EP 116 - ALEXANDER BEETS

Mention the Beets name pretty much anywhere in the world, and any jazz enthusiast in the room will know what you’re talking about: quality, and a strong brand of bop and swing. 

And swing… that’s one thing tenor saxophonist, Alexander ‘The Hurricane’ Beets brings each year to the Amersfoort World Jazz Festival and every festival and show he performs.

His nickname ‘The Hurricane’ comes from his explosive and expressive playing.  

Much like (and with) his brothers, Beets has performed on stages around the world. 

His mix of swing and ballads, standards and originals has swooned audiences from Poland to Thailand and from Canada to India.

As a jazz-saxophone player he gave over 2000 concerts around the world, played on more than 30 CD’s and DVD’s. 

Besides that, he runs Amersfoort World Jazz Festival, curates Leusden Jazz and is one of the founders of World Jazz Network, keeping jazz delegates across the globe connected and improving international mobility for young jazz artists.

Celebrating his personal heroes, Dutch tenor saxophonist Alexander Beets’ newest album, Big Sounds, is a compilation of favorites and a tribute to Gene Ammons, Stanley Turrentine, Ike Quebec and Hank Mobley with legend-inspired originals. 

Try not tapping your foot to the opener Blues for the Legends, with swinging solos by not just Beets himself but also Miles Davis Institute-acknowledged trumpeter, Ellister van der Molen.

The new album is out on Oct. 15, 2021

The link to his full biography, along with more Resources for this episode, is on our website.

In this episode, we talked about:

• Influence of his' musical heroes on his playing
•  What makes him perform with confidence
• How Alexander organizes major jazz festivals
• His upcoming album release, Big Sounds
• and more

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