke

In collaboration with the Tourcoing Jazz Festival the Jazz & Sounds Festival presents the opportunity for a French and a Belgian musician to work out something together, a creation as it’s called in musical terminology. The French saxophonist Sophie Alour developed ideas together with Belgian pianist Jozef Dumoulin: a project for the two festivals with drummer Dré Pallemaerts invited to strengthen the whole.

The young French saxophonist Sophie Alour started playing saxophone at age 19 after she had earlier focused on the clarinet. In 2000 she played in a sextet which included among others Stéphane Belmondo and later was in Le Vintage Orchestra. She founded her own quartet and she won the France’s Django D’or for young talent in 2007.

Fender Rhodes pianist Jozef Dumoulin is a specialist well known as one of the most active Belgian jazz musicians. He plays in bands like Octurn, Mâäk’s Spirit, Othin Spake and Lidlboj. Drummer Dre Pallemaerts hardly needs an introduction. He became one of the faces of Belgian jazz and also feels perfectly at home on the French jazz scene.

Co-production Tourcoing Jazz Festival and Jazz & Sounds Festival.
p(credits). Sophie Alour (saxophone), Jozef Dumoulin (keyboards & Fender Rhodes), Dré Pallemaerts (drums)

Ernst Reijseger

20:00 Kraakhuis, Muziekcentrum De Bijloke

For some musicians, a career as a soloist is something they may plan towards the end of their career. It may be seen as a separate effort, a challenge to see whether one can manage to go it alone on a stage. Others however are born soloists. To be performing single is a pleasure for them, just playing unaccompanied is something natural. Ernst Reijseger belongs to this latter category.

Reijseger is one with his cello. The instrument sticks to his body and he uses it as a percussion instrument. He handles it as a flamenco guitar without gimmick but with a great sense of musicality which he controls to perfection. When Reijseger plays a cello sonata by Bach with the bow inverted he is not trying to be funny, though it can seem amusing or blasphemous. He does this because he thinks the sonata also sounds nice that way.

Besides being an inspired soloist, Ernst Reijseger is a great improviser. The melodies swirl through his head; when he switches from one technology to another, smooth musical lines are interspersed with fiery pizzicatos. His training as a classical cellist, came through lessons with Anner Bijlsma, one of the most accomplished cello players ever. This allows him to deal with all those different worlds in a very creative way, much to the delight of listeners.

Ernst Reijseger (cello)

www.ernstreijseger.com

Re:new Music

20:00 Auditorium, Muziekcentrum De Bijloke

The SPECTRA Ensemble conducted by Filip Rathé.

D’un rêve parti: lost dream or rave party?

The SPECTRA Ensemble performs work by two composers with roots in the improvisation scene: ‘D’un Rêve Parti’ by Bruno Mantovani refers to a rave party whereas Alexandros Markeas’ ‘Zapping’ is a dialogue between a solo percussionist and his video-mirror image. In ‘The tool from light’ by Grzegorz Duchnowski and in ‘Spiegelbilder’ by Isabel Mundry the russian bayan is the main instrument. These works are part of the European Re:new music project.

B3B: Fred Van Hove/ Wilbert de Joode / Barry Guy

20:00 Toegangsgebouw, Muziekcentrum De Bijloke

Three shrewd musicians together in an equally unusual and adventurous combination.

Fred Van Hove (B, 1937) belongs to a select little group of musical pioneers who put the new improvised music on the world map in the sixties and seventies and has since then continued to reinvent musical forms of expression.

He formed part of the historic trio with Peter Brötzmann and Han Bennink, put together an endless series of pairs (Braxton, Mangelsdorff, Lacy…), and was the revolutionary force behind the Werkgroep Improviserende Musici (Working Group of Improvising Musicians) and the Free Music Festival. In the U.S. and Japan, he is invariably described as “legendary” but in his own country he is all too rarely heard.

Barry Guy (UK, 1947) has been walking the fine line between composition and improvisation for over 40 years now. His interest extends from early music to improvised. He was a companion during the early days of Evan Parker, Derek Bailey & Co. and the man behind the impressive London Jazz Composers Orchestra, now theBarryGuyNewOrchestra.

In 1988 he played a prominent role in the historic festival with pianist Cecil Taylor in Berlin.

Wilbert de Joode (NL, 1955) is among the cream of the crop on the adventurous Amsterdam scene. He’s known to many as the permanent bassist of the ensembles of Michiel Braam, Ab Baars and Eric Boeren. The powerful and distinct sound of his bass (with gut strings) graced numerous international collaborations, including some with Ken Vandermark, and closer to home, Bart Maris.

All three are known for their compelling solo concerts. Now Fred Van Hove has united them in this unique trio displaying an unprecedented abundance of strings.

Fred Van Hove (piano), Wilbert de Joode (double bass), Barry Guy (double bass)

Project El Negocito Records/Logos: human and machine

20:00 Bibliotheek, Muziekcentrum De Bijloke

El Negocito is a Belgian label for alternative improvised music and a spin off of club/café El Negocito based in Ghent. This particular project is all about the interaction between an active musician on the new label and a musical machine of the Logos Foundation. On Saturday and Sunday 2 different duos are presented. The form in which these meetings take place resembles a workspace of rapprochement not necessarily built on a harmonious plan but which unfolds itself through the 2 facets of human and machine. The way to deal with this game, or call it research, can be very intuitive especially if improvisation is the key approach. The quest for sound is similar to pure reason, a language that remains cryptic but understandable to everyone. The musicians involved are Giovanni Barcella, Eli Van De Vondel, Manolo Cabras en Daniel Pastene.

