Exciting gigs coming up the coming two months! I have the honour to play in three different countries with three different bands. First up is 21-09 in Neerpelt, Belgium with the All Ellington band. All Ellington is a project with some of the finest musicians from the Amsterdam impro scene and I am happy to announce that I will be joining them for several gigs around the Netherlands and Belgium. This includes a monthly residence in Zaal 100, Amsterdam, where they play every third Tuesday of the month and a gig in the Bimhuis in December. Check my agenda for more info!

From the 3rd of October until the 5th I will be in Geneva, Switzerland with the Pierre Balda Quartet, playing original music by the band members. We will also receive masterclasses by Swiss musicians.

From 19th of October until the 22nd our trio with Fran Gayo and William Barrett will go on the road to Berlin, Germany to play four nights in The Hat Bar.

 Het Nationaal Jeugd Jazz Orkest (NJJO) 2017-2018 is starting and I am glad to announce that I won the audition for the lead alto spot in the band. The band will be led by renowned guitar player Anton Goudsmit. We will be touring through the Netherlands in the summer, with performances at places like the Bimhuis en het Grachtenfestival. There will also be a week of Young Metropole Orchestra where we will collaborate with the NJO. For more info see my agenda page or visit: http://www.njjo.nl/

The trio made it to the finals of the Leidse Jazz Award! Happy to announce that William, Fran and I will be competing for the award on March 19 in Leiden. You can read the jury comments below (in Dutch):

Juryverslag:  
- De ‘nieuwe’ Benjamin Herman, helder geluid.
- Klassiek opgeleid (als compliment!) en dat is merkbaar in zijn presentatie.  
- Wordt een groot speler als hij eenmaal zijn ‘eigen’ stijl zal hebben.
- Helder geluid en sublieme technische beheersing.
- Heerlijk jong nog maar (19) en speelt nu (al) virtuoos.
- Goede frasering tussen rust en dynamiek.  
- Aardige en attente presentatie, bedankte zelfs de organisatie!! (zeer gewaardeerd)

Source: http://leidsejazz.nl/

On the 6th of December I had the fantastic chance to play as a guest soloist with the Millennium Jazz Orchestra. This big band led by Joan Reinders plays monthly in Theater Bouwkunde in my hometown Deventer. Every time they feature a different great (inter)national jazz musician and this edition they decided to do a local young talent evening. Other soloists with the band were among others Lee Konitz, Dick Oatts, Toots Thielemans and Benny Golson. Video material of the concert will be uploaded soon!

Picture by Hardy Klink photography.

In the September edition of the Dutch jazz magazine "Jazzism" I had the honour of being featured as the "Jonge Held". You can read the article here!

I have uploaded the video of my performance at the North Sea Jazz Festival, with the Jazz Orchestra of the Concertgebouw conducted by Dennis Mackrel featuring Dr. Lonnie Smith. Check out the video here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=jMF_nLJ-MhE
I am also happy to announce that coming Thursday I have the honour to share the stage with Dennis Mackrel again. He will be working with the CvA Big Band this week as a conductor, rehearsing his own arrangements with the band. The concert will be coming Thursday at 17:00 in the Amsterdam Blue Note.

The 9th of July I had the honor to perform at the North Sea Jazz Festival in Rotterdam. I played with the renowned Jazz Orchestra of the Concertgebouw, who had the legendary Dr. Lonnie Smith as a guest soloist for the occasion. 
Check out the article in the local news paper, click here.