Han Bennink
Encyclopedia
Han Bennink is a Dutch
jazz
drummer
and percussionist. On occasion his recordings have featured his playing on clarinet
, violin
, banjo
and piano
.
Though perhaps best known as one of the pivotal figures in early European free jazz
and free improvisation
, Bennink has worked in essentially every school of jazz, and is described by critic Chris Kelsey as "one of the unfortunately rare musicians whose abilities and interests span [jazz's] entire spectrum." Known for often injecting slapstick
and absurdist humor into his performances, Bennink has had especially fruitful long-term partnerships with pianist Misha Mengelberg
and saxophonist Peter Brötzmann
. Han is a brother of saxophonist Peter Bennink.
, the son of a classical percussionist. He played the drums and the clarinet
during his teens.
, Sonny Rollins
and Eric Dolphy
(he can be heard on Dolphy's recording, Last Date (1964)).
He subsequently became a central figure in the emerging European free improvisation
scene. In 1963 he formed a quartet with pianist Misha Mengelberg
and saxophonist Piet Noordijk which had a number of different bassists and which played at the 1966 Newport Jazz Festival
, and in 1967 he was a co-founder of the Instant Composers Pool with Mengelberg and Willem Breuker
, which sponsored Dutch avant garde performances. From the late 1960s he played in a trio with saxophonist Peter Brötzmann
and Belgian pianist Fred Van Hove
, which became a duo after Van Hove's departure in 1976. Through much of the 1990s he played in Clusone 3 (also known as the Clusone Trio), a trio with saxophonist and clarinetist Michael Moore
and cellist Ernst Reijseger
. He has often played duos with Mengelberg and collaborated with him alongside other musicians.
From the late 1980s through the early 2000s, Bennik collaborated closely with Dutch post-punk
band The Ex, appearing on their 1995 album Instant
and traveling and playing with them on their first tour to Ethiopia
.
and free jazz
luminaries including Derek Bailey, Conny Bauer
, Don Cherry
and Alexander von Schlippenbach
, as well as more conventional jazz musicians like Lee Konitz
.
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
drummer
Drummer
A drummer is a musician who is capable of playing drums, which includes but is not limited to a drum kit and accessory based hardware which includes an assortment of pedals and standing support mechanisms, marching percussion and/or any musical instrument that is struck within the context of a...
and percussionist. On occasion his recordings have featured his playing on clarinet
Clarinet
The clarinet is a musical instrument of woodwind type. The name derives from adding the suffix -et to the Italian word clarino , as the first clarinets had a strident tone similar to that of a trumpet. The instrument has an approximately cylindrical bore, and uses a single reed...
, violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
, banjo
Banjo
In the 1830s Sweeney became the first white man to play the banjo on stage. His version of the instrument replaced the gourd with a drum-like sound box and included four full-length strings alongside a short fifth-string. There is no proof, however, that Sweeney invented either innovation. This new...
and piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
.
Though perhaps best known as one of the pivotal figures in early European free jazz
Free jazz
Free jazz is an approach to jazz music that was first developed in the 1950s and 1960s. Though the music produced by free jazz pioneers varied widely, the common feature was a dissatisfaction with the limitations of bebop, hard bop, and modal jazz, which had developed in the 1940s and 1950s...
and free improvisation
Free improvisation
Free improvisation or free music is improvised music without any rules beyond the logic or inclination of the musician involved. The term can refer to both a technique and as a recognizable genre in its own right....
, Bennink has worked in essentially every school of jazz, and is described by critic Chris Kelsey as "one of the unfortunately rare musicians whose abilities and interests span [jazz's] entire spectrum." Known for often injecting slapstick
Slapstick
Slapstick is a type of comedy involving exaggerated violence and activities which may exceed the boundaries of common sense.- Origins :The phrase comes from the batacchio or bataccio — called the 'slap stick' in English — a club-like object composed of two wooden slats used in Commedia dell'arte...
and absurdist humor into his performances, Bennink has had especially fruitful long-term partnerships with pianist Misha Mengelberg
Misha Mengelberg
Misha Mengelberg is a Dutch jazz pianist and composer. He won the Gaudeamus International Composers Award in 1961.-Biography:...
and saxophonist Peter Brötzmann
Peter Brötzmann
Peter Brötzmann is a German artist and free jazz saxophonist and clarinetist.Brötzmann is among the most important European free jazz musicians. His rough, lyrical timbre is easily recognized on his many recordings.-Early life:...
. Han is a brother of saxophonist Peter Bennink.
Early life and education
Bennink was born in ZaandamZaandam
Zaandam is a town in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. It is the main city of the municipality of Zaanstad, and received city rights in 1811...
, the son of a classical percussionist. He played the drums and the clarinet
Clarinet
The clarinet is a musical instrument of woodwind type. The name derives from adding the suffix -et to the Italian word clarino , as the first clarinets had a strident tone similar to that of a trumpet. The instrument has an approximately cylindrical bore, and uses a single reed...
during his teens.
Playing career
Through the 1960s he drummed with a number of American musicians visiting the Netherlands, including Dexter GordonDexter Gordon
Dexter Gordon was an American jazz tenor saxophonist and an Academy Award-nominated actor . He is regarded as one of the first and most important musicians to adapt the bebop musical language of people like Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, and Bud Powell to the tenor saxophone...