Giovanni Barcella is an extravagant Italian jazz drummer based in Ghent. He represents a poetic perspective on the necessity of jazz as a dissident force, jazz which reacts to the problematic view of most music we hear. Eli Van de Vondelis, is not only the founder of CiCiliC Record, Mahaworks and a lot of other initiatives, he is also a sensitive left-handed guitar player who always explores the ways to drop the ego in order to benefit the whole. He tries to create time, space and opportunities in which his personal music visions can develop and are liberated and freed from commercial oppression, stereotypical aesthetics and common habits. Manolo Cabras was born in Cagliari and studied classical violin at the conservatory where he learned to compose in an experimental way. With the lapse of time he swapped the violin for a burly double bass and made the change-over from classical music to jazz. Daniel Pastene initially studied clarinet for 3 years in Chile with Francisco Gouet and then enrolled at Ghent University College Faculty of Music where he got his master’s degree in advanced composition.

Foundation Logos has been involved for forty years with the production of experimental music and sound art. With Ghent as a homebase, Foundation Logos travels around the world with performances such as Logos Duo, a pneumaphone project and the M&M Orchestra. The showpieces are 43 musical robots which interact with their surroundings via all sorts of sensors. These unique instruments were designed and developed by Godfried-Willem Raes and are considered to be some of the most sophisticated music robots worldwide. For this performance some robots will create music together with the musicians. Composers/programmers Kristof Lauwers, Troy Rogers and Yvan Vander Sanden take care of the technical production of this project.

Giovanni Barcella (drums), Eli Van de Vondel (guitar), Manolo Cabras (double bass), Daniel Pastene (clarinet)

Julius Eastman’s STAY ON IT directed by Alexandros Markeas

21:00 Toegangsgebouw, Muziekcentrum De Bijloke

Students of Classical Music and Jazz of the University College Ghent Conservatory directed by Alexandros Markeas.

Julius Eastman — rebel composer of among others Evil Nigger and Gay Guerilla — blends in STAY ON IT minimalism with seventies pop music.

Julius Eastman was an African-American composer, pianist, vocalist, and dancer of minimalist tendencies. His music was among the first to combine minimalist processes with elements of pop music, and he often gave his pieces titles of provocative political intent, such as Evil Nigger and Gay Guerrilla. His semi-improvised work STAY ON IT, will be performed by students directed by the French-Greek composer-improviser Alexandros Markeas.

Improvisation-workshop Joëlle Léandre

21:30 Toegangsgebouw, Muziekcentrum De Bijloke

Students of Classical Music and Jazz of the University College Ghent Conservatory directed by Joëlle Léandre.

Joëlle Léandre, master improviser in Jazz as well as Contemporary music, presents the results of week’s workshop.

French double bass player, improviser and composer, Joëlle Léandre is one of the dominant figures of the new European music. She has played with some of the great names in jazz and improvisation, such as Anthony Braxton and John Zorn. She equally worked with important figures in the contemporary music scene such as Pierre Boulez and John Cage. On Jazz & Sounds she will present the results of a week’s workshop on improvisation with conservatory students classical music and jazz.

Miroslav Vitous ‘Remembering Weather Report’

22:00 Concertzaal, Muziekcentrum De Bijloke

Miroslav Vitous looks back on his early days in the influential fusion band Weather Report.

Vitous began playing violin at a young age, then switched over to the piano but eventually chose the double bass. In the mid 60s he moved to New York where he quickly became part of the vibrant New York scene.

Composer and bassist Miroslav Vitous is known mainly as a co-founder of the fusion band Weather Report together with Wayne Shorter and Joe Zaniwul. Weather Report was in the 70s popular with their mix of jazz, latin jazz, funk, rock and R&B.

Last year he released the album Remembering Weather Report. He said the following about the album: ’’This album was created in memory of my time with Weather Report. The intention is not to play Weather Report repertoire, but to play new material under the concept that I brought in the group in 1970. Namely, direct conversation and equality between the instruments.” The material on the album, with the exception of his variations on Ornette Coleman’s “Lonely Woman”, are composed by Vitous, including tributes to Joe Zawinul and Wayne Shorter.

Nowadays his quartet is formed by tenor saxophonist Gary Campbell, Franco Ambrosetti on trumpet and Gerald Cleaver on drums.

The newspaper De Standaard described the sound of the quartet on the album Remembering Weather Report as follows: In Vitous Quartet grows a kind of free conversation, in which he emerges as a virtuoso on bowed bass. The tenor sax of Gary Campbell, Gerald Cleavers crispy drums and the clarion-like trumpet lines of Franco Ambrosetti all sound inspired. (The Standaard).

Miroslav Vitous (double bass), Gary Campbell (tenor saxophone), Franco Ambrosetti (trumpet), Gerald Cleaver (drums)

www.miroslavvitous.com

Brant Bjork

2010-03-15T19:01:36+01:00

Brant Bjork, former drummer of Kyuss and Fu Manchu, performs a blend of psychedelic, soulful, groovy and sexy rock ‘n’ roll.

Jazz & Sounds / dag 2 Muziekcentrum de Bijloke

2010-02-16T15:56:28+01:00

18:00 continuously, Bibliotheek – Docu The Herman Leonard Story
18:00 Concertzaal – Ellery Eskelin / Andrea Parkins / Jim Black with Jessica Constable & Philippe Gelda
19:20 Bibliotheek, Foyer, Mezzanine & Rotonde – A Marvelous Madness: John Cage’s Songbooks
20:00 Kraakhuis – Wolter Wierbos
20:00 Auditorium – Tom Van Bauwel – Ben Sluijs : Paul Van Ostaijen
20:00 Toegangsgebouw – Janssens / Prins – …Passages…/ Ventriloquium
20:00 Bibliotheek – Project El Negocito Records/Logos: human and machine
21:30 Kraakhuis – The little Harlequin
22:00 Concertzaal – Enescu re-Imagined by Lucian Ban & John Hébert

You’d like 4 days of Jazz & Sounds? With the 4day ticket you can go to all the concerts at Vooruit, Muziekcentrum De Bijloke and the conservatorium. Get the 4day ticket for €60 (€ 65 adk)

You’d like the 2 days at Muziekcentrum De Bijloke? Get the 2day ticket for €35 (€40 adk)

Documentary: Truth in Terms of Beauty – The Herman Leonard Story

from 18:00 onwards continuously, Bibliotheek, Muziekcentrum De Bijloke

The film Truth in Terms of Beauty, The Herman Leonard Story is a poetic documentary about the life and work of the famous (jazz) photographer Herman Leonard.

