Education
- Ben van den Dungen graduated with honors from the Royal Conservatory in The Hague in 1988.
- After completing his studies, he received a scholarship for a post-conservatory program in New York (jazz), Cuba (Afro-Cuban music), and Colombia (arranging in Latin music).
- From 2000 onwards, Ben studied classical Indian music in Mumbai (India) for several years under the guidance of Dhanashree Pandit Rai.
Concert Activities
- Since 1982, Ben van den Dungen has been performing as a professional musician, and he has given over 6000 concerts in approximately 75 countries.
- In 1983, he joined the Latin Jazz group Nueva Manteca. Since then, the group has toured several times, covering Europe, Israel, North America, Canada, the Caribbean, and South America.
- In 1984, he, along with his colleague and friend Jarmo Hoogendijk, started the Van den Dungen/Hoogendijk Quintet (Neobop). In 1995, he co-founded the group Brand New Orleans (modern Jazz with African percussion) with his companion.
- With these groups, Ben toured extensively from 1985 throughout Europe, especially in Germany.
- In the late ’80s, Ben, along with Wolter Wierbos and Jarmo Hoogendijk, founded the group Celebration of Difference, combining free jazz, hardbop, and Surinamese music.
- From 1988, he played in Het Waterland Ensemble and Fra Fra Sound.
- n the early ’90s, Ben, along with Eveline Carels and Jarmo Hoogendijk, formed the band Eveline & The Groove Movement. This band combined rap and computer beats with jazz music.
- In 2004, Ben, along with Tanya Schaap, founded the ensemble Tango Extremo (Tango Nuevo). Originally a tango ensemble, it gradually merged tango music with various other styles such as South American folklore, Russian music, jazz, and classical music.
- Following the project with Argentine guitarist and composer Gustavo Mozzi (Carnaval de Buenos Aires), the ensemble shifted its focus to multidisciplinary projects, primarily for the theater circuit in the Netherlands. Consequently, the ensemble’s name changed to Musica Extrema.
- Tango Extremo toured in many countries worldwide, including China, South Korea, Russia, Sweden, Denmark, Greenland, Switzerland, Germany, France, Spain, Iceland, Ireland, Mexico, Dutch Antilles, Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Uruguay, and Argentina.
- In 2005, Ben, along with Wiboud Burkens and Michael Varenkamp, founded the ensemble How2Be, a fusion of jazz, Indian classical music, and rock.
- In 2009, together with keyboardist Wiboud Burkens and video artist Job Geheniau, Ben founded the orchestra ‘Motion Unlimited.’ Motion Unlimited was a multidisciplinary project involving music, film, and video art. With this orchestra, he produced three performances, including Boulevard of Broken Beats, Mumbai, and Seoul. The latter was exclusively performed in South Korea with musicians from South Korea.
- In 2010, Ben formed his own quartet (Ben van den Dungen Quartet). With this group, Ben has recorded five CDs, three of which are live recordings: Live at the Club in Café Central in Madrid, LIVE in Tivoli/Vredenburg in Utrecht, and Obsession Blues in Saline Royale in Arc et Senans. This quartet has toured in Spain, France, Indonesia, South Korea, India, Nepal, Thailand, Argentina, Uruguay, Colombia, and Venezuela.
- Around 2013, Ben joined forces with Alexander Beets and formed the New York Round Midnight Orchestra. With this orchestra, they created music performances for the theater, presenting famous moments and periods in jazz history in a narrative way. Music was combined with film, stories, and spoken word. One of the successful performances was Swinging Harlem, a music program about the 1930s in New York.
- Ben has played alongside notable musicians such as Cindy Blackman, Mal Waldron, Art Taylor, Woody Shaw, Jimmy Knepper, Kirk Lightsey, Lester Bowie, Brian Lynch, Ralph Peterson, and Jim McNeely.
- During his concerts with Nueva Manteca and The Cu-Bop City Big Band, he shared the stage with Latin music greats like Giovanni Hidalgo, Nicky Marrero, Luis Conte, Orestes Vilato, Armando Peraza, Juancito Torres, Edy Martinez, Armando “Chocolate Armenteros,” Bobby Sanabria, Claudio Roditi, Ralph Irizarry, Paquito Rivera, John Bennites, Michel Camilo, Bobby Carcasses, Nelson Faria, Gustavo Bergali, Brian Lynch, Nelson Goncalves, Dave Valentin, Papo Vazquez, and Oscarito Valdes.
Composer/Arranger
- Ben primarily composes for his own groups and the bands in which he plays, boasting around 80 compositions to his name. He composed the repertoire for the Ben van den Dungen/Jarmo Hoogendijk Quintet, Brand New Orleans, Eveline & The Groove Movement, and How2Be.
- Ben arranged pieces for the Nueva Manteca repertoire within programs such as Porgy and Bess, The Westside Story, and Congo Square.
- For the Louis van Dijk Superband, he arranged music for programs like The Music of Jerry Roll Morton and Three Times Louis (Louis Armstrong).
- His music was used, among other things, for the television program “Keek op de Week” by Van Kooten and De Bie.
- From 2009 to 2011, he collaborated with Wiboud Burkens to write the music for the cross-media orchestra Motion Unlimited.
- Today, he arranges for the group Musica Extrema and writes music for his new quartet. Together with Wim Warman, he arranged the complete Matthäus Passion by Bach for the ensemble Musica Extrema. For this ensemble, he composed “Missa,” a contemporary take on Gregorian music.
