Music
The best kept secret in music
Press
ZWOLLE - “It has depth and is easy to listen to”. The final verdict of the Dutch Jazz Vocalists Concours was univocal. Despite heavy competition Wouter Hamel won the prestigious price on Sunday night the 30th of Januari 2005. He wrote history; for the first time a man has won the concours.
With songs by Mark Murphy, Jon Hendricks and Rufus Wainwright Hamel convinced the jury of his vocal qualities. Jury-member Francien van Tuinen. winner of the previous concours, was able to “just lean back and enjoy his voice”. Hamel beat the fifteen female vocalists and won as the first male vocalist ever. Yvonne Smeets became Sanna van Vliet got third price.
The Dutch Jazz Vocalists Concours was traditionally held in the Odeon-theater in Zwolle (the Netherlands). Out off sixteen semi-finalists six where chosen for the finals. Hamel won 2000 euro and he will also be appearing on several jazz-venues.
Besides being a solo jazz-vocalist Wouter Hamel can also be admired as a member of the a capella-groep INTERMEZZO, currently touring with their show MOVE! in Germany, Austria, England en Holland. Next season there will be a new, revealing show called SEX SELLS (in bed with Intermezzo) which will be played in a number of countries, including Holland.
Wouter Hamel: http://members.chello.nl/w.hamel1
INTERMEZZO: First in the Field Theatrical, Amsterdam; +31(0)20-5286828 / +31(0)6-46353365, www.intermezzo.nl / intermezzo@firstinthefield.nl - Amsterdam, 31-1-2005
Discography
In Fool Color (1991)
Still Crazy (1994)
The Orchestra (1996)
Aap Noot Mies (1998)
Inside (1999)
Hardop dromen (2000)
Dream out Loud (2001)
Fantasten Live (2002)
A Long Walk (2004)
Photos
Feeling a bit camera shy
Bio
INTERMEZZO’s career began in 1984 when five students at the Utrecht Conservatory decide to fill their free time with harmony and sound. After finishing their studies they continued to meet and sing together.
What started as an innocent past time began to take on a serious note in 1990 when INTERMEZZO was asked by director Shireen Strooker to take part in the theater show 'Bouvard en Pécuchet', from the book by Gustave Flaubert. At the same time the group was working on its own theater show titled ‘An evening with INTERMEZZO’, with their official theater debut in 1991. With the help of others including Jeremy Jackman - known from the ‘King's Singers’ - INTERMEZZO worked on a new theater show they called ‘Tribunal’, that went into première in 1993. During the theater season of 1995 and 1996 they brought their newest show ‘Still Crazy’ to the stage. In the mean time, INTERMEZZO receives the Silver Harp award from the Conamus Music Foundation for its unique contribution to Dutch popular music.
In Germany where INTERMEZZO regularly performs, the group received the cabaret prize from the city of Wilhelmshaven: the ‘Knurrhahn’. In addition to Germany, the group also toured throughout Indonesia and the Middle East. In 1996 the group works with the artistic jack-of-all-trades Bram Vermeulen to direct their newest theater show 'Tour 97'. In 1998 they again collaborated with director Bram Vermeulen when their fifth theater show ‘Aap Noot Mies’, named after the traditional Dutch ABC primer, INTERMEZZO received outstanding reviews from the critics “Dutch glory at its finest!” (De Telegraaf), “INTERMEZZO is beauty in her purest form” (Noordhollands Dagblad) en “Three times around with an uninterrupted INTERMEZZO” (De Volkskrant). At the end of the 1998 the group again leaves for Germany, where they perform to sold out venues with the international theater show 'Under The Rainbow'.
Eccentricities were obviously present in the theater show ‘Dream Aloud ( Hardop Dromen)’, a wonderful performance that revolves around a dancer, a sculptor, a body builder, a writer, a singer, a narrator and a conductor. Each singer reveals his own part of the dream through music, monologue or performance. In Germany they are giving try-out performances of ‘Dream out Loud’ and ‘Under the Rainbow’ during the same tour.
Then comes the time when Matthijs Overmars decides to leave the group for personal reasons. The group decides to carry on as a four-man formation after giving it a go for six months in Germany. In February 2001 the theater show "Dream out Loud" premiers in Germany. It is a new show based on the Dutch language show ‘Hardop Dromen’, this time with new material due to the change from a five to a four-man vocal group.
From September 2001 INTERMEZZO performed their new theater show ‘De Fantasten’ (The Dreamers).
In 2003 INTERMEZZO decides to play their last show with the current group (Ronald Becker, Iek de Vos, Merijn Dijkstra and Etienne Borgers).
‘INTERMEZZO – the best of’ is a collection of the best songs sung in the rich history of INTERMEZZO.
Shows:
Een avondvullend INTERMEZZO (1991)
Tribunaal (1993 – 1994)
Still Crazy (1995 – 1996)
Tour 97 (1997)
Aap Noot Mies (1998)
Hardop Dromen (1998 – 1999)
Under the Rainbow (1999 – 2000)
Dream out Loud (2001)
Die Fantasten (2002)
Die Fantasten - second edition (2003)
INTERMEZZO – the best of (2003 – 2004)
Move! (2004 - 2005)
THE NEW SHOW IN 2005 -2006:
SEX SELLS
In Bed with Intermezzo
“... Lie down and relax.Take off your shoes and make yourself comfortable.
Close your eyes and enjoy the experience
of being completely immersed in the sound
of the human voice...”
INTERMEZZO shows itself like never before. After the International success of the
a cappella-theater show MOVE! The group is now ready to entice the audience to join them between the sheets.
Not only superficial beauty is portrayed. I also becomes clear how ugly four good-looking men can be.
With guts and humor this cheeky quartet sings, plays, strokes and pinches their way into the hearts of the audience.
Starting off in a relaxed setting the show quickly evolves into an all too familiar and humorous scene (to sing a four-part arrangement with a toothbrush in your mouth isn’t as easy as you might expect). What better place than the bed to really be honest!
The new INTERMEZZO: Merijn Dijkstra, Wouter Kronenberg, Wouter Hamel, Clemens Schweikhart
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