International music city the Hague celebrates its diversity. Musicon and Stichting Popdistrict present the eighteenth edition of the Summertime Festival on the Grote Markt in the Hague on 1, 2, and 3 July. Entry is free!
Izaline Calister with Ed Verhoeff & Angelo Verploegen
Izaline Calister with Ed Verhoeff & Angelo Verploegen
Izaline Calister, Edison winner in 2009, has built up a considerable track record as a singer-songwriter over the past 21 years. The songs Wow'i Kariño, Kanta Hélele, Sa Sa Na Awasa and more recently Bendishona gave the Antillean singer number 1 hits in the Caribbean. Her studio albums Soño di un Muhé, Mariposa, Krioyo, Kanta Hélele, Speransa and Kandela have been released worldwide. Izaline's music is a fusion between the traditional music of her native island of Curaçao and vocal jazz. With her self-written songs, mostly in Papiamento, she performed throughout Europe, Indonesia, USA and South America and she played at festivals at home and abroad such as Cape Town Jazz Festival, Rome Jazz Festival, Cervantino Festival Mexico, Sofia and the North Sea Jazz Festival.
Songwriter and musician XILLAN, Xillan Macrooy (1993), was born in Paramaribo, where the cultural diversity is just as lush and colorful as the tropical rainforest. As a Surinamese millennial, XILLAN grew up between two worlds. On the one hand, the Surinamese culture; a rich mixture with roots in Africa, Indonesia and India, among others, which took on new cultural forms in Suriname. And on the other side the American and European musical heroes. The music resulting from this mix makes XILLAN the artist it is. The Surinamese identity plays an important role in his work as a songwriter; it is the lens through which XILLAN experiences its environment. A product of the eventful shared history of the Netherlands and Suriname; XILLAN embraces the multiplicity of his background. “Celebrating diversity is the destiny of the future.” As an audiovisual artist, XILLAN's intention is to mirror the times in his work, in order to contribute to the self-reflection that is essential for any progressive multicultural society.
As a surprise, that's how the Kaskawi band Ondrofeni was formed on October 10, 1993. Six guys threw a party with an unexpected performance. Only with some sticks and boxes. These have since been exchanged for 'real' instruments and the group has expanded from six to 15 people. The boys between the ages of 12 and 15 still had to 'experience' everything with little money and other means. In 1994 they made it to the final of Kunstbende of the BZO foundation. They ended up on major stages such as the Dunia Festival, the Kwakoe Festival, the Uitmarkt and even the North Sea Jazz Festival. Television could also use their exciting sound in Wie van de drie, Bradaz, Het Klokhuis, Sahbie and Kardes and in programs of the NPS. Ondrofeni became more serious and toured with percussionist Nippy Noya.
Snijders was born in Paramaribo as son of Surinamese composer Eddy Snijder. He began learning the flute at the age of seven years. Later he also played guitar, piano, percussion and saxophone. In 1970, he moved to the Netherlands to study engineering at the Technical University Delft. Then he stayed in Europe to work as a musician, he first played for Willem Breuker, whose collective deep he served until 1977. In 1973, he won the NOS Jazz Concours in Laren. Since 1977, he has focused on working with his own band, with which he also appeared at the North Sea Jazz Festival, as in many European countries, but also in Western and Southern Africa, the Caribbean and North America. In his compositions he often draws on Kaseko, a musical genre of his homeland, but also to elements of pop and world music.
In collaboration with Sena Performers the BIM (Beroepsvereniging van Improviserende Musici) puts Dutch (un)known jazz an impromusicians in the spotlight during their festive 50 year anniversary! www.bimpro.nl
Eline Gemerts has that magical, unusual, sparkling personality. She spent part of her youth in Suriname, where she was part of a musical family. In the Netherlands she studied at the art academy, and later, jazz the conservatory. She performed with renowned musicians such as Hans Dulfer, Sister Sledge, Gerardo Rosales, Bas van Lier, Michael Varekamp, Cor Bakker and many more.
Bas Arentsen, who will be performing: A Foggy Day (Gershwin), Nardis (Davis), On Green Dolphin Street (Kaper), Summertime (Gershwin).
Thomas Preda & Eduard Preda, who will be performing: Watermelon Man (Hancock) and Fly me to the moon (Howard).
Luyi (photo by Jeronimus van Pelt) who will be performing: Mood Indigo, Don't Get Around Much Anymore, It Don't Mean A Thing.
The Christina Concours Laureates will be accompanied bij Robert Koemans (piano), Zack Lober (double bass) and Gijs Dijkhuijzen (drums), where needed.
