Dick de Graaf New Quartet

Dick de Graaf is internationally renowned as a spirited and adventurous saxophonist with a timeless warm tone. In his new project Bird Buzz he displays how well the musical heritage of 20th century modern composers connects with the sound and swing of the classic jazz quartet.

Together with the much-lauded bassist Stefan Lievestro he has established a collaboration with two award-winning talents. Loran Witteveen is a singular, recognizable pianist known for his fluent rhythms and adventurous harmonies. Dtummer Jimmi Hueting blends the jazz vocabulary with among others, beats from hip-hop and drum-‘n-bass.

The program features original pieces by De Graaf inspired by Mikrokosmos by Béla Bartók, The Tone Clock by Peter Schat and Olivier Messiaen’s seven ‘modes de transposition limitée’. Additionally, the birds surrounding his house inspired him to write pieces with titles referring to Messiaen’s love for bird chant.

‘One of the most playful, challenging and cheerful jazz releases of the past months’ (de Volkskrant).

‘The melodic and rhythmically strong playing of pianist Witteveen blends together wonderfully with Lievestro’s firm double bass and Hueting’s dynamic drums’ (Jazzenzo).