Bands

Ben van den Dungen Quartet A special combination of personalities that only jazz can bring together. The musicians mix their musical origin and talent in an infectious way. Totally contemporary, with a “happy feel” and 100% pure jazz. In the fall of 2013 the first album Ciao City was released, which was followed by a series of concerts performed all over the Netherlands. The second album was released in October 2014. This album was recorded live at Cafe Central in Madrid in May 2014. In 2016 Ben toured the Dutch theaters with the program ‘Blue Note’. In 2017 Ben’s last album was released. 2sessions Recorded without preparation, and a new reportoire created in the studio. A totally different approach than we are used to from Ben. In 2019 the quartet toured more than 50 venues in the Netherlands. This tour was a tribute to the legendary jazz saxophonist ”John Coltrane”.

Nueva Manteca The Latin jazz mainstay for many years (12 successful albums to date) renewed! Nueva Manteca is back in all its glory – a new, breathtaking band with a fresh, international line-up from the Netherlands, Venezuela, Germany and Uruguay. Kick-off for the renewed band was a triumphant tour in Colombia 2018. Over the years, the band has performed at prestigious festivals, venues and clubs around the world, including Montreal Jazz Fest, Barranquijazz, SOB’s (NYC), Curaçao Jazz Fest, Yoshi’s (San Francisco) and many times at the North Sea Jazz Festival. Another highlight was a performance at Heineken Jazz in Puerto Rico with Paquito D’Rivera and Michel Camilo, and the band had many famous guest musicians such as Armando Peraza, Giovanni Hidalgo, Orestes Vilató, Luis Conte and others.

Tango Extremo Since its foundation in 2003, Tango Extremo has experienced a remarkable development. The orchestra has performed on practically all major and minor concert stages in the Netherlands and several times abroad. The group was founded by violinist Tanya Schaap, who has been the artistic driving force behind this ensemble ever since. The line-up is not very common, but in time it turned out to bring a lot of musical possibilities with it. The sound of the orchestra is therefore also unique. Tango Extremo already toured in Spain, France, Portugal, Belgium, Italy, Mexico, United Kingdom, Turkey, Kurdistan, Ireland, Croatia, Russia, China, South Africa, Botswana, Bolivia, Uruguay, South Korea, Greenland, Iceland, Germany, Switzerland, Aruba, Curaçao, Sint Maarten, Ecuador and Colombia. In August 2009 Tango Extremo was the only non-Argentine orchestra at the Buenos Aires Tango Festival in Argentina: the most prestigious Tango Festival in the world!

Musica Extrema The group was founded in 2003 by violinist Tanya Schaap and saxophonist Ben van den Dungen, who have been the artistic driving force behind this ensemble ever since. The line-up (including saxophone, accordion, double bass and piano in addition to violin) is not commonplace and makes the sound of the orchestra unique. The name Musica Extrema is a direct reference to the versatility of the repertoire: the company is influenced by classical music, jazz, European folk and the entire South American continent. Over the years Musica Extrema has performed many productions in Dutch theaters. Often performances with special collaborations including the international dance theater, Peter Faber, Jan Rot, Marga van Praag and Joke Bruijs.

Round Midnight Orchestra New York ‘Round Midnight is one of the biggest jazz productions of the moment in which you’ll experience the exciting nightlife of the clubs around Broadway, New York. The band, consisting of musicians from the crème de la crème of Dutch jazz, will take you to the heyday of jazz; a vibrant world full of exciting music and compelling stories of love, desire and despair. With this magnificent show you will enjoy swinging jazz classics, get to know the historical jazz greats and feel how vibrant and urgent the music is today. Known from several theater tours throughout the Netherlands, the group also toured Colombia, South Africa, Thailand, and India in 2018 and 2019.

The Society The Society is an imaginative band in which the listener is taken to the cinematic thirties and the glory days of jazz. The time when jazz was the most important sideline of life. The thirties saw the blossoming of this exciting music and produced a variety of strong bands, such as Duke Ellington’s orchestra, Fletcher Henderson and Billy Eckstine … Characteristic musicians such as Coleman Hawkins, Sidney Bechet and Louis Armstrong were embraced by the audience. You descend to the nightclubs, the last murmur is silenced, the musicians appear on stage and the adventure begins. Music with a good dose of nostalgia.