Home » Jazz Musicians » Focus

Focus

With their unique brand of progressive rock, Focus manifested themselves at the start of the '70s as the most successful and appreciated of all the Dutch pop-rock exports. Fronted by founding member Thijs Van Leer, and best known for their hits "Hocus Pocus", "House of The King" and "Sylvia", as well as critically acclaimed albums 'Moving Waves', 'Focus 3' and 'Hamburger Concerto', the iconic Dutch music masters are back with their tenth album, which is guaranteed to please their legions of fans!    

After a comeback in the early 2000's, which resulted in the well-received albums 'Focus 8' and 'Focus 9', the band regrouped with a fantastic new line-up. Along with Thijs van Leer on vocals, flute and keyboards, back on the drums is famed Focus drummer Pierre van der Linden, who joined the group on their second album 'Moving Waves' in 1972. Internationally renowned for his rhythmic skills, Pierre remains a defining factor in the Focus sound. Guitarist Menno Gootjes, who participated in Focus at an earlier stage, and acclaimed bass player Udo Pannekeet, complete the band's current line-up. Recently, Focus's biggest hit "Hocus Pocus" was used in a 4-minute Nike commercial before the World Cup broadcast. Focus music can be regularly heard on Top Gear and Saxondale on TV in the UK.          

A new Focus era has arrived! There is a rejuvenated passion amongst the band as they released the first studio album for 6 years, Focus 11, in early 2019.   They toured the world in in support of the new album, and are now excited re their 50th Anniversary tour. Unfortunately the world situation had halted the 50th Anniversary celebrations, but have no fear, as soon Focus now have a run of dates, in the UK and Europe from March to Dec 2022, Focus are happy to back on stage where they belong and love to be.  

The current line up: Thijs van Leer: Hammond-organ, flute and vocals; Pierre van der Linden: drums; Menno Gootjes: guitar; Udo Pannekeet: bass. 


Tags

3

Event

The Netherlands as central focus at jazzahead! ...and a message: 'Jazz needs diversity'

The Netherlands as central focus at jazzahead! ...and a message: 'Jazz needs diversity'

Source: Michael Ricci

jazzahead! 2024—with partner country the Netherlands—will be three busy and full-on days and nights from April 11-13. Key themes of the showcase programme at the forthcoming jazzahead!2024 are: a superb array of acts from the Netherlands, this year’s partner country; a very strong presence of women among the 40 acts, particularly in the role of bandleaders; a wide range of music from all areas of jazz; a clear societal message. The jazzahead! 2024 trade fair and festival, produced by MESSE ...

9

Recording

Willie Oteri Releasing New Material Focusing On Saxophone And Flute

Willie Oteri Releasing New Material Focusing On Saxophone And Flute

Source: Willie Oteri

Genre jumping multi-instrumentalist Willie Oteri will be releasing new material focusing on his tenor saxophone and flute playing which will include various artists such as drummer Matt Crane, guitarist Jeff Platz and electric trumpet master Dave Laczko. These recordings will be in the beyond jazz / free jazz / avant-garde arena while keeping in mind a presence for mood and melody. The first (Mind Meld), to be released on December 20, 2021 on various platforms is a duo with electric ...

2

Career

Why You Should Focus on Booking Local Gigs

Why You Should Focus on Booking Local Gigs

Source: HypeBot

We all want to move on to big regional, national, or even international tours. But, it’s a mistake to rush into touring too quickly and skip out on booking local gigs. I have always been a believer in starting your career in a central place, like your hometown or a town nearby that would be conducive to your career development. Then, you can expand outward systematically from that central point. If you spend a little more time booking local gigs ...

Radio

How To Start A Music Focused Podcast

How To Start A Music Focused Podcast

Source: HypeBot

Living as we are in the Golden Age of podcasting, new shows are constantly springing up every day, and the music industry is no exception. A fun and easy way to engage your audience, there are a few critical components for putting together a quality podcast, which we cover here. Guest post by Cait McMahon of the Symphonic Blog Over the past few years, we’ve seen podcasts explode in literally every industry, covering every possible topic, and the music industry ...

