Pierre Courbois (born 23 April 1940 in

Nijmegen Nijmegen ( , ; Nijmeegs: ) is the largest city in the Dutch province of Gelderland and the ninth largest of the Netherlands as a whole. Located on the Waal River close to the German border, Nijmegen is one of the oldest cities in the ...

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

) is a Dutch jazz drummer, bandleader, and composer.

Career

He is the younger brother of actress

Kitty Courbois Catharina Anna Petronella Antonia "Kitty" Courbois (13 July 1937 – 11 March 2017) was a Dutch actress. In 2010 she was awarded the Medal of Merit. Career Kitty Courbois was born into a wigmaker family in Nijmegen, Netherlands. She has six ...

. After studying percussion at the ''Hogeschool der Kunsten'' in

Arnhem Arnhem ( ; ; Central Dutch dialects, Ernems: ''Èrnem'') is a Cities of the Netherlands, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality situated in the eastern part of the Netherlands, near the German border. It is the capita ...

, Courbois left for

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, the center of jazz in Europe in the early 1960s. He worked with pianist

Kenny Drew Kenneth Sidney "Kenny" Drew (August 28, 1928 – August 4, 1993) was an American-Danish jazz pianist. Biography Drew was born on August 28, 1928, in New York City, United States, and he received piano lessons from the age of five. Feather, ...

, violinist

Jean-Luc Ponty Jean-Luc Ponty (born 29 September 1942) is a French jazz and jazz fusion violinist and composer. He is considered a pioneer of jazz-rock, particularly for his use of the electric violin starting in the 1970s. He rose to prominence for his colla ...

, saxophonists

Eric Dolphy Eric Allan Dolphy Jr. (June 20, 1928 – June 29, 1964) was an American jazz multi-instrumentalist, composer, and bandleader. Primarily an alto saxophonist, bass clarinetist, and flautist, Dolphy was one of several multi-instrumentalists to gain ...

Ben Webster Benjamin Francis Webster (March 27, 1909 – September 20, 1973) was an American jazz tenor Saxophone, saxophonist. He performed in the United States and Europe and made many recordings with Duke Ellington, Billie Holiday, Johnny Hodges, a ...

Stan Getz Stan Getz (born Stanley Gayetski; February 2, 1927 – June 6, 1991) was an American jazz saxophonist. Playing primarily the tenor saxophone, Getz was known as "The Sound" because of his warm, lyrical tone, with his prime influence being the wis ...

, and

Johnny Griffin John Arnold Griffin III (April 24, 1928 – July 25, 2008) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. Nicknamed "the Little Giant" for his short stature and forceful playing, Griffin's career began in the mid-1940s and continued until the month of ...

, and guitarist René Thomas. Courbois was one of the first musicians in Europe to experiment with

free jazz Free jazz, or free form in the early to mid-1970s, is a style of avant-garde jazz or an experimental approach to jazz improvisation that developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s, when musicians attempted to change or break down jazz conventi ...

. In 1961 he became the drummer and leader of the (Original Dutch) Free Jazz Quartet. In 1965 he started another group, the Free Music Quintet, composed of international musicians. He also played and recorded with

Gunter Hampel Gunter Hampel (born 31 August 1937) is a German jazz vibraphonist, clarinettist, saxophonist, flautist, pianist, and composer. He became dedicated to free jazz in the 1960s, developing a record label (Birth Records) and working with Jeanne Lee, ...

's Heartplants Group with Manfred Schoof and Alexander von Schlippenbach. In 1969 Courbois founded the first European jazz-rock group, Association P.C. This ensemble, winner of the ''Down Beat'' poll, existed until 1975 with Toto Blanke, Sigi Busch, different keyboardists, including

Jasper van 't Hof Jasper van 't Hof (born 30 June 1947) is a Dutch jazz pianist and keyboard player. Van 't Hof was born in Enschede, Overijssel, Netherlands, and began studying piano at the age of five. He played in jazz bands at school, and by the age of 19 was ...

Joachim Kühn Joachim Kurt Kühn (born 15 March 1944) is a German jazz pianist. Biography Kühn was born in Leipzig, Germany. He was a musical prodigy and made his debut as a concert pianist, having studied classical piano and composition, with Arthur Schmidt-E ...

and Sigi Kessler. In 1982 he founded New Association with Heribert Wagner, Ben Gerritsen and Ferdi Rikkers. He has also played with the pianists

Mal Waldron Malcolm Earl "Mal" Waldron (August 16, 1925 – December 2, 2002) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and arranger. He started playing professionally in New York in 1950, after graduating from college. In the following dozen years or so Wa ...

, and Rein de Graaff, horn players

Willem Breuker Willem Breuker (4 November 1944 – 23 July 2010) was a Dutch bandleader, composer, arranger, saxophonist, and clarinet The clarinet is a Single-reed instrument, single-reed musical instrument in the woodwind family, with a nearly cylindri ...