, Sonny Rollins
Sonny Rollins
Theodore Walter "Sonny" Rollins is a Grammy-winning American jazz tenor saxophonist. Rollins is widely recognized as one of the most important and influential jazz musicians. A number of his compositions, including "St...
and Eric Dolphy
Eric Dolphy
Eric Allan Dolphy was an American jazz alto saxophonist, flutist, and bass clarinetist. On a few occasions he also played the clarinet and baritone saxophone. Dolphy was one of several multi-instrumentalists to gain prominence in the 1960s...
(he can be heard on Dolphy's recording, Last Date (1964)).
He subsequently became a central figure in the emerging European free improvisation
Free improvisation
Free improvisation or free music is improvised music without any rules beyond the logic or inclination of the musician involved. The term can refer to both a technique and as a recognizable genre in its own right....
scene. In 1963 he formed a quartet with pianist Misha Mengelberg
Misha Mengelberg
Misha Mengelberg is a Dutch jazz pianist and composer. He won the Gaudeamus International Composers Award in 1961.-Biography:...
and saxophonist Piet Noordijk which had a number of different bassists and which played at the 1966 Newport Jazz Festival
Newport Jazz Festival
The Newport Jazz Festival is a music festival held every summer in Newport, Rhode Island, USA. It was established in 1954 by socialite Elaine Lorillard, who, together with husband Louis Lorillard, financed the festival for many years. The couple hired jazz impresario George Wein to organize the...
, and in 1967 he was a co-founder of the Instant Composers Pool with Mengelberg and Willem Breuker
Willem Breuker
Willem Breuker was a Dutch jazz bandleader, composer, arranger, saxophonist, and bass clarinetist....
, which sponsored Dutch avant garde performances. From the late 1960s he played in a trio with saxophonist Peter Brötzmann
Peter Brötzmann
Peter Brötzmann is a German artist and free jazz saxophonist and clarinetist.Brötzmann is among the most important European free jazz musicians. His rough, lyrical timbre is easily recognized on his many recordings.-Early life:...
and Belgian pianist Fred Van Hove
Fred Van Hove
Fred Van Hove is a Belgian jazz musician and a pioneer of European free jazz. He is a pianist, accordionist, church organist, and carillonist, an improviser and a composer...
, which became a duo after Van Hove's departure in 1976. Through much of the 1990s he played in Clusone 3 (also known as the Clusone Trio), a trio with saxophonist and clarinetist Michael Moore
Michael Moore (saxophonist and clarinetist)
Michael Moore is an American-born jazz musician and composer who has resided in the Netherlands since 1982.- Background and career:...
and cellist Ernst Reijseger
Ernst Reijseger
ERNST REIJSEGER Cellist and composer Ernst Reijseger plays the cello from the age of seven and began as a performing cellist and improviser in 1969. From that time on he developed his own musical vocabulary...
. He has often played duos with Mengelberg and collaborated with him alongside other musicians.
From the late 1980s through the early 2000s, Bennik collaborated closely with Dutch post-punk
Post-punk
Post-punk is a rock music movement with its roots in the late 1970s, following on the heels of the initial punk rock explosion of the mid-1970s. The genre retains its roots in the punk movement but is more introverted, complex and experimental...
band The Ex, appearing on their 1995 album Instant
Instant (album)
Instant is a double compact disc by the Dutch experimental post-punk band The Ex in conjunction with many guest musicians, notably members of Holland's Instant Composers Pool for whom the album is partially named...
and traveling and playing with them on their first tour to Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
.
Recordings
As well as playing with these long-standing groups, Bennink has performed and recorded solo (Tempo Comodo (1982) being among his solo recordings) and played with many free improvisationFree improvisation
Free improvisation or free music is improvised music without any rules beyond the logic or inclination of the musician involved. The term can refer to both a technique and as a recognizable genre in its own right....
and free jazz
Free jazz
Free jazz is an approach to jazz music that was first developed in the 1950s and 1960s. Though the music produced by free jazz pioneers varied widely, the common feature was a dissatisfaction with the limitations of bebop, hard bop, and modal jazz, which had developed in the 1940s and 1950s...
luminaries including Derek Bailey, Conny Bauer
Conny Bauer
Konrad "Conny" Bauer is a free jazz trombonist. He is the brother of the trombonist Hannes Bauer....
, Don Cherry
Don Cherry (jazz)
Donald Eugene Cherry was an innovative African-American jazz cornetist whose career began with a long association with saxophonist Ornette Coleman. He went on to live in many parts of the world and work with a wide variety of musicians.-Biography:Cherry was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and...
and Alexander von Schlippenbach
Alexander von Schlippenbach
Alexander von Schlippenbach is a German jazz pianist and composer.-Biography:...
, as well as more conventional jazz musicians like Lee Konitz
Lee Konitz
Lee Konitz is an American jazz composer and alto saxophonist born in Chicago, Illinois.Generally considered one of the driving forces of Cool Jazz, Konitz has also performed successfully in bebop and avant-garde settings...
.
Style
Bennink's style is wide-ranging, running from conventional jazz drumming to highly unconventional free improvisation, for which he often uses whatever found objects happen to be onstage (chairs, music stands, instrument cases), his own body (a favourite device involves putting a drumstick in his mouth and striking it with the other stick), and the entire performance space—the floor, doors, and walls. He makes frequent use of birdcalls and whatever else strikes his fancy (one particularly madcap performance in Toronto in the 1990s involved a deafening fire alarm bell placed on the floor).External links
- Biography and discography from the European Free Improvisation Pages
- Han Bennink website
- FMP releases
- Home of the ICP Orchestra
- Cheese Kit Diptych: Solo by Bennink performed on a custom drum kit made from Dutch cheeses