Many musicians find a stage at the Princess Christina Concours. This competition has a music jury composed of professional musicians who give each participant personal feedback to help them in their musical development. A unique competition from which friendships for life and special new musical collaborations arise!
The famous Hague philosopher Spinoza is the source of inspiration for the Spinoza Orchestra. One of the important themes in his philosophy is the role and meaning of freedom and tolerance in life. Spinoza often emphasized reason ("Dare to Think!"). The orchestra consists of various well-known jazz musicians from The Hague, who represent different movements within jazz and world music. The orchestra consists of sixteen musicians, in the traditional line-up of a large ensemble. The basis consists of: drums, bass, piano and guitar, supplemented by sax, trumpet, trombone, flute, vocals and percussion. Every style, every personality and every age has a place at the table; the principle of improvisation is leading. The musician's autonomy and the adventure of the moment are the starting point. Everything leads to an interesting dialectic, in which the thematic approach is juxtaposed to the freedom of improvisation; the space between creativity and discipline.
Dawn Patrol is a brand new Dutch collective led by the prolific producer, songwriter and musician Phil Martin (Jazzinvaders, AIFF, Martin & Garp). Dawn Patrol explores the essence of West Coast music, a late 70s Softrock spirit and European pop sensibility. Sharing the love for the sound and spirit of late Seventies pop music, Phil Martin and his likeminded musician partners in crime Rik van der Ouw and Ruud van Halder plus vocalists Baer Traa and Lo ‘Garp’ van Gorp recorded a new album celebrating a pure freshness in pop harmonies and melodies: “Bring On The Good Times”. What had once started as a refuge from their life and times, turned into an odyssey to divine harmony.
After his 80th anniversary tour, he now plays the stages with a new band and full energy under the name Dulfer! Total Response, winner of the prestigious Bimpro Award 2022. The all-star line-up plays new songs and idiosyncratic arrangements of Dulfer classics, with Dulfer's unwaveringly challenging sax in the lead. With his illustrious and progressive formations (including Perikels, Reflud, Big Boy) he has become one of the most famous saxophonists in the Netherlands. Musically, Dulfer has always been at the forefront. He played psychedelic free jazz, with Groep 1850 and with de Perikels he created the first Dutch world music. He was the first jazz musician to collaborate with house DJs and in the in the nineties he reached pop star status as a fifties as far as Japan with the unique mix of heavy guitars, beats and sax from the Big Boy record. To this day Dulfer plays in the most diverse places and with relentless energy.
In collaboration with Sena Performers the BIM (Beroepsvereniging van Improviserende Musici) puts Dutch (un)known jazz an impromusicians in the spotlight during their festive 50 year anniversary! www.bimpro.nl
Eric Ineke 75 & The Frans Elsen Factor with Benjamin Herman & Rik Mol
Eric Ineke 75 & The Frans Elsen Factor with Benjamin Herman & Rik Mol
"Inspired by the desolate environment and the small towns, Elsen wrote and arranged a 'Norwegian cycle' which he later performed in a star line-up with his brand new septet, which was very innovative and progressive in sound and concept. The only musician from this hip group still alive, drummer Eric Ineke, leads a septet with a star line-up that is once again inspired by these wonderful pieces by the great Frans Elsen.
Benjamin Herman or Tineke Postma - alto saxophone Rik Mol or Gidon Nunes Vaz - trumpet Juraj Stanik - Fender Rhodes Electric Piano Martijn van Iterson - guitar Marius Beets - bass guitar Eric Ineke - drums Bart Fermie - percussion"
Badass Soul Collective is a large ensemble based in The Hague, NL. Born as a community of musicians eager to express their love for Motown and Soul heritage, BSC is now a place where solid groove and powerful horns meet the sweetness and elegance of strings, creating an unique sound that emerges through a variety of their arrangements. Having one foot in the jazz tradition, BSC looks up to modern-day music and wants to be part of a contemporary scene, while keeping close to their heart an admiration for the sound of the 70’s. A melting pot where hip-hop meets classical music, jazz, funk and whatever is needed to deliver a solid and powerful message of inclusion and hope. Being a community of many different individuals, BSC’s first objective is to make music that people can relate to, and not only lyrics wise. With their music, BSC aims to create and paint emotions for the listener to experience, from joy to anger, passing through grief and love.
After graduating cum laude from the Royal Conservatory in 1988, Ben van den Dungen received a scholarship for studies in New York (jazz), Cuba (Afro-Cuban music), Colombia (Latin music arrangement) and India. He has been working as a professional musician since 1982, has since performed more than 6,000 concerts in some 70 countries, and holds a teaching position at the Codarts Conservatory of Rotterdam among other endeavors. World music integrated with jazz music is his speciality. Ben is also curator of the Summertime Festival.
