ABOUT BIG BIZAR HABIT
photograph Ingmar Heytze
a painters pallette??
When I was 7 years old I got a big box of carandache pencils in all colors. I remember I was mesmerized by the many options this would give, so many colors!!
This is what Big Bizar Habit means to me. I feel like getting that big box of colors again and I am allowed to use them all. A bit of strings here, and some brass there...... I feel like I have this pallette and a big canvas to fill. When I compose for this group I always feel like a painter.Painting not only with the instrumental possibilties but even more with the individual possibilties of the specific players and what they might contribute.
Big Bizar Habit is a band with a mixture of players on the edge of jazz, pop, improvised and composed music. They read all those many pages of music I write and then on top of it they will start improvising with it.
a jazz-chamber orchestra
Marc van Vugt's Big Bizar Habit is an 11-piece ensemble as large as a traditional chamber music orchestra but consisting of musicians who have earned their credits at the interface of contemporary composed music and jazz and improvised music. A combination of a jazz string quartet, a 3-piece horn section, vocals, guitar/banjo, piano, string bass and drums.
how it started
In 1996 the ensemble debuted in a multimedia project in co-production with the
Dutch Film Museum in Amsterdam. We performed a new score to some of the silent movies of the famous French cineast George Méliès. In 1998
the ensemble was extended to its current line up for a concert tour in the Netherlands. In
December 1999/ January 2000 the group toured again, performing at prestigious festivals
such as Stranger than Paranoia, Tilburg. The Creative Arts Fund (major composition fund
in the Netherlands) commissioned me to write for this ensemble.
Fall 2002 a double CD “Big Bizar Habit/Strings Only’ was presented with live recordings
of the preceding concerts. The Creative Arts Fund commissioned me again to
write for this ensemble enabling me to write the new Van Doesburg suite.
award winner
For my compositions for Marc van Vugt's Big Bizar Habit I received an honourable mention at the prestigious Julius Hemphill Composition competition awards 2002(USA).
The Vandoesburgsuite
In april 2004 The Vandoesburgsuite was played for the first time. Marc van Vugt’s Big Bizar Habit toured The Netherlands and was invited to play in Strasbourg (Fr) for the Dutch Representation. In the fall a new composition was presented at the 750th anniversary of the Domtower in Utrecht.This piece was based on an medieval manuscript which was recently discovered.The new Cd ‘Different Shades of Gray, the Vandoesburgsuite’ was presented in January 2005 during a concert featuring New York tromboneplayer Robin Eubanks. In july 2005 the suite was performed at the famous North Sea Jazz festival. In the spring they did a special project with the Canadian NOJO Big Band from Canada because of the 60st celebration of the Dutch Liberation.
Ensemble in residence at the SJU Jazz Podium
We have been invited to be ensemble in residence at the SJU Jazzpodium in Utrecht 2008-2009. In this time period we will do several special concerts a.o a serie of double concerts with the new jazz chamber orchestra of the Utrecht Conservatory that is modelled after Big Bizar Habit. Then we will also do some smaller projects with combinations made up with soem of the musicians of Big Bizar Habit. So...check our agenda and join us this year in this exiting seris.
New line up 2008/2009:
Marc van Vugt, guitars/composer
Ineke van Doorn, voice/piano/lyrics
Angelo Verploegen, trumpet
Paul van Kemenade, alto sax
Louk Boudesteijn, trombone
Herman van Haren, violin,
Ro Kraus, viola/violin
Baptist Kurvers, viola/violin or Mary Oliver, viola/violin
Annie Tangberg, cello or Saartje Van Camp, cello
Paul Berner, bass
Joost Lijbaart, drums
Pictures by G. Verhagen.