Jaap Blonk is primarily self-taught both as a sound artist and as a visual/stage 
performer. He studied physics, mathematics, and musicology for a time, but did not complete his studies. One of his early influences was Kurt Schwitters, whose Ursonate he first heard in 1979; he memorized the entire work, and it became one of the cornerstones of his repertory; he has recited portions of the piece hundreds of times in various public places. His compositions and performances are examples of sound poetry, making use of words and phonetic snippets as well as clicks, hisses, and other vocal manipulations. He works as a solo performer, in collaboration with avant-garde musicians such as John Tchicai, Tristan Honsiger, and Mats Gustafsson, and with his own ensembles.
For this special show at Hundred Years Gallery he is joined by two major forces in UK Free improvisation, saxophonist Alan Wilkinson and percussionist Steve Noble.
Alan Wilkinson(b. London 1954) comes blazing out of a saxophone tradition that includes the likes of Ayler, Roscoe Mitchell, Mike Osborne, Evan Parker and Brötzmann, with a highly vocalized and personal style. Based in London since 1990 he first became known as part of the fertile Leeds scene of the ‘80s, founding the Termite Club and as a member of Hession/Wilkinson/Fell. Currently he has an acclaimed trio with John Edwards and Steve Noble, a Norwegian group with Kim Johanessen, Ola Hoyer and Dag Erik Knedal, a trio with James Dunn and John Bisset, recent collaborations with Chris Corsano, and American duo Talibam!, Spanish group Laxula, and plays regularly at his club flimflam in London. Previous collaborations have included Derek Bailey in duo and with Company; a quartet with Brötzmann, Fell, and Kellers; a trio with Rainer Kuhn and Willi Kellers; Alex Maguire’s Cat o’Nine Tails; Sunny Murray; Eddie Prevost; Thurston Moore and Lee Ranaldo; Stefan Jaworzyn; Spring Heel Jack. He has played at many national and international festivals and is featured on numerous recordings.
Steve Noble studied with Nigerian master drummer Elkan Ogunde and in the early 1980s was a member of Rip Rig and Panic, touring extensively throughout Europe and England. Since then he has been extensively involved in improvised music through work with a wide range of groups and musicians, including NEW, Derek Bailey, Lol Coxhill, Wadada Leo Smith, and Alex Ward.