Herman Leonard was for more than half a century, the privileged witness and photographer of the icons of society and fashion, but is most of all known for his photographs of the giants in the jazz scene.

In the 30s he toured Russia, the Middle East and Asia as a reporter for Life Magazine and National Geographic. After the Second World War he arrived in New York and became immersed in the world of bebop. During this period, he captured unique moments of all the jazz greats: Billy Holiday, Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Dizzy Gillespie, John Coltrane, Ella Fitzgerald, Errol Garner, Lena Horne, Stan Getz, Chet Baker, Dexter Gordon, Quincy Jones and Miles Davis.

He photographed Hollywood stars like Frank Sinatra, Marlon Brando, Paul Newman and Marilyn Monroe and was one of the pioneers of nude photography for Playboy.

In the ‘50s he travelled to Paris and was praised as a photographer for fashion houses like Yves Saint Laurent, Chanel, Christian Dior and magazines like Elle and Marie Claire. In Paris he became a celebrity himself and he got in touch with philosophers, writers and scientists who he photographed such as Albert Einstein, Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir. Through Eddie Barclay he ended up back in the music scene. This led to unusual portraits of people like Charles Aznavour, Brigitte Bardot and Grace Jones. In the past ten years, Herman Leonard has lived in New Orleans, where he photographed people from the contemporary music scene such as Lenny Kravitz, Dr. John and Wynton Marsalis.

www.hermanleonard.com

Ellery Eskelin / Andrea Parkins / Jim Black with Jessica Constable & Philippe Gelda

18:00 Concertzaal, Muziekcentrum De Bijloke

Ellery Eskelin searched for Andrea Perkins (accordion & keyboards) and Jim Black (drums & percussion) in order to satisfy a “sound he heard in his head”. He debuted with these two musicians in 1994 and the band quickly became one of the finest units in progressive jazz and improvised music.

Eskelin was raised in a musical environment in Baltimore. His mother, Bobbie Lee, played the Hammond B3 organ and lead her own jazz bands in the sixties. He started playing the tenor saxophone at the age of ten. From that moment it was already clear to him that he wanted to be a jazz musician and he began performing professionally while he was still in school. In 1983 Eskelin moved to New York City to play and study. In the late 80s he appeared in Europe with the band Joint Venture and later he joined Joey Baron’s group Baron Down. Along the way Eskelin has done a number of side projects with Han Bennink, Dave Liebman, Marc Ribot, Sylvie Courvoisier, etc.

Most albums by the trio Eskelin/Parkins/Black were released on the Swiss hatHut record label that focuses on jazz, improv and contemporary music.

During European concerts, including this concert at Jazz & Sounds Festival, the trio often invites guest artists Like Philippe Gelda (vocals & keyboards) and Jessica Constable (vocals).

Ellery Eskelin (saxophone), Andrea Parkins (accordion & keyboards), Jim Black (drums & percussion), Jessica Constable (vocals), Philippe Gelda (vocals & piano)

www.home.earthlink.net/~eskelin

A Marvelous Madness: John Cage’s Songbooks

19:20 Bibliotheek – Foyer – Mezzanine & Rotonde, Muziekcentrum De Bijloke

Students of the song-class of the University College Ghent Conservatory directed Mireille Capelle.

A kaleidoscope of music theatrical vocal inventiveness.

Song Books (Solos for Voice 3-92, 1970) is a collection of short works by John Cage. It contains pieces of four kinds: songs or directions for a theatrical performance, both with or without electronics. The work explores a very wide variety of notation systems. Some Solos are given in standard notation, others employ a special brand of graphical notation (circles, lines, dots). Certain Solos consist only of instructions to the performer, i.e. what he or she should do and how.

Wolter Wierbos

20:00 Kraakhuis, Muziekcentrum De Bijloke

Wolter Wierbos is considered one of the world’s leading trombone players and is a true improvisator. Like many Dutch brass players Wierbos started out in a ‘fanfare’ (brass band), switching from trumpet to trombone when he was 17. “It looked good, and the trombones generally walk in front….”

His interests range from precise chamber jazz to throbbing post punk and contemporary composed and improvised music. Besides his solo career he is currently active with Misha Mengelberg’s ICP, Available Jelly, Sean Bergin’s MOB, Gerry Hemingway Quintet, Sunchild with Franky Douglas, Bik Bent Braam, Albrecht Maurer Trio Works, Longrun Development of the Universe with Carl Ludwig Hübsch, Frank Gratkowski Quartet and the Double Quartet.

He also leads his own label, Dolfijn Records, the first release was 3 trombone solos recorded in Chicago, Portland and Amsterdam

In July 2009 he released Deining, with recordings of a series of boat concerts (duo recordings with Ab Baars, Wilbert de Joode, Franky Douglas and a trio with Mary Oliver and Han Bennink).

Wolter Wierbos (trombone)

www.wolterwierbos.nl

Tom Van Bauwel – Ben Sluijs : Paul Van Ostaijen

20:00 Auditorium, Muziekcentrum De Bijloke

Tom Van Bauwel surrenders to the passion of Paul Van Ostaijen’s swinging texts, full of rhythm and musicality, together with the lyrical saxophone cries of Ben Sluijs.

Tom Van Bauwel had his drama training in Antwerp. As an actor he played roles with Theatre Zuidpool, TOTheater and NTGent. He directed plays like Art by Yasmina Reza (Raamtheater), and HurlyBurly by David Rabe (Toneelhuis). A wider audience knows him for his television and film work. In 2008 he became artistic director of the Raamtheater now called BAFF.

