Luc Houtkamp

Houtkamp / Tramontana / Beresford / Blume: Frush

by John Eyles
July 27, 2024

The improvising trio comprising Netherlands tenor saxophonist and clarinetist Luc Houtkamp, British pianist and player of electronics and objects Steve Beresford, and German drummer and percussionist Martin Blume is well established, having recorded their first trio album Live in Prague 2017 (the pow ensemble, 2017) in November 2017 at the Alternativa Festival in Czechia, followed by Shed 1 (FMR, 2020), recorded in concert at LOFT in Cologne, Germany, in October 2018. On each of those albums, all of the music ...

Luc Houtkamps's pow3: The Thirteen Bar Blues

by Mark Corroto
February 5, 2004

Finally a blues record that Philip K. Dick would love!

The science fiction writer would surely have dug The Thirteen Bar Blues, subtitled New Developments In Electronic Jazz by saxophonist, software engineer, and electronics tinkerer Luc Houtkamp. Known for his recorded duets between real time saxophone and computer generated improvising software, Houtkamp has moved the worlds of human and artificial intelligence just a little bit closer.

His band pow3 takes on the future of roots ...

Luc Houtkamp: The Field Recordings No. 1/6/7

by Mark Corroto
March 1, 2001

The mostly self-taught saxophonist of The Netherlands Luc Houtkamp reveals a style spawned in the freedom of the 1960s but beholden to no one period. Houtkamp, born 1953, has collaborated with Han Bennink, Ernst Reisjeger, Jon Rose, and Eugene Chadbourne. Last year he was featured on the American release Luc Houtkamp In Chicago (Entropy Stereo) along with bassist Kent Kessler and drummer Michael Zerang. The Chicago disc revealed a thoroughly modern ensemble sound, whereas his self-produced series, entitled The Field ...

Luc Houtkamp: In Chicago

by Mark Corroto
December 1, 2000

It’s interesting how one’s path of jazz listening arrives at a particular artist. My personal discovery of Netherlands-born saxophonist Luc Houtkamp came via Chicago. Well, actually Germany and Peter Brötzmann. The 1960s free-jazz flame-thrower was travelling to the windy city to play a series of concerts and mentioned the thriving scene that grew up around Ken Vandermark. My discovery of Vandermark’s music led me to his influences in Europe and Swedish saxophonist Mats Gustafsson. You see the Chicago scene draws ...