REMBRANDT FRERICHS is a Dutch pianist and composer. As a student, he received a scholarship from the Excelling Young Musicians Fund, to study at the New York Conservatory. He graduated with honors from the jazz department of the Royal Conservatory in The Hague. | INFLUENCES He debuted at the North Sea Jazz Festival aged 22, and worked with saxophonist Michael Brecker, who said about him, “This guy sounds great!” Rembrandt plays in various of his own ensembles, such as the Rembrandt Frerichs Trio and Levantasy. His sound is characterized by influences of Arabic music and baroque music, which stand next to the American jazz tradition. His special style and use of instruments has not remained unnoticed: in 2016 the Foundation of the Performing Arts had a fortepiano made specially for Frerichs, which he currently uses for various projects. MUSICIAN, TEACHER & ARTISTIC LEADER Frerichs teaches jazz piano as a main subject at the Tilburg Conservatory, and works as a guest lecturer at the conservatories of Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Utrecht. He is also artistic leader of several cultural fora, such as the Rabo Jazz Festival (Oud-Beijerland), the Waterfront Jazz Club (Almere) and the Regentenkamer (The Hague). | RECOMMENDATIONS His debut CD Self Portrait (2007) was nominated for an Edison Award and was ‘Album of the Week’ on London Jazz Radio. In 2010, Rembrandt Frerichs played in the legendary jazz club Birdland in New York, together with, amongst others, trumpet player Michael Varekamp. That same year, the NRC Handelsblad wrote about him: “Rembrandt makes the story of jazz a richer one”.

Tony Overwater is an award winning bass player whose sound and unique way of playing have established him as a key player in the European music world. He is a remarkable solo performer and leader of his own projects but also a collaborative and attentive sideman. He is well known for his pioneering work in Arab music.
In 1995 Tony Overwater went on tour with the Yuri Honing Trio through the Middle East, notably Lebanon and Syria, and fell in love with Arab music culture. He met musicians from lebanon, Syria and Iraq and started a long time collaboration with the Lebanese singer Rima Khcheich.
He has been involved in Arab music ever since and developed a unique new playing style on the acoustic bass which allows him to play the microtonality of the Arab scales. He has been studying the maqams (scales), rhythms and songs of classical Arab music. He recorded several albums with Rima Khcheich and eventually became the musical director of her ensemble. Regularly Rima Khcheich and Tony Overwater play duo concerts in which they perform classical Arab music in muwashah style in which the acoustic bass replaces the Oud. This has never been done before and is highly successful at festivals around the world.
Tony Overwater played concerts with many arab musicians among which Moroccan ud player Said Chraibi, Syrian clarinetist Kinan Azmeh and Algerian violinist Kheiredinne M’Kachiche.
He started a salon of Arab music in the Netherlands, Salon Joussour, creating a bridge between musicians from the Middle East and Europe.
in 2009, together with pianist Rembrandt Frerichs and percussionist/drummer Vinsent Planjer, Tony Overwater formed the Rembrandt Frerichs Trio. Three musicians with strong interest and highly developed skills in Arab music and with roots in Western classical music and jazz united in the trio to play with different guest musicians from the Middle East.
Tony Overwater has created the music for many documentaries, among which the Berlin Award winning documentary Justice For Sergei and Om de Oude Wereldzee about Dutch politician Abraham Kuyper.

Jazz drummer VINSENT PLANJER graduated from the Royal Conservatory in 2001. His final exam stood out because it only consisted of his own compositions. Since then, he has turned into a highly sought after accompanist of jazz soloists at the Dutch music venues and festivals. He is also increasingly involved in producing, developing and organizing artistic endeavours. He plays an important role in the concert series of The Hague Ethospheric Orchestra, which has been performing with the absolute top of the national jazz for the last couple of seasons. | BROADENING HIS PLAYING FIELD As a member of the Rembrandt Frerichs Trio, Planjer has developed into a leading exponent on his instrument, to be seen at many music venues in the Netherlands and far beyond. His sound is appreciated for its sophistication and at times melodic approach. As a co-project owner of The Contemporary Fortepiano, in which members of the Rembrandt Frerichs Trio use historical instruments, he paves the way for broadening his playing field. Planjer plays the self-designed and built whisperkit. With this line-up, Planjer is increasingly seen at classical music venues and festivals.