Ben Sluijs is known as a bandleader and sideman in different groups known nationally as well as abroad. He often plays solo concerts or combinations of saxophone with spoken word or poetry with people like: Pjeroo Roobjee, Jan Decleir, Jules Deelder, Remco Campert, Hubert Daemen, Don Fabulist, Peter Holvoet, Elvis Peeters and Roger De Neef. Ben Sluijs is frequently described as one of the most poetic and lyrical jazz saxophonists in our country.

Tom Van Bauwel (poetry), Ben Sluijs (saxophone)

www.bensluijs.be

Janssens / Prins – …Passages…/ Ventriloquium (performed by: Nadar, Arsis4, Peter Jacquemyn en Jan Pillaert)

20:00 Toegangsgebouw, Muziekcentrum De Bijloke

Theme of jazz & sounds 2010 is the tension between written and improvised music. The detailed scores of composer Daan Janssens are always elaborated with few performance freedom. Stefan Prins on the other hand frequently uses free improvisation, or free impro instrumental techniques. Nadar, Arisis4, Peter Jacquemyn and Jan Pillaert perform …Passages…, a cycle of four compositions by composer Daan Janssens (°1983), and Ventriloquium by Stefan Prins, a search for relations between free improvisation schooled musicians, and a written ensemble with live electronics.

PROGRAMME :
~~Peter JACQUEMYN (double bass) en Jan PILLAERT (tuba) improvisation~~
Daan JANSSENS:
Passages…(2005-2008) Passages… (2005/rev.2008) – for string quartet (First performance of the revised version) Tableau – double – (passages II) (2005/2006) – for violoncello solo D’un automne étendu (2007/2008) – for string quartet (…nuit cassée.) (2006/2007) – for viola solo and four instruments
- Stefan PRINS: Ventriloquium (2006) for e-guitar, percussion, violoncello, two improvising musicians and live electronics.

ARSIS4
ARSIS4 Arsis4 consists of four young string players who have for the last three years been intensively working together. They have studied at the conservatories of Antwerp and Brussels and received. Further coaching of top level musicians like Andreas Keller and Heime Müller. They attended master classes with the Artis Quartet, The Prazak and the Danel Quartet. From last season on, Arsis4 is studying with the Artemis Quartet at Brussels Queen Elisabeth Chapel. During the last three years they have been working under the name B!LINDMAN [strings]. From the 2009-2010 season onwards, they shall go their own way as Arsis4.

Pieter Jansen en Liesbeth Baelus (viool) – Florian Peelman (altviool) – Romek Maniewski (cello)

NADAR

The Nadar Ensemble was founded in 2006 by some young Flemish musicians, graduated from various conservatories, with a common passion for contemporary music. What the ensemble would like to share with the real ‘Nadar’ – pseudonym of the well-known photographer, balloonist, caricaturist, art critic and even spy Gaspard-Félix Tournachon (1820-1910) – is his adventurous and multidisciplinary mind. Nadar’s main repertoire is the work of the youngest Flemish and international generation composers, as Simon Steen-Andersen (°1976), Martin Schüttler (°1974), Stefan Prins (°1979)…

Nadar: Valerie Vereecke (klarinet) – Matthias Koole (e-gitaar) – Yves Goemaere (percussie) – Elisa Medinilla (piano) – Jan Pillaert (tuba & impro) – Marijn Thissen (altviool) – Pieter Matthynssens (cello) – Jacquemyn (contrabas & impro) – Stefan Prins (live-electronics) – Daan Janssens (dirigent)

Project El Negocito Records/Logos: human and machine

20:00 Bibliotheek, Muziekcentrum De Bijloke

Giovanni Barcella (drums), Eli Van de Vondel (guitar), Manolo Cabras (double bass), Daniel Pastene (clarinet)

The little Harlequin

21:30 Kraakhuis, Muziekcentrum De Bijloke

Dancing the clarinet away

Stockhausen’s ‘Little Harlequin’ is a music-theatrical piece for dancing clarinet player. Harlequin’s dancing footsteps are heard throughout the piece. The rhythms of the ever changing formula at first become jumpy. Soon, however, they become interspersed with softly phrased legato playing. The formula fragments become quite sporadic when Harlequin “becomes so infatuated in the dancing that he forgets more and more often to play the notes”. Harlequin is absorbed in his dance.

Rik De Geyter (klarinet solo)

Enescu re-Imagined by Lucian Ban & John Hébert

22:00 Concertzaal, Muziekcentrum De Bijloke

Pianist Lucian Ban revised the musical legacy of Romanian composer George Enesco and created a bold contemporary jazz composition.

Ban gathered an impressive group of musicians from the New York jazz scene around him for this project with John Hebert on bass, Nasheet Waits on drums, Tony Malaby on saxophones, Mat Maneri and Albrecht Maurer on violin, Ralph Alessi on trumpet and Badal Roy on percussion and tabla.

Working on the edge of classical, jazz, downtown improv and contemporary music, the ensemble re-orchestrates and re-interprets scores from George Enesco’s impressive body of work – from the famous “3rd Sonata for Violin & Piano in Romanian Folk Character” to the unfinished “4th Symphony” to the various chamber pieces and the larger orchestral works of this 20th century Romanian composer.

George Enesco was a Romanian composer, violinist, pianist, conductor and teacher. At a young age he went to the Conservatory in Vienna. Later he moved to Paris, to receive further education in composition. He remained in Paris until his death in 1955. He was a much sought after violin instructor and gave lessons to people like Yehudi Menuhin. His works often have a strong Romanian character. In particular, his First Romanian Rhapsody became famous. His opera Oedipe can be seen as his greatest work and he was a prolific composer of songs including chamber and piano music.