1

Career

Big v Small: How To Decide Which Cities To Focus On During Your Tour

Big v Small: How To Decide Which Cities To Focus On During Your Tour

Source: HypeBot

If your one of the many bands planning to embark on a tour and make your mark on the music scene, major populous cities can seem like essential destinations for playing shows. In reality, however, you may be better off making a big impression in a smaller city. Guest post by Patrick McGuire of the TuneCore Blog At any given moment, there are thousands of new bands across the world routing tours in hopes of creating momentum for their music. ...

9

Festival

Skopje Cinema City Film Festival Fourth Edition Set For June 6-10 At Cinematheque Of Macedonia--Focus On Jazz

Skopje Cinema City Film Festival Fourth Edition Set For June 6-10 At Cinematheque Of Macedonia--Focus On Jazz

Source: All About Jazz

Taking place in Skopje, Macedonia, and now in its fourth year, the Skopje Cinema City (SCC) is a film festival dedicated solely to screening music documentaries. The program consists of documentaries that treat the subject of music in unique and creative ways. As such, it takes the best from the worlds of films and music to offer a different kind of experience to its audience. Skopje Cinema City aims to achieve the following goals: to entertain and to educate to ...

6

Advocacy

Photographer Jimmy Katz Announces Giant Step Arts, Artist-focused Non-profit Supporting Modern Jazz Innovators

Photographer Jimmy Katz Announces Giant Step Arts, Artist-focused Non-profit Supporting Modern Jazz Innovators

Source: Braithwaite & Katz Communications

“[Katz] has developed an exceptional body of work in the jazz field, covering the elder statesmen, the icons, the mainstream and the young lions. In the process, he has developed his own style with the camera that is as identifiable as Armstrong’s tone on trumpet or Coltrane’s sound on tenor sax.”—Michael Cuscuna, producer, Blue Note Records For nearly 30 years, photographer Jimmy Katz has documented the world of jazz—crafting iconic portraits of legendary artists, capturing historic moments in the recording ...

5

Radio

Mondo Jazz - New radio program focused on international jazz

Mondo Jazz - New radio program focused on international jazz

Source: All About Jazz

Mondo Jazz, a new radio program hosted by Italian-turned-New Yorker Ludovico Granvassu (Editor-in-Chief of italia.allaboutjazz.com), with a mission of showcasing international jazz that's not readily available on American airwaves. Starting on 15th of November, the show will broadcast on Wednesdays from 10 p.m. to midnight via Radio Free Brooklyn. From the host... “When I first moved to the United States I was surprised that, in the country where customers have unlimited choices, I could go to a supermarket and find ...

Music Industry

Boston Based Record Co. Focuses On Access Not Profit

Boston Based Record Co. Focuses On Access Not Profit

Source: HypeBot

The Boston music scene is a lively, ever-changing one, but whether you're an engineer or a musician it can be a difficult environment to thrive in. Here we look at how Boston-based non-profit The Record Co. is working to make access to studios and professional opportunities an affordable option for all. Guest post by Kevin Cornell of the TuneCore Blog Boston, Massachusetts is home to over 250,000 college students. With institutions like Harvard, M.I.T., Berklee College of Music, Emerson, Boston College ...

Music Industry

Pandora May Sell Ticketfly To Refocus On Streaming

Pandora May Sell Ticketfly To Refocus On Streaming

Source: HypeBot

Pandora is exploring the sale of ticket seller Ticketfly. Purchased for $335 million in 2015, Ticketfly combined with Pandora was touted as a game changer.  But given Ticketmaster's dominant position, the  pairing has proven to be more good PR than great business. During a self-imposed 30 day period when everything is on the table, Pandora is considering the sale of its ticketing arm Ticketfly. Acquired in 2015 for $335 million, Ticketfly was more recently valued at $450 million.  Pandora is ...

Photos

Videos

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.