, Hans Dulfer and Theo Loevendie, and Ali Haurand's European Jazz Quintet with Gerd Dudeck, Leszek Zadlo and Alan Skidmore. In 1992 Courbois started a quintet and for the first time in his career performed pieces all composed by himself. This ensemble pleasantly surprised both the critics and the public with a return to the

Charles Mingus Charles Mingus Jr. (April 22, 1922 – January 5, 1979) was an American jazz Double bass, upright bassist, composer, bandleader, pianist, and author. A major proponent of collective Musical improvisation, improvisation, he is considered one of ...

tradition - thematic, melodic ensemble jazz and an experimentation with linear improvisation. In 1999 he founded the Double Quintet and in 2003 the Five Four Sextet, with Eric Vloeimans,

Ilja Reijngoud Ilja Reijngoud (born 5 July 1972) is a Dutch people, Dutch jazz trombonist, composer, arranger and educator who has played with many renowned artists. He won the Thelonious Monk Award in 2003. Biography Ilja Reijngoud was born in Leiden in the N ...

, Jasper Blom, Paul van Kemenade, and Niko Langenhuijsen. During the 1994

North Sea Jazz Festival The North Sea Jazz Festival is a festival held annually on the second weekend of July in the Netherlands at the Ahoy venue. The festival moved to Rotterdam in 2006 after the demolition of the Statenhal in The Hague where it was originally held. ...

the Bird Award, the highest award in the Dutch Jazz World, was bestowed upon Courbois. Since 2000 he has been a Knight of the Order of Orange-Nassau and in 2008 he received the VPRO / Boy Edgar Award.

Discography

* ''Perpetuum Mobile'' with Jasper van 't Hof (Varajazz, 1981) * ''Independence'' (Timeless, 1983) * ''Live in Germany'' (A Records, 1996) * ''Reouverture'' (Challenge, 1997) * ''Unsquare Roots'' (Calibre, 2000) * ''Revocation: Live at the Bimhuis'' (Daybreak, 2007) With Association * ''Earwax'' (Munich, 1970) * ''Sun Rotation'' (MPS, 1972) * ''Rock Around the Cock'' (MPS, 1973) * ''Erna Morena'' (MPS, 1973) * ''Mama Kuku'' (MPS, 1974) With New Association * ''To Be Continued'' (BV Haast, 1984) * ''Four Wheel Drive'' (Inak, 1987) With Compass * ''Sanstitre'' (Traction Avant, 1987)

As sideman

With

* ''Heartplants'' (SABA, 1965) * ''Music from Europe'' (ESP Disk, 1967) * ''Gunter Hampel Group + Jeanne Lee'' (WERGO, 1969) * ''Legendary: The 27th of May 1997'' (Birth, 1998) With others *

, ''Contemporary Jazz from Holland: Litany for the 14th of June 1966'' (Relax, 1966) *

Peter Brotzmann Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a sur ...

, ''Mayday'' (Corbett vs. Dempsey, 2010) *

Lol Coxhill George Lowen Coxhill (19 September 1932 – 10 July 2012) known professionally as Lol Coxhill, was an English free improvisation, free improvising saxophonist. He played soprano saxophone, soprano and sopranino saxophone, sopranino saxopho ...

, ''Ear of Beholder'' (Dandelion, 1971) *

, Jasper Van't Hof, ''Toverbal Sweet'' (Mushroom, 1972) *

Gerd Dudek Gerhard Rochus "Gerd" Dudek (28 September 1938 – 3 November 2022) was a German jazz Tenor saxophone, tenor and Soprano saxophone, soprano saxophonist, clarinetist and flautist. Dudek studied clarinet privately and attended music school in the ...

, Leszek Zadlo, Alan Skidmore, ''III'' (Fusion, 1982) * J. R. Monterose, Jon Eardley, Rein De Graaff, ''Body and Soul'' (Munich, 1970) *

Ramses Shaffy Ramses Shaffy (29 August 1933 – 1 December 2009) was a Dutch-French singer and actor who became popular during the 1960s. His most famous songs include "Zing, vecht, huil, bid, lach, werk en bewonder", "We zullen doorgaan", "Pastorale", "Samm ...

, ''Sunset Sunkiss'' (Philips, 1969) *

, ''

A Little Bit of Miles ''A Little Bit of Miles'' is a live album by American jazz pianist Mal Waldron featuring performances recorded in Leiden, Holland in 1972 and released on the Freedom label.

'' (Freedom, 1974) * Mal Waldron, '' Blues for Lady Day'' (Black Lion, 1993)

Electoral history

Notes

References

* Ian Carr, Brian Priestley, Digby Fairweather (eds.): ''Rough Guide Jazz. Der ultimative Führer zum Jazz''. Metzler Verlag, Stuttgart 1999, * Wolf Kampmann (ed.): ''Reclams Jazzlexikon''. Reclam, Stuttgart 2003, {{DEFAULTSORT:Courbois, Pierre 1940 births Living people Musicians from Nijmegen Dutch jazz bandleaders Dutch jazz composers Dutch jazz drummers European Jazz Ensemble members Dutch male drummers Male jazz composers