Lucian Ban (piano), John Hebert (double bass), Ralph Alessi (trumpet), Tony Malaby (tenor- & soprano saxophone), Albrecht Maurer (violin), Mat Maneri (viola), Nasheet Waits (drums), Badal Roy (tabla & percussion)
In collaboration with the Romanian Cultural Institute.

Yves Peeters Group

2010-03-08T10:21:26+01:00

The poetic, atmospheric soundscapes created by the young Yves Peeters Group make you dream of endless car rides on Route 66. Out with cliché standards and hollow virtuosity, enter intelligent compositions with surprising cameos of folk tunes and pop ballads. Think beautiful, sing-along melodies with the romantic feel of Charlie Haden, Bill Frisell’s sumptuous Americana and Paul Motian’s subtlety and versatility. Saxophonist Nicolas Kummert and bass player Nic Thys add a touch of funk, as a reminder of their band Groove Thing, in which they showed their groovy side together with pianist Jef Neve. In February 2009 the Yves Peeters Group even visited the Mali Bamako Jazz festival, organised by De Werf and musician Baba Sissoko.

The Go Find

2010-02-17T17:35:18+01:00

‘Everybody knows it’s gonna happen, only not tonight’, the title of the new album by The Go Find, is quite a mouthful. Lead singer Dieter Sermeus and his bandmates once again prove that they know how wrap melancholy in pure and catchy pop songs. So believe us when we say: tonight’s the night!

Frontman Dieter Sermeus is a former member of Orange Black, which released its albums on legendary Berlin label Morr Music (Múm, The Notwist, Styrofoam). Established rock band The Album Leaf was so impressed by The Go Find’s album, that they asked them on tour, and even trendsetting American blogs such as Stereogum had praise for their work.

The support act will be Liesa Van der Aa. “Using just her voice, her violin and an effect pedal, she creates unique songs.” – De Morgen

The Van Jets

2010-03-15T18:59:38+01:00

The Van Jets are one of Flanders’ finest rock bands. After winning Humo’s Rock Rally, their debut album ‘Electric Soldiers’ topped the charts. For their next album, ‘Cat Fit Fury’ they travelled to London to work with producer Jon Gray (Editors, Infadels, The Kooks, etc.). The album is full of clever, catchy guitar pop. Rock on!

Hallo Kosmo

2010-03-04T10:53:02+01:00

The solo project by Daniel Offerman, bass player for Girls in Hawaii, which has evolved into something of a “Walloon supergroup” consisting of the drummer for Girls in Hawaii, the bass player for The Tellers and the guitarist for Austin Lace.

Upon the release of their first album, a German-language, electronic, psychedelic mix of Why and DAF, they performed at Dour, De Nachten and at Vooruit. The new album is more danceable, melancholy and eclectic; think Beck, Air, Daft Punk, Millionaire, etc. Dan Lacksman – of Belgian electro pioneers Telex – mixed ‘rockpolizei’ and ‘every line I wrote’.

Marvelas Something

2010-03-15T18:57:35+01:00

The key figures of the defunct Members of Marvelas will present the result of three years of experimentation as the house band of Ghent music club Charlatan.

Kicks: Joakim (live)

2010-03-10T15:44:50+01:00

Joakim is our favorite electro wizard, mixmaster and live performer!

Dyn-O-Mite: Joe Quarterman & Speedometer, Mo & Grazz + band

2010-03-15T18:55:09+01:00

Sir Joe Quarterman is back! He is currently working on new releases recreating the Free Soul sound of 1973.

Mos Def

2010-03-04T11:30:20+01:00

Rapper Mos Def is widely considered one of the most talented hip hop artists to have emerged from the nineties music scene.
As one of the biggest names on the underground label Rawkus, he released an album under the name Black Star with Talib Kweli and Hi-Tek, as well as the critically acclaimed debut album ‘Black On Both Sides’. Later on in his career, he would experiment with rock and blues, while also acting in movies such as ‘The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy’.
Mos Def is also known for his social and political activism. Last year marked his comeback as a recording artist with the album ‘The Ecstatic’, which was widely praised.

Sivert Höyem

2010-03-15T18:52:45+01:00

On his new album, Høyem, lead singer of Madrugada, once again showcases his unique, warm and recognizable voice.

Lefto #3: Baloji & L'Orchestre de la Katuba

2010-03-15T18:53:12+01:00

Baloji
Baloji, a.k.a. Starflam’s MC Balo, has been an influential figure in Belgian hip hop for quite a few years. Now pursuing his solo career, he has made his mark with his creative blend of hip hop, soul, funk, and afrobeat.

Hypnotic Brass Ensemble
Brass jazz combined with hip hop. This is their first concert in Belgium.

Frank Boeijen

2010-03-04T11:31:55+01:00

Frank Boeijen has been one of the biggest stars of Dutch-language pop for years. The singer-songwriter specializes in writing touching songs about the small things in life. He has received several awards, including an Edison and a Gouden Harp. On stage he is assisted by a host of talented and driven musicians. Always looking for new challenges, Boeijen performs a balanced variation of sounds and compositions.

Hans Teeuwen zingt

2010-01-04T14:45:22+01:00

Hans Teeuwen surprised friend and foe with his successful career switch from comedian to crooner. He infuses new life into songs from the Great American Songbook, including work by Frank Sinatra, Cole Porters and Ray Charles. On top of that, Teeuwen is steadily adding more and more of his own work to his set.

Admiral Freebee

2010-03-04T11:44:38+01:00

Our favourite Admiral took his time to come up with a fantastic new record. ‘The Honey & The Knife’, has already been labelled his best album to date by insiders. Contemporary, harmonic, yet traditional. Pure quality, with brilliant guitars, vocals and clever overdubs. We think it’s high time this man conquered the rest of the world!

