Elias D'hooge & Rutger Mathys - Meetjesland Meets Jazz

With this project, pianist and composer Elias D’hooge and harmonica player Rutger Mathys cast a fresh, contemporary look at the musical heritage of the Meetjesland. Together with professionally trained jazz musicians, they rework local music, from folk songs to forgotten pearls and iconic regional songs, into a new jazz program. Not a distant interpretation, but a creation with the Meetjeslanders themselves. Jazz does not get a prominent place in the music landscape today, often because the genre is wrongly seen as elitist or difficult. This project breaks that vicious circle by connecting recognizable melodies with the open, playful mentality of jazz. Because jazz is not a style, but a way of listening, reacting, and investigating. You help determine which songs end up in the repertoire (think of Eddy Wally, The Shakers, Tom Dice or other local heroes). The result will be a full-fledged and accessible jazz concert, carried by the Elias D’hooge Trio, Rutger Mathys, and some local top musicians. This project is part of the residency work of Cultuurhuis Herbakker and Kunstacademie Eeklo. with: Rutger Mathys (harmonica, vocals), Elias D’hooge (piano), Marie-Anne Standaert (trumpet, vocals), Zjef Vansteenbergen (bass), Tom Peeters (drum) and a special guest Location: multi-purpose hall