Producer
Ben served as the producer for the musical performances of the following ensembles and held the artistic and business leadership for these productions:
- Tango Extremo: “Carnaval de Buenos Aires”, “Viva la vida”, “Maestros”, “Russia,” “De Mattheus Passie,” “Havana.”
- Musica Extrema: “Club Vaudeville,” “Missa,” and “Café du Monde.”
- Musica Extrema in collaboration with the Internationaal Danstheater: “TangoMania,” “Tin Pan Alley,” and “Partita.”
- New York Round Midnight: “A night at the club,” “Swinging Harlem,” “The Crooners Club,” and “Grand Ladies of Swing.”
- Nueva Manteca: “Porgy and Bess,” “Latin Tribute West Side Story,” “Chicano Rock,” “Requiem para el Mundo,” “Tango con Clave,” and “Crime.”
- The Legends: Miles!, Louis!, Billy!, and I am a Soulman.
- Ben van den Dungen Quartet: Blue Note, Tribute to John Coltrane, and Legacy of the Blues.
Discography
- Ben produced, in addition to the CDs of his own groups, the CDs of Nueva Manteca, Tango Extremo, How2Be, Lazyville, and Canta Brazil. Ben has played as a soloist and sideman on approximately 100 CDs. (Refer to discography for details.)
Business & Artistic Leader
- Since 1993, he has been the business and artistic leader of JWA (Jazz and Worldmusic Agency). This organization initiates productions, produces, and organizes them.
- Since 2004, he has been the business leader of the Stichting Musica Extrema. This organization initiates productions, produces, and organizes them for Tango Extremo and later for Musica Extrema.
- Ben served as the artistic coordinator of the Jazz Academy at the Rotterdam Conservatory from 2003 to 2008.
Founder & Events
- Ben organized the ‘Delta Jazz Concerts’ from 1988 to 1991 in collaboration with Het PAARD and the Royal Conservatory in The Hague.
- He organized the festival celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Jazz Department of the Rotterdam Conservatory. In collaboration with Jazz International in Rotterdam, he organized the New Orleans Jazz Festival featuring students from the Rotterdam Conservatory at Night Town.
- Ben handled the programming for the first edition of Pure Jazz Fest in The Hague (2006).
- Starting from 2019, he has been programming for the Summertime Festival in The Hague, an initiative by the Musicon Music Center in The Hague.
- Together with some former board members of the former Regentenkamer in The Hague, Ben is the founder of Podium de Nieuwe Kamer (2019). This is a jazz venue by and for jazz musicians from The Hague and the surrounding areas. The venue organizes 60 concerts per year and a mini-festival. Ben is also responsible for the programming.
- To build support from the municipality of The Hague, Ben, along with Han van den Boogaerde (2020), founded a professional association for jazz and world musicians in The Hague (BID).
- During the COVID-19 pandemic, Ben, along with Alexander Beets, established the National Podium Plan. It is a new subsidy system, initially funded by SENA and Buma Cultuur. The NPP facilitated approximately 3400 concerts in 2022 and 2023.
Education
- Ben has been teaching at the Rotterdam Conservatory since 1991. He provides instruction in the main subject of saxophone and ensemble playing.
- He taught at various conservatories in the Netherlands, including the Royal Conservatory in The Hague, and conducted masterclasses at conservatories in Groningen, Hilversum, Amsterdam, and Zwolle.
- In 1998, he developed the curriculum for cultural entrepreneurship at the Rotterdam Conservatory and the conservatory in Groningen.
International Jazzsummerschool
- From 2009 to 2016, in collaboration with the Korean Holland Music Association, he organized the International Jazz Summerschool Korea in South Korea. The eighth and final edition of this international summer school was held in July 2016.
- From 2014 to 2016, Ben organized The Bali International Jazz Summerschool.
Clinics And Masterclasses Abroad
- Royal College of Music – Leeds (UK)
- Jyväskylä Institute of Music – Jyväskylä (Finland)
- University of Music – Salvador Bahia (Brazil)
- The Jazz School – La Plata (Argentina)
- Music University – Nanning (China)
- Seoul College of Art – Seoul (South Korea)
- Suwon University – Seoul (Korea)
- International jazz workshop ‘Giovani Leoni’ – Casa del Jazz Rome (Italy)
- Siena Jazz – Siena (Italy)
- Esmuc – Barcelona (Spain)
- El Collectivo – Cali (Colombia)
- EAFIT – Medellin (Colombia)
- Cultural Development Centre BANFF – Banff (Canada)
- Stanisław Moniuszko Music Academy – Gdańsk (Poland)
Author
- Business Roadmap for Musicians” – Molenaar (2004)
- From 2019 to 2022, Ben wrote columns for the Jazzbulletin magazine and Jazzradar. Some of his articles during that period have been featured in JazzNu, Draai om je oren, and Jazzbulletin.
Podcast
- Starting in 2020, Ben, in collaboration with Thijs Nissen, begins producing a series of jazz podcasts. These podcasts feature in-depth interviews with and portraits of Dutch jazz musicians. The podcasts are broadcasted by the Concertzender.
- From 2023 onward, Ben creates podcasts for the Kunstenbond/NTB, De Muziekwereld.
Managerial Positions
- Board Member Kunstenbond/NTB – 2021/present
- Board Member Buma Cultuur – 2022/present
- Board Member BIMPRO – 2022/present
- Board Member VCTN – 2020/present
- Chairman Stichting Podium de Nieuwe Kamer – 2019/present
- Chairman Professional Association BID – 2020/present
- Member Board of Rights Holders Buma Stemra – 2019/2021
- Member Members’ Council Kunstenbond – 2019/2021