Shining / special guest: Drums Are For Parades

2010-03-03T16:21:41+01:00

Drums are For Parades selects

Shining is one of Norway’s most exciting export products. The band started out playing experimental jazz band and evolved to prog rock, electronica and extreme metal. They received rave reviews at the last edition of Noorderslag/Eurosonic – the Dutch showcase festival which can make or break the reputation of any future European hype. The Dutch press loved them and thought they were “too good to stay unnoticed”, “exciting, rough and experimental. My personal highlight of the first Eurosonic evening.” At this gig, the band will present their fifth album, ‘Blackjazz’. Join us for a thrilling musical adventure!

Drums Are For Parades will be the special guest at this concert. This Ghent-based heavy metal band will be Vooruit’s artist in residence this year. They will set up small interventions, guest appearances or other events running up to the release of their debut album in the autumn. They’ll mainly try out new songs, but have also asked Shining’s saxophonist Jørgen Munkeby to record some songs for their new album together. If we’re lucky, they will already be able to give us a preview of their collaboration at this concert. And by the way, this special club concert is the only gig they will be playing in Flanders this spring!

Gabriel Rios, Feat. Jef Neve & Kobe Proesmans

2010-02-18T10:47:15+01:00

The best ideas come out of nowhere. Without too much thinking. Spontaneous. You start singing something. Someone joins in on the piano. Someone else starts hitting the drums. And suddenly it’s there: magic. You look at each other. You read in each other’s eyes: “This is great. This begs for more.”

That’s how pop star Gabriel Rios, jazz virtuoso Jef Neve and talented percussionist Kobe Proesmans found each other one evening at the Zamu Awards. Neve featured on Rios’s Morehead and now the three of them are on stage to perform each other’s songs stripped down to the bare essentials.

The Puerto Rican Belgian Gabriel Rios makes delicious pop for a large audience. His songs Broad Daylight, What’s This?, Angelhead and I’m Gonna Die Tonight were all huge hits. Pianist Jef Neve on the other hand is the hot young talent on the Belgian jazz scene. His albums are the biggest selling jazz recordings in Belgium and he’s received rave reviews across the globe. Percussionist Kobe Proesmans completes the trio. After his studies in Havana he developed a unique musical style. He’s already worked with Arno, Zita Swoon, Magnus, dEUS, El Tattoo del Tigre and Obatala.

Bedroom Community ft. Sam Amidon, Valgeir Sigurdsson, Ben Frost & Nico Muhly (support: Lyenn)

2010-03-04T11:33:23+01:00

Bedroom Community is an Icelandic label currently consisting of four artists. Founder Valgeir Sigurdsson creates enchanting compositions, Ben Frost opts for throbbing drones, Nico Muhly is a classically trained pianist and Sam Amidon propagates folk with his banjo. Together they will play a single long set. They will also be accompanied on the trombone, violin, cello and percussion.

SAM AMIDON
Sam Amidon is mainly known as the guitarist for Doveman. In 2007, he released his debut album, ‘But This Chicken Proved Falsehearted’, under the name Samamidon. This was followed up in 2008 by ‘All Is Well’, released on Valgeir Sigurdsson’s Bedroom Community Label. New album coming soon!

VALGEIR SIGURDSSON
Valgeir Sigurdsson is one of Iceland’s most renowned producers. His CV boasts collaborations with Björk, Lars Von Trier, Sigur Ros, Cocorosie, Kate Nash and Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy. We warmly recommend his 2007 debut album, ‘Ekvilibrium’.

BEN FROST
Since ‘Theory of Machines’, Ben Frost has become a key figure in electronic music. He is often associated with other super talented artists in the genre, like Christian Fennesz and Tim Hecker. ‘By The Throat’, his fifth album, once again showcases his incredible talent.

NICO MUHLY
Nico Muhly is a pianist and composer who has previously worked with Björk (cfr. Oceania) and recently collaborated with Grizzly Bear on ‘Veckatimest’ and Antony & The Johnsons on ‘The Crying Light’. He has also written several compositions for the choir, piano, percussion and ensembles, including work for the score of ‘The Reader’.

Charles Gayle & Han Bennink / Kris Defoort Trio

2010-03-09T17:45:06+01:00

Charles Gayle & Han Bennink, each with a career of more than forty years behind them, are two jazz legends not often seen on the same stage together.

Gayle lived as a busker for over twenty years. He played what he wanted, when he wanted and how he wanted: “the free-est of free jazz”. In the nineties, the pianist-saxophonist was finally discovered and performed at New York music heaven The Knitting Factory and at several European concert venues. Today, he has released several albums, recording as a solo artist or with his trio or quartet.

As a young boy, Han Bennink couldn’t stop drumming on tables and chairs. His parents soon gave him a drum kit, but Bennink still prefers unconventional percussion instruments. He has played with a host of big names, including saxophonist Sonny Rollins, pianists Myra Melford, Misha Mengelberg and Fred Van Hove, guitarist Eugene Chadbourne and trumpeter Dave Douglas. Last year, you could watch him live at Vooruit with the Han Bennink Trio, but now he’ll return for a unique collaboration with Charles Gayle.

Erland and the Carnival

2010-01-06T14:13:46+01:00

British folk rock band Erland & The Carnival boasts a few notable members, among which guitarist Simon Tong, a former member of the Verve, Blur and The Good, The Bad & The Queen, and drummer Daiv Rock, who has worked with The Orb, The Cult and Paul McCartney.

In the band’s own words, they blend British folk with desert psyche and garage punk. Needless to say that expectations for their forthcoming 2010 debut album, recorded in Damon Albarn’s studio, are running high. In March they will be touring with Tunng, and in April they will be crossing the pond to convince the Belgian audience of their talent.

