Sat, Nov 8, 2025, 8:00 PM – Musicians Corner.
Professional mechanical engineer, composer, arranger, multi-instrumentalist, bandleader; active in jazz, rock & roll, soul, blues… and so on. Alan Laurillard (Vancouver, 1946) is a well-known name. Programme maker Carolien Schönfeld will be interviewing him.
In 1972, Laurillard moved from Canada to Amsterdam. A few years later, he settled in Eenrum, Groningen. In Groningen, he organized workshops, devised new band concepts, and significantly boosted the local music scene.
He achieved international fame with his “Noodband” and the “Greetje Bijma Quintet.” He received various awards, including the Boy Edgar Prize.
A selection from Laurillard’s playlist:
Rumble (1958)
“Rumble” is the first single by guitarist Link Wray (photo). The album, an instrumental—guitar, bass, drums—was a huge success. Distorted guitar sound, tremolo, power chords, distortion… that was something in 1958. And all that with minimal musical details and long, lingering harmonies.
Bob Dylan called it “the best instrumental ever.”
I Got You (I Feel Good) (1964) It starts with a scream, and it ends with a double scream—from singer James Brown, followed by the band. We’ll know he’s in a positive mood. A beautifully composed blues scheme with plenty of variation. A solid bass line, swinging syncopations in the well-arranged horn section, with a few solo bars for alto saxophonist Maceo Parker. It’s uplifting.
Sur L’autoroute (1981) The Willem Breuker Kollektief drives at a brisk pace on the highway, taking some serious risks. A musical whirlwind, culminating in a “free improv” sax solo. The title “Sur L’autoroute” is taken from Miles Davis’s Ascenseur pour l’échafaud—the music Davis created in Paris in 1957 for the eponymous film by Louis Malle. (High speeds on that autoroute, too.)
Dig! (1996) Hard-hitting dance music—pounding away on a single fundamental note—by and with tenorist Hans Dulfer. Party time!
Prelude for Prelude (After J.P. Rameau) (2019) No rock & roll, soul, or jazz, but 20th-century, partially improvised “art music.” Performed by the Dutch Baroque Orchestra Holland Baroque and Chinese sheng player Wu Wei. The sheng is a Chinese wind instrument made of bamboo pipes—a “mouth organ” that can also produce harmonies.
The playing time is two minutes, but it feels much longer. Only in the second minute does the French Baroque composer Jean-Philippe Rameau gradually emerge.
Concentrated listening required.
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Also featured are works by Guus Janssen, Han Bennink, Leo Cuypers, and Alan Laurillard himself. Musicians Corner – Carolien Schönfeld
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