“A great, great one”
These are the opening words for a review of the eBraam “3”album by Beppe Colli of CloudsandClocks.net. Being spoiled with positive reviews for our music, we still were delighted to read this fantastic review on the new album. Click here to read the full review yourself.
eBraam live shows in June
In june, eBraam will perform at two special locations.
First of all eBraam will be one of the showcases at the Jazzdag (Jazz day) in Rotterdam. The concert takes place on June 28 at 10:30 pm at the Hotel New York.
eBraam performs at the Goffert openluchttheater in Nijmegen on June 30. At this beautiful location eBraam will be joined by special guests Benjamin Herman and Ulrike van Meier. The concert starts at 10:30 pm. Tickets can be bought throught the website of Doornroosje.
Braam on radio and television
Thursday April 11th Michiel Braam was interviewed by Aad van Nieuwkerk (VPROJazzLive) on eBraam and the new album "3". You can watch this interview on YouTube.
October 6th 2011 the Concertzender broadcasted a special on the Hybrid album “On the move”. The radio show also featured Bik Bent Braam and Trio BraamDeJoodeVatcher.
December 1th 2011 and January 5th 2012 the Concertzender did a 25 jaar Bik Bent Braam special.
eBraam New Album “3”
eBraam released its third album “3”, inspired by Soft Machines album Third! The theme “3” pops up in the compositions in which triads, thirds, waltzes and Pythagorean theorem are used. On “3” eBraam combines improvisations with a mixture of jazz, funk and seventies rock. Influences of Soft Machine, Ten Years After and George Duke can be heard throughout the music.
Included on the album is a song by Hugh Hopper, “A Certain Kind”.
Line-up: Pieter Douma (bass guitar), Dirk-Peter Kölsch (drums) and Michiel Braam (keys).
Please visit our webshop buy the cd and to listen to some samples of this great new album
B Braam
Become a member of B Braam!
Stichting Bik Bent Braam supports the music of Michiel Braam. You can also support Michiel Braam by becoming a member of B Braam. You can subscribe to a membership for only 50 euro's a year. Members receive the quarterly Braam newsletter, a CD from the Braam catalogue plus unique, members-only quarterly downloads with music of Michiel Braam.
To subscribe you can send an e-mail to bbraam@michielbraam.com
"It's a knock-out"
The album 'On the move' is well received. Roger Levesque from 'The Edmonton Journal' calls the album a “knock-out”.
Bik Bent Braam: Exit tour
Michiel founded Bik Bent Braam while he was still a student at the ArtEZ Conservatorium in Arnhem. Meanwhile the “big band” exists for 25 year and Michiel has announced that 2012/2013 will be the last years in which Bik Bent Braam will perform in its current set-up. Time to say goodbye?
Michiel Braam on Bik Bent Braam:
When I founded Bik Bent Braam 25 years ago it was a more traditional big band: all pieces were composed almost completely on forehand and it was me who determined the way and the sequence in which the pieces were played. When you ask me to describe the current Bik Bent Braam in just one word, it would be "flexibility". Little is known on forehand: the pieces that will be played, the order in which they will be played are different every time we perform. Each mucisian has an equal contribution to the ensemble.
Flexibility plays an inportant role in all of my music. But working in that way with such a large group of musicians is a big challenge. All of them are great musicians who love to be adventurous. They have been playing together for a long time and are completely tuned in to each other. It is very inspiring to be the composer for such a large group of musicians and such a variety of instruments. I can go in each direction when writing music for the Bik Bent Braam: more traditional, a nice melody or let it all go.
You could state that now it is time to take a next step. To let go of yet another certainty. I have the intention to keep performing with an ensemble of this size but in a more flexible set-up. The pool of musicians will change with every new program. It a choice to add more flexibility and more openness.
But first I need to write new compositions for 'Exit', the farewell program of Bik Bent Braam. To challenge the musicians I'll only write the beginning for half of the pieces, and only the ending for the other half of the pieces in the program. The musicians need to fill in the rest. This is something that you can only do with an ensemble in which the musians are very familiar with each other.
'Exit', the farewell tour of Bik Bent Braam took place January and February 2012, and still a few concert will happen this, and next season.
Braam on radio and tv
On thursday october 6th 2011 the Concertzender broadcasted a special about Michiel Braam with excerpts from the latest Cd Hybrid 10tet On the Move.
VPROJazzLive recorded the concert on September 29th 2011 of Trio BraamDeJoodeVatcher in the Bimhuis Amsterdam. The concert was broadcasted on November 23th 2011.
On December 1th and January 5th the Concertzender broadcasted shows of Bik Bent Braam to promote their Exit Tour.
The programs made by expert Bas Andriessen devoted to Michiel Braam for Nijmegen 1 TV channel are still online. The program marks the 50th broadcast of Andriessen's cultural programme “De Muzen” (The Muses) and can be viewed on internet.
Braam on YouTube
On YouTube you can watch several excerpts of concerts by Michiel Braam:
Hybrid 10 tet 7 april 2011: Cuba Munster Duitsland
Hybrid 10 tet 18 april 2011: Wilhelmina Eindhoven
You can still watch older Youtube files:
UITmarkt zo 29 augustus 2010 - TrioBraamDeJoodeVatcher Quartet feat. Greetje Bijma
North Sea Jazz 2010 - 'Sushi-interview' Michiel Braam
North Sea Jazz 2010 - Trio BraamDeJoodeVatcher feat. Louis Sclavis