Fabrizio Cassol

2009-10-25T15:38:24+01:00

“Great concert… top class.” Reviews of the 2007 concert by saxofonist Fabrizio Cassol (Aka Moon) and his VSPRS-orchestra in Vooruit were full of praise. At this concert he performed a version of Monteverdi’s Vespro della Beata Vergine for the dance show VSPRS by Alain Platel and Les Ballets C. de la B. A year later he got to work on Bach’s St Matthew Passion for Platel’s piece Pitié. Cassol enriched Bach’s composition with vibrant jazz structures and even Latin influences. At Vooruit he will perform this emotional piece with a host of top musicians, such as French flute player Magic Malik and violinist Tcha Limberger and the magical voices of Serge Kakudji and Cristina Zavalloni. Because even without the choreography, Pitié remains a masterpiece “of almost staggering beauty.” (Kwadratuur.be)

Arid

2010-02-17T18:23:11+01:00

Arid’s new album, ‘Under The Cold Street Lights’ will be released by PIAS on the 1st of March 2010.

Jasper Steverlinck’s vocals have often been compared to other fine singers such as Jeff Buckley, Bono and Bruce Springsteen. Everything started with 1994’s ‘Little Things of Venom’, an addictive album that landed them a deal with Columbia Records and an American release of the album. Arid was launched. They performed with Suede, toured Europe with the Counting Crows, played at every big music festival and could be seen and heard in the impressive IMAX 3D movie ‘Haunted Castle’.

De Morgen wrote that ‘Arid sounds more raw and sensuous than ever’ on ‘Under The Cold Street Lights’, their fourth studio album. Dramatic and powerful, mysterious and harmonic. Check them out, if you haven’t already!

The Black Box Revelation

2010-02-17T18:06:13+01:00

The Black Box Revelation deservedly won a M.I.A for Best Belgian Live Act recently. In the past years, the duo has played on every Belgian stage and successfully toured the U.K. and the U.S. They have just released their long-awaited second album, ‘Silver Threats’, of which NME said, “The songs on this second album are exciting and catchy but at the same time raw and bluesy.”

De Mens

2010-02-17T17:51:23+01:00

Call it indie pop in the style of R.E.M. and The Smiths, or maybe they show more similarities with post-punk revival bands such as Interpol or Editors, but in Dutch.

Support will be Été 67, one of Wallonia’s most popular bands that are now ready to conquer Flanders. Their second album is out now!

The Prongs feat. Thomas Smetryns & Kaffe Matthews

2010-03-04T09:42:56+01:00

Thomas Smetryns and Kaffe Matthews are two musicians who love to experiment. They’re always looking for new ways to truly experience music instead of just listening to it. Smetryns works with pitchforks that produce different tones, while Matthews samples and edits the sounds in real time. Exactly how this will sound? Like nothing you’ve ever heard!

Matthews is renowned for her research on music and electronica. She has developed her own software to edit sound and has created sound installations for Ars Electronica and other events. She has previously worked with Fennesz en Pan-Sonic.

VOLTA

2010-03-17T09:30:08+01:00

May Day is annually celebrated on the 1st of May. For everyone who has a drop of red blood in their veins, this day makes their heart beat a little faster. But what’s a day without a night? That’s why Curious will organize the Nacht van de Arbeid (Worker’s Night) on the eve of the 1st of May under the name Volta. Apart from music provided by Customs, Daan, Meuris, Discobar Galaxie, Tommigun, Trash Radio,…, you will also be able to enjoy performances and video art.

Festival van de amateurkunsten

2010-03-08T14:24:48+01:00

On the second of May 2010, a unique event will take place in Ghent, which will be aiming at almost 5000 participating performers! The entire area situated between the Minard Theatre and St. Peter’s Abbey will be overflowing with passionate artists and an enthusiastic audience.

The event comprises a concert by a huge chorus, a tattoo of musicians, and much much more. Get a temporary calligraphy tattoo, saunter around the event with a busker, visit the theatrical youth village, dance along in the silent disco, have fun in the multi media lab and get your three minutes of fame on one of the festival’s stages.

Tom Wouters' Flick-Flack-Bat / Elephant 9

2010-03-15T19:28:27+01:00

Tom Wouters is a regular on the Flemish jazz scene, as a member of RadioKUKAorkest, Flat Earth Society, Crap Squeezer, and Kamikaze. His band Flick-Flat-Bat unites rough jive and tender finesse. The tension between composition and improvisation forms the diving board that Flick-Flack-Bat jumps from.

Elephant 9 brings together several big names of the Norwegian avant-garde. Ståle Storløkken plays the keys with Supersilent and Humcrush, and drummer Torstein Lofthus is also a member of Shining. Tight and funky!

Carla Bley & The Lost Chords

2009-11-16T12:27:59+01:00

As the daughter of a piano teacher and the conductor of a choir, American pianist, organist and composer Carla Bley was brought up on music. Her talent for composing was discovered when recording with pianist George Russell and reed player Jimmy Giuffre in the 1960s. A lot of her compositions have become standards, and her often minimalist work is dotted with humour. In the past years Carla Bley – who is over 70 by now – usually performs with her band The Lost Chords, flanked by her partner Steve Swallow. Special guest Paolo Fresu adds a sprinkling of Italian herbs to her music with his sweet trumpet sounds.

Roberta Gigante – OrganOOn

2010-03-16T15:49:16+01:00

English text coming soon.

Rat Event: Little Women / Chaos of the haunted spire

2010-03-15T19:21:53+01:00

Rat Records, the label founded by drummer Teun Verbruggen, will take over the Balzaal with two rough avant-garde bands. Do you like your jazz energetic and zesty? Then this Rat Event is just the thing for you!

The first thing you notice about New York quartet Little Women are the two saxophones fighting for attention. They claw at each other like cats and bicker like children, which leads to intense thrash jazz that is sure to blow out the speakers!

When Andrew ‘Chi’ Claes (Brazzaville, Hamster Axis of the One-Click Panther) and Teun ‘Veto’ Verbruggen (Gowk, Othin Spake, Nozzle Slag, Flat Earth Society) first met, they clicked immediately. Not much later they founded Chaos of the haunted spire. With a combination of sax, drums and electronica, the duo creates droning noise and jazz with a sharp edge.
Thrillingly unpredictable and incredibly exciting!

