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Fata Morgana - 25 years of Quartet Music
Fata Morgana is a harmonica quartet which was founded in 1980 by four members of the Eindhoven Harmonica Club - EMC. Initially the group only played with the club orchestra. From 1982 Fata Morgana began to perform separately. In 1984 the group made its TV debut, and in the same year they played for the first time outside the Netherlands when they played at the DHV Festival, Duisburg, in Germany.
Since then they have played over 300 concerts, not only in the Netherlands, but also in Belgium, Germany, Luxemburg, France, Switzerland, Austria, Jersey, England, Estonia and the United States. The quartet also performs regularly for radio and TV.
The group have also won the first prize in the group category at international harmonica competitions on three occasions. They were runner up on two occasions, behind a group from Japan. The current members are Antal van Acquoy - chord harmonica, Paul Cornelissen - chromatic lead harmonica, Rob Janssen - chromatic lead harmonica and Harmonetta, Ronald Kamminga - bass harmonica
The aim of Fata Morgana was, and still is, to play pieces from many musical styles. Their repertoire ranges from pop music to swing, blues and also classical music. Bass-player Ronald Kamminga and chromatic player Rob Janssen, both founding members of the group, write all arrangements exclusively for the quartet.
Fata Morgana released two cassette tapes: Fata Morgana in 1985, and Four Brothers in 1989. In 1996 the first CD Way To our Heart was released. In 2000, the quartet celebrated its 20th anniversary with a concert and the release of the CD For Once In My Life. In the meantime, pieces that had been released on the two cassettes were brought together on the CD Recording Of The 80's.
All four CDs can be bought from:
Fata Morgana, Sportparkdreef 36,
5556 VV Borkel
Tel +31 (0)40 - 204 8375
Fax +31 (0)40 - 202 1885
fata morgana@planet.nl
www.fatamorganamusic.nl
60s@60 - They were there and they can remember
Here are the stories of some of the pioneers who first brought the blues harp to prominence in the UK in the early 1960s.
The title, 60s@60, came out of our first get together. Most of them are about 60 years old, and this is a look back at what it was that got them started in the 60s. We did not get them all. Many are dead, like Cyril Davis - probably the daddy of them all - Brian Jones, Steve Rye, Keith Relf, and Duster Bennett, others are still too busy working, like Paul Jones, Mick Jagger, John Mayall, and Jack Bruce. But we did get Laurie Garman, John O'Leary, Shakey Vic, Peter Hogman, Giles Hedley, and Mox Gowland. The research also turned up Chris Turner and Elliot Jackson who were on the Matchbox Days collection of country blues which was played in the folk clubs - both are still active in the USA. Here are the players who will be around for H2005 and will perform in the Saturday evening concert.
Mox GowlandBorn in London in 1947.His first harmonica was a Super Vamper in C, and he still plays them. He started in 62 as Folk Blues duet, Dominique & Mox, and toured with Mike Berry, De Kuper Sect and Alex Harvey Band. He played the folk clubs with John Lamont, and in 65 he was involved in founding Les Cousins, the most influential folk club in London. He played with Alexis Korner, Jimi Hendrix, Champion Jack Dupree, T. Bone Walker. Mox has worked in France since the early 80s.
Laurie GarmanLaurie bought a 45rpm of Smokestack Lightnin by Howling Wolf in 64, He had heard the Wolf record when it was on Juke Box Jury - Wolf was behind the curtain, if you remember that. David Jacobs said Thank you Mr Wolf. Around that time there were bits of Sonny Boy on TV and Keith Relf looked cool on Ready Steady Go when he used the harp, Laurie was obsessed quite early on, certainly by age 16 when he saw Paul Butterfield at the Marquee Club. Everyone was starting bands and he wanted to be part of it. He bought couple of harps in '65 and fooled around. He had his first gigs with a group of school friends in '66. In '68 he joined Key Largo, who signed for Blue Horizon records the following year. He continues to play and did a spell with the Yardbirds in the 90s.
John O'LearyJohn was already into jazz at the age of 12 and bought records by Chris Barber and King Oliver to play on his Bush Record player. Later he got into Charlie Parker, Mingus and Miles Davis. A chance visit to The Ealing Jazz Club in 62 to see Alexis Korner's Blues Incorporated opened his ears to Chicago style blues, particularly the great Cyril Davis on harmonica. He knew this was what he wanted to do and he started listening to Muddy Waters, Little Walter, Junior Wells, John Lee Williamson, and James Cotton. In 65 he met Kim Simmonds and together they put together the Savoy Blues Band and recorded for Mike Vernon's Purdah label. John left almost immediately and joined the John Dummer Blues Band, After further ventures with Sweet Pain, Bob Brunning, and Champion Jack Dupree, he retired in 72 with occasional appearances until he formed his own band about four years ago mixing blues and jazz.
Peter HogmanPete met an unknown Bob Dylan in The Troubadour in 1962, bought him a pint and asked about his harmonica. He bought an Echo Vamper for six shillings and nine pence and was soon playing Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee numbers and visiting the old Marquee in Oxford St where Cyril Davis was playing with Alexis Korner. Later he got up a few time with Cyril when his "All Stars" moved to the Railway Hotel in Wealdstone. It was there that he joined Jimmy Powell and the Dimensions after Rod Stewart left. That led to his solo on Millie's My Boy Lollipop, as well backing Little Walter, Memphis Slim, Sonny Boy Williamson, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, and Chuck Berry, who recorded an album with them. After a couple of years he formed The Classic Washboard Band and later The Calico String band with his wife Gilly as singer. Later Peter worked as a one man band. They moved to the Isle of Wight about 20 years ago, where they still play regularly.
Shakey VickVick got interested in blues hearing Jesse Fuller, Bill Broonzy and Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee, at the local Jazz Club. In about 1960 or 61, He heard amplified blues harp for the first time at the Beaulieu Jazz Festival. It was James Cotton with the Chris Barber Jazz Band. That was it, he had to get that sound. He moved to London and met Cyril Davies who was really helpful. He played around for a while and then formed the Downhome Blues Band with Chris Youlden and went on from there. Seeing Muddy and the Wolf, Sonny Boy Williamson, Little Walter, Shakey Horton and all those other guys who came over with the Lippman Rau festivals, merely hooked him even more into the blues. He never thought he'd still be at it after all these years. Some people never learn!
Giles Hedley - Giles got his first harmonica around 1957. He picked up simple New Orleans jazz tunes like Whistling Rufus but didn't hear blues and understand cross harp until about 62, when a guitarist chum explained it and played him Sonny Terry, Hammie Nixon and the first Sonny Boy. He knew at once that was where he wanted to go but there were no teachers or books then and no blues scene where he lived, so his technique was pretty odd - it still is. He just listened endlessly to records and practised by the roadside when hitch hiking.
Giles sang and played harp in a band at school, modelling himself on Howlin' Wolf, which must have sounded funny at 15 years old! Then after some years playing in local bands he moved to Leeds and started out playing solo - rack harp and guitar, and solo harmonica. He opened for visiting blues men like Fred MacDowell and Son House. Juke Boy Bonner and Dr Ross were both good models for rack harp, of course. To spice up the solo harp he cribbed Wild Child Butler's habit of playing using a glass, and, having heard stories about Noah Lewis playing nose harp, he learned this too, using a big Marine Band in his mouth as well.
Get your questions ready and use your time at the H2005 Festival to find out more about these early days when everybody was finding out for themselves, what we all take for granted now.
Return to the NHL Festival page.
Bookmark and revisit http://harmonica.co.uk for the latest details of these and other events.
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