Music Tip of the Day

My music tip of the day is the song Meantown by Talking Cows, a Dutch jazz group. An interesting composition, performed energetically. See/hear an excerpt of the song at YouTube.

Carla Bley at the Bimhuis

For me, one of the musical highlights of 2009 was a live concert of Carla Bley and the Lost Chords at the BIMhuis in Amsterdam, Netherlands. I really enjoyed listening to the compositional work of Bley and friends. Carla Bley on piano, Andy Sheppard on saxophone, Bill Drummond on drums, and Steve Swallow on bass created a fantastic musical atmosphere: intimate, humoresque, and tense. Click here for concert pictures.

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Thembi Agenda

Mik in Aachen

On Saturday February 28, 2009 we went to the Ludwig Forum of International Art in Aachen (Germany) to see the exhibition of Dutch Video Artist Aernout Mik. Mik is probably one of the most interesting contemporary video artists and it was really great to see four recent produced art pieces: Glutinosity (2002), Osmosis and Excess (2005), Convergencies (2007), and Touch, Rise, and Fall (2008). His video work is surrealistic in a realistic context: people act 'autistically' in a daily setting. I especially liked his latest work, Touch, Rise, and Fall.

Mik won the Aachen Art Prize 2008. From May 6, 2009 till July 27, 2009 the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York will exhibit work of Aernout Mik. A great achievement!

Harmen's Lab

On Sunday 21 December 2008, the Harmen Fraanje Trio played an outstanding set of music at Café Thembi in Maastricht. The jazz music peformed by Harmen Fraanje (piano), Stefan Lievestro (double bass), and Pascal Vermeer (drums) was both energetic and breathtaking. The musical interplay between the musicians was great to look at (although Fraanje had some difficulty communicating with his fellow musicians because of the position of the piano), and it was obvious that the musicians were either very skilled team players or had played together more than once (and I assume both ;-)). I also appreciated the musicians 'own' musical styles and their great improvisations. In 2009 there will be a follow up of Harmen's Lab at Thembi. This initiative deserves recognition!