"Karisma was formed at the start of 2020. Consisting of four musicians from a variety of musical and cultural backgrounds, what united them was their common desire to share their music and passion for cross-pollination. Using flamenco music as their point of departure, Karisma borrows harmonies from the jazz idiom and rhythmical nuances from Cuban and Latin American music. Combining the rawness of the flamenco guitar with the flute, double bass and hybrid percussion set-up, Karisma creates a fresh and unique sound which delights their audiences wherever they go. Their repertoire consists of a combination of original material together with some flamenco all-time classics.
The last twenty-two years has seen Matangi grow into one of the most prominent and versatile ensembles in the Dutch music landscape and on the international stage. Its four members are all independent and distinctive musicians, but what binds them is an unbridled creative curiosity: for new music styles, and for as yet unknown repertoire and unexpected collaborations with other art forms, from cabaret to dance. The quartet has never limited itself to one style of music since its foundation in 1999 at the Royal Conservatoire in The Hague and the Rotterdam Conservatory. It has always embarked on new adventures, from classical to jazz and from dance to pop.
Matangi Quartet Maria-Paula Majoor - violin Daniel Torrico Menacho - violin Karsten Kleijer - viola Arno van der Vuurst - cello
Van der Grinten/Hijma/Idema – three generations of jazz guitarists. Although their playing styles are completely different, Maarten van der Grinten (1963), Durk Hijma (1982) and Gijs Idema (1996) belong to the same school of jazz guitarists, of which the legendary Wim Overgaauw (1929 - 1995) is the patriarch. At the Summertime Festival they will enter into a musical conversation with each other. The four guitarists are accompanied by the fantastic 87-year-old jazz drummer, originally from The Hague, John Engels, who has toured with many greats including Chet Baker, and the best bassist imaginable for this unusual line-up, Frans van der Hoeven (1963).
In collaboration with Sena Performers the BIM (Beroepsvereniging van Improviserende Musici) puts Dutch (un)known jazz an impromusicians in the spotlight during their festive 50 year anniversary! www.bimpro.nl
The “MB Big Band” is a jazz orchestra from The Hague, The Netherlands. The Band was founded by Lorenzo Mastrogregori and Jose Cervera Minguez, both students at the city's Royal Conservatoire. At first it was a study project, but soon it was performing in Cafe September. Later the orchestra played at the Bad Ass Jazz Festival in The Hague and Jazz at Willemeel in Arnhem. In 2018 it performed regularly in the Regentenkamer in The Hague. In 2019 they played In Het Koorenhuis, one of the best stages in the city, with a repertoire of original pieces and arrangements. The MB Big Band performed classical arrangements of the greatest (Count Basie, Buddy Rich, Sammy Nestico, Maynard Ferguson etc.) as well as some original pieces and arrangements. The style of the orchestra is therefore diverse, from a classical and hip swing to a more modern concept of jazz orchestra. Come along and enjoy groovy and dancing music!
Dance dance and dance again! Cuban guitarist and bassist Jesús Hernández is an icon of Cuban music. During his 40-year career, Jesús played countless concerts around the world. In collaboration with Nils Fischer, one of the best percussionists in Europe, he brings an all-star formation to the Summertime festival that evokes the atmosphere of old and modern Havana!
Jesús Hernandez [Cuba] bass Nils Fischer [DE] percussion Delia Gonzales [Cuba] vocals Eduardo Alfonso [Cuba] vocals Leonid Muñoz [NL] percussion Jorge Martínez [Cuba] piano Joe Rivera [Puerto Rico] trumpet
DJ Philippona -Jazz Lost and Found- A well-kept secret, though around for years: at jazz festivals including North Sea Jazz, in jazz clubs and at countless cultural and private parties. She improvises her sets 100% and has a musical knowledge to say the least. Her jazz sensibility is always reflected in her choice of music, but also in her gift for mixing different styles. There is no such thing as playing it safe for her. She's definitely a 'Musician's DJ'; we strongly advise everyone to come and listen to this creative music priestess!
Ben has been performing as a jazz musician since 1983 and did over the years around 6000 concerts in more then 70 country’s. Art Blakey once said that Jazz has to be “danceable and have the blues” and in many ways this could be Ben van den Dungen’s musical motto. Nothing pretentious, just swinging, right up to date and with a “happy feel”. These characteristics make Ben so undeniably 100% pure Jazz. Ben is also curator of the Summertime Festival.
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