Paul van der Feen

Paul van der Feen is regarded as one of Holland`s outstanding jazz saxophonists and is steadily becoming a voice within the Dutch musical landscape. Paul practically grew up playing with his brothers Mark, Matthew and Clemens later to become the Feenbrothers Quartet which initially featured the eleven year old on clarinet. Paul picked up the alto sax at age 14 soon whereafter he was accepted into the Amsterdam Conservatory and concluded his education in New York supported by a dutch scholarship. During the ensuing years Paul explored several musical styles like hiphop/funk, Classical and world music but was drawn (back) into Jazz by rediscovering John Coltrane and Wayne Shorter and eventually began learning to disgard all musical parochialism.
Paul was a prize winner at the world renowned White Foundation World Sax Competition in London after which he started writing for the Paul van der Feen Quartet in a continued quest for his own musical identity.

In 2005 Paul became an often featured member of the Metropole Orchestra, conducted by Vince Mendoza and played in this role alongside Al Jarreau, Bob Brookmeyer, Maria Schneider, Chaka Khan among many others resulting in several acclaimed recordings including a feature role in the Grammy Award winning John Scofield song “Carlos” from the album “54″. Paul also contributed to the “Ivan Lins and the Metropole Orchestra” album which won a Latin Grammy.
Paul also playe(s)d in groups like the Jazz Orchestra of the Concertgebouw, Clazz Ensemble, DJ Maestro Blue Note Trip, The Obsessions, The vintage Jazz Sextet, New Solutions, Clemens van der Feen Band and collaborated with many Dutch Jazzgreats like John Engels and Han Bennink.
Paul latest musical endeavour is called “Odyssee” in which Paul plays both piano and saxes. This group further consists of Anton Goudsmit, Clemens van der Feen and Roy Dackus.

As a composer Paul developed his own unique style having been composing from an early age, his compositions ranging from nowadays regularly performed Jazz pieces, works for wind orchestras and pop inspired instrumental songs which betray a search for authenticity and in a deeper sense a quest for acceptable worship towards the Creator of everything as revealed in the Bible.
“ For in him we live and move and have our being, as even some of your own poets have said: We are indeed his children. Being then God’s offspring, we ought not to think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of man.”

Country:Netherlands
E-mail:paulvanderfeen@gmail.com
Website:http://www.paulvanderfeen.com
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