Jan stands with one foot in the business world, with the other in that of romantic, neo-classical music. He was thoroughly educated by Miek Engelenburg, a gifted student of Robert Casadesus. His music is inspired by Eastern music, Chopin and Debussy. He has given concerts in Leipzig, Copenhagen, Paris and several cities in the Netherlands. Often projections of
paintings and his own poems are part of his performance to create a synaesthetic experience.
His CD is called ‘Albedo’, after the second stage in Alchemy. Its idea is the royal art of transformation: of the inner lead, of our grey, heavy states, into the philosophical gold symbolizing a bright, shining soul. Albedo represents the stage in which the soul is being purified and where one feels illumination and artistic inspiration. Who listens to this music is taken away to a dreamy sphere of harmony and unity, and can feel this inspiration in himself.
1. When and how did you realize that your whole life would be linked to music?
When I heard my uncle play church organ, I realized I wanted to learn to play that instrument. But my parents were not ready to buy me an organ. Then my uncle advised me to play piano first, and then see. My parents decided not to buy a piano yet, first I had to play flute for one year to show the firmness of my intention.
2. Which composer has most influenced your musical imagination?
It was Chopin who mostly triggered my imagination. His music is fluent, free from fixed form like a current of fresh water, dream-like.
3. What is your main creative motto?
“Back to the source of music”.
4. What would you like to express during your performance at the festival? What will your program consist of and why this choice?
I would like to create an atmosphere where people could feel inner peace and the depth of their soul, something they lost in daily life.
5. What goals do you set for yourself, what projects do you have on the horizon?
I am a leader in two music groups in different countries where improvisation with Oriental music is a central part. We are planning performances with dancers and theatre.
6. How do you see the future of piano music?
There is much chaos and suffering in our world. Piano music can be a medium to transmit harmony, hope and transformation. For that, it should not only have a soothing, watery quality; it should have a fiery quality, the power to transform. Examples of music having this power is, e.g. Bach’s Goldberg variations or his Passacaglia for organ.
7. What does Paris represent for you, do you have a special relationship with this city and why did you accept the invitation to participate in the festival?
In Paris I gave my first concert, I have many friends there, and I visited a concert of Alain Kremski in the theatre of Ile Saint-Louis. Participation in the festival is like joining beginning and end of a big circle of time.
Discover Piano Revenge Festival (buy Tickets here) and Jan’s Music