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"Music acts like a magic key, to which the most tightly closed heart opens." - Maria von Trapp

Surfcake

Jurek Cruysberg got inspired to play electric guitar by Jeff Beck, John McLauglin, Jimmy Hendrix a.o. After some study at the American Institute of Music in Vienna he went busking in Greece. Being without electricity he started to play the Spanish guitar and discovered the beauty of acoustic sound. He formed a trio, went to Spain, hanging around in the flamenco scene and performing with his trio on the road. Back in the Netherlands he experimented with computer mixing of jazz, drums & bass, Indian and electronic music that formed the basis of Surfcake. Mike Roelofs studied at the Maastricht Conservatory. Intuition is his strongest tool. During his studies he wins the prestigious Concours Chambre Comique and a year later the Frisian Crossover Competition.
Ryan Carniaux was born in New York and studied at the prestigious Berklee College of Music. He is a versatile trumpeter who can cope with any kind of music, but his favourite genre is jazz, which gives him the openings to run around freely.
Marcel Joosten studied classical flute but after listening to John Coltrane, Joe Henderson and Sonny Rollins he changed to saxophone. He explored the possibilities of the instrument at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels.
Arjan Kerren is a groovy, self taught bass player heavily influenced by Stanley Clarke, Marcus Miller and Carles Benavent.
Ron van Stratum plays a wide range of musical styles: from jazz to pop, from Latin to rock. He studied both classical percussion and jazz/pop drums and played with Mike Stern, John Beasley, Randy Brecker a.o.
Sjoerd Rutten, being a rebel dropped out of Maastricht Conservatory, toured through the USA and played at the North Sea Festival. No particular style has his preference. Léon Bartels started out as a bass player, but he developed a strong interest for recording music. He studied at the Music Academy of Hilversum and now runs his own recording studio in the south of Holland.

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