Phosphorescent

2010-03-15T19:09:27+01:00

We secretly suspect that Matthew Houck, a.k.a. Phosporecent, is Will Oldham’s baby brother, or a cousin of Iron and Wine’s Samuel Beam. It would certainly explain the musical similarities in their work. In May 2010, he will be releasing his new album, ‘Here’s to Taking It Easy’. Funnily enough, when you listen to the first track, ‘It’s Hard to Be Humble’, on his Myspace, it seems like he’s taken his own advice.

Howie & Linn

2010-03-15T19:11:32+01:00

Howie & Linn have been active in the music business for several years. Howie started out as a hip hop DJ – under the name Buzz – but has now moved on to electro, house, and fidget beats. Lady Linn is mainly known as the singer of The Magnificent Seven. Together, they perform pop, rave, Euro-trance and electro.

Fred Frith 'Cosa Brava'

2010-03-15T19:16:35+01:00

Fred Frith is a legendary guitarist, known for his work with Henry Cow, Art Bears, Zorn’s Naked City, Laswell’s Material, The Residents and his own phenomenal trio, Skeleton Crew, featuring Zeena Parkins and Tom Cora. In the mean time, Fred Frith institutionalised his aura as a Professor of Composition at the renowned Mills College.

But Frith soon started to miss the raw sound of real rock music, and the chemistry of creating and rehearsing with others. That’s why he formed Cosa Brava in 2008, in which he surrounds himself with powerful ladies such as Carla Kihlstedt (2 Foot Yard, Tin Hat, Sleepytime Gorilla Museum) and Zeena Parkins (who previously worked with Frith in Skeleton Crew and Keep the Dog and also known for her collaborations with Elliot Sharp, John Zorn, Björk, Jim O’Rourke, Lee Ranaldo). The band performs an explosive cocktail of experimental jazz, free folk, and solid rock. Their new album, ‘Ragged Atlas’ will be released on Intakt Records in March, and they will be presenting it at this concert in May!

Goran Bregovic & the Weddings and Funerals Orchestra

2010-03-08T14:22:50+01:00

Goran Bregovic, the man who introduced Balkan and Gypsy music to a wide audience, will turn 60 this year. This event will be celebrated with a concert in Ghent. His last gig on Belgian soil took place in the Bozar in 2007.

Goran Bregovic is one of the most renowned contemporary composers from the Balkans. He wrote the score for films such as 1988’s‘Time of the Gypsies’ and ‘Arizona Dream’ in 1993. Since 1998, Goran Bregovic has been touring with his Weddings and Funerals Orchestra. 2008 saw the release of his latest album, ‘Alcohol’, which he will be presenting in Belgium at this concert.

The supporting act will be the Dutch band Mala Vita (with members hailing from Serbia, Bosnia, and the Netherlands) that plays catchy punk polka, ska and reggae.

Jesse Dee

2010-03-01T15:26:35+01:00

Young Jesse Dee has all the soul of Al Green – who he supported on tour – and Otis Redding, or Jamie Liddell and John Legend for the younger generation. Steaming hot and funky as hell! With summer in sight, this concert promises to be a feel-good party in the Vooruit Café!

Garcia plays Kyuss

2010-02-17T17:40:18+01:00

John Garcia, a former member of Slo Burn, Unida and Hermano, and a contributor on Arsenal’s most recent album Lotuk, is primarily known as the lead singer in Kyuss. As a teenager, he founded (Sons of) Kyuss with guitarist Josh Homme, bassist Chris Crockrell and drummer Brant Bjork. In October 1995, 3 months after the release of their 5th studio album ‘…And The Circus Leaves Town’, Kyuss disbanded.

Their last recordings where released as a 10’’ on Frank Kozik’s cult label Man’s Ruin, and later re-released as a split EP together with Josh Homme’s new project Queens of the Stone Age. In the meantime, Kyuss has reached legendary status and has influenced hundreds of young rock bands.

15 years after Kyuss’s mind-blowing concert at Vooruit, Garcia felt the time had come to breathe new life into the desert rock legend on stage. He will return to Ghent on the 29th of May with Garcia Plays Kyuss, a unique and one-off event that will see John Garcia and his ace live band play only Kyuss songs. Don’t miss this opportunity of a lifetime!

Red Zebra / Aroma di Amore

2010-03-03T16:55:22+01:00

English text coming soon

Gentleman and the Evolution

2010-02-17T17:56:51+01:00

Together with Alborosie, Gentleman, a.k.a. the German-born Otto Tillman, has become one of Europe’s biggest reggae stars of the past years. He has been on world tour after world tour, and reaching the number one spot in the German charts out of nowhere doesn’t seem to be a problem either. And Gentleman is not only popular in German-speaking countries, he is also respected by the Jamaican reggae scene and has worked with Sizzla, Morgan Heritage, Tony Rebel, Marcia Griffith, Cocoa Tea, Anthony B. Barrington Levy and Capleton. His music is a blend of roots reggae, ragga and toasting. His new album will be released in the spring.

Steven De Bruyn, Tony Gyselinck & Roland

2010-02-17T18:01:31+01:00

Harmonica virtuoso Steven De Bruyn (El Fish, The Rhythm Junks) is going on the road with Tony Gyselinck, one of Belgian’s finest jazz drummers (playing for the BRT Jazz Orchestra, Jo Lemaire and Rocco Granata) and guitar legend Roland, hailing from the Belgian clay producing Rupel region. This concert series will see the three gentlemen performing together for the first time. They will be lighting the campfire with shavings of blues, stumps of jazz, chips of electronica and tinder consisting of skiffle, bebop, folk and soul.

Anne Clark

2010-03-05T16:56:35+01:00

Meer info volgt gauw