City Maps – it’s not a concert, it’s a trip!
Steven Kamperman • alto & b-flat clarinet, drums, compositions; Bart Maris • trumpet, piccolo trumpet; Jorrit Westerhof • guitar; Dion Nijland • double bass; Henrietta Müller • VJ
For City Maps, Steven Kamperman wrote a series of pieces that together form a portrait of the modern city.
City Maps was released in December 2021 by Zennez Records. Want to buy it? Visit their website here.
Upcoming concerts
2022 THU SEP 22 De ruimte Amsterdam (NL)
2022 FRI SEP 29 JIN Nijmegen (NL)
2022 THU OCT 6 POM Eindhoven (NL)
2022 SAT OCT 8 Hot House Leiden (NL)
2022 SUN OCT 16 Jazz in Feerwerd Feerwerd (NL)
2023 THU FEB 16 Pelt Jazz Neerpelt (B)
Concerts you just missed 🙁
2022 FRI SEP 16 U-Jazz Utrecht (NL), SUN MAR 6 Jazz Inverdan Zaandam; MON FEB 7 Pletterij Haarlem; SUN FEB 6 Plusetage Baarle-Nassau; SUN DEC 12 Bimhuis Amsterdam; THU OCT 7 Museum Speelklok Utrecht
Reviews
“City Maps has become an album that reaches enormous heights, and is an important document in the history of Dutch jazz.” – Rinus van der Heijden Jazznu.com
“With these four musicians, adventure is behind every corner. (…) From the busy Grand Boulevard where everyone races at high speed, you continue through industrial harbor districts, an out-of-control demonstration, and a short metro ride to slums where illegal parties are held. Meanwhile, on the radio, you can hear from Bach to Talking heads. Impossible to get lost with the supplied (!) map. Book immediately, is the message.” – CD review George Tonla Briquet for Jazz & Mo Magazine, special selection by the reviewers
“City Maps once again is ‘spot on’. The busy city, the multicultural city, the enigmatic city: with his (almost) drumless quartet Kamperman brings everything to life.” – CD review Mischa Andriessen for national newspaper Trouw (Dutch)
“The energetic music shows Kamperman’s versatility, without turning into chaos. On the contrary, it’s a beautiful, well-rounded, completely sublime album. A true gem.” – Moorsmagazine, CD review
“It’s a great idea to work with the map frame. (…) The combination of the horns with Westerhof’s angular electric guitar is plainly great.(…) Wonderful playfulness, finesse and ingenuity. (…) In two pieces, “Old Bridge” and “Marktplatz”, Kamperman takes the drum seat and surprises with his economic, permeating and substantial playing” – Live review, Henning Bolte for Jazz Halo (English)
‘Urban Chamber Jazz’: in the new Steven Kamperman project City Maps, musical influences vary widely from Ornette Coleman to swing jazz, from rock to minimal, from contemporary composed to modern dance grooves. All these roots come together in a compositional journey and a shared approach to intense improvisation. Ancient and progressive germs merge in a natural fashion, as they do in the cities around us.
For City Maps, Steven Kamperman wrote a series of pieces that together form a portrait of the modern city. Titles like Grand Boulevard, Cathedral, Dance Hall, Central Station and The Bridge can all be found on city maps. Together with Gent’s trumpet player Bart Maris, guitarist Jorrit Westerhof (Rotterdam), double bass player Dion Nijland (Utrecht) and visual artist Henrietta Müller (Rotterdam), Kamperman takes the audience on an adventurous journey through an imaginary city. [Read & listen further below the photo]
The concrete jungle is dynamic, energetic, here and there overwhelmingly large, elsewhere moving with unexpected glimpses on picturesque corners. The poetic and colourful scenes of the city are filmed in co-operation with young filmer Henrietta Muller and projected in abstracted collages, live in dialogue with the music on two screens, surrounding the audience. Watch our trailer of Grand Boulevard below!
