Me, myself and I

This is the web site of guitarist Tonnie van der Heide

I was born in Amsterdam on 27 February 1943. I've played the guitar since I was 12 years old, starting on a tenor (4-string) guitar.

After a few years I was able to buy my first 6-string guitar, a red sparkling Swedish  Hagström solid body.

A few years ago I converted completely to the 7-string guitar, using a low A string, like it's "inventor" George Van Eps.

Other players

I've been lucky to hear and see many of my own guitar heroes live!

Here's a short list (click on their names if you want to learn more):

Kenny Burrell, Tal Farlow, Jim Hall, Barney Kessel, Pat Martino, Pat Matheny, Peter Leitch, Joe Pass, Louis Stewart, René Thomas and of course fellow Dutchman Wim Overgaauw.

Many of these guys can now be heard and seen on YouTube.

Records

At about 14 I started collecting jazz guitar records, mostly bought at sales and in a nearby used record shop (Concerto), Utrechtse Straat,  in Amsterdam, which is still going strong. So I have quite a collection and I have continued collecting through the years, but now of course CDs and more recently DVDs.

Whom did/do I play with?

THE BEGINNING

At around 16 I started playing with Willem Breuker, who back then only played the clarinet. 

At the time we were quite "avant garde" trying to sound like the Jimmy Guiffre trio (with Jim Hall guitar, Ray Brown, or Ralph Pena on bass). 

Thereafter I played with tenor saxophonist Hans Dulfer, in a piano-less quartet.

For those of you who are not familiar with these two (Willem and Hans), please note that they are still going strong both in the Netherlands and internationally. 

Hans is by the way the father of the internationally famous alto saxophonist Candy Dulfer.

GOING PRO

I landed my first professional job, through a colleague of my father, who was a "semi pro" guitarist at that time. His name is Piet van Schagen. He also owned a music store called "Peter Johanzen" (which was his stage name), located in Alkmaar in the Netherlands, now run by his son. 

After serving in the military, I played in international dance bands in France, Germany, Switzerland and of course my native Netherlands. 

I played a lot on US Air Force Bases in France and Germany, mostly in NCO-clubs. 

Mostly with a group called the Atlanta Sextet, lead by Fred Schmidt.

One evening the show artists were the Four Freshmen. Having  always being fond of "close harmony", this evening turned me into a live-time fan. In their case the word "close harmony" is not technical correct, as they also use open (wide spread) chords. Read more here and scroll down to The Four Freshmen sound.

Then I came to Norway with a German band in 1965 and stayed on.

GOING SEMI PRO

In Norway I have played in big bands, octets, septets and smaller combos. I  played a.o. with Norwegian pianist Eivin Sannes, when he was still living in Bergen, Norway. And once after he moved to Oslo, we played together again there.

While he is best know as a pianist, he played the Hammond organ while I worked with him in a trio, together with the late drummer Svein-Erik Gaardvik.  So Eivind had to play the bass line with his foot!

I also worked with vibraphonist Arvid Genius, in Bergen, Norway.

I think that the vibraphone sounds very nice together with the guitar. 

Around that time I was lucky enough to take over the apartment of guitarist Halvard Kausland, who was moving east. Before he move we woodshedded quite a lot together.

In 2002 he made his first CD under his own name on Hot Club Records, called "Good Bait".

Until a few years ago I played with the Norwegian tenor sax player Kjell Tombra as a duo.

We used Jamey Abersold's CDs and Band-in-a-Box as comp, played through a Fender Passport PA. 

Then I started to work either alone, as a "one man band" (called: G7 *)). I also work with singer Anne Ma Bakke as a duo (called: J & B, which stands for Jazz & Bossa Nova). In both cases using Band in a Box as my/our "band". It really does swing and makes us sound like "a million".  

*) G7 is a name with some intended pun, meaning the chord G7, Guitar with 7 strings and the (former) name for a group of the seven richest countries in the word.

Photo: Jorunn Gundersen

Vocalist Anne Ma Bakke & Guitarist Tonnie van der Heide

Other players 2

In addition to my guitar heroes, mentioned above, I've heard several other great guitar players live!

In 2007

Participated in the North Wales Guitar week.

Got to play in many student concerts with o.a. very fine bass players like Harvey S. and Jim Furgerson.

Guitar players here included: Louis Stewart, Mundell Loewe, Martin Taylor, Andreas Öberg, Mimi Fox and more.

On April 1 Russell Malone in Voss, Norway as part of the Golden Striker Trio.

In 2006

Oct. in Amsterdam: Martijn van Iterson with the Big Band of the Concert Gebouw.

I participated in a Jazz Guitar Master Class arrangement in July at Bolærne in Norway. Here I saw:

Jacob Fischer (DK), Martin Taylor (UK), Andreas Öberg (S), Staffan William-Olsson (S), Hallgeir Pedersen and Halvard Kausland (NO), Louis Stewart (Ireland) and Randy Johnston (USA).

In 2005

November, I was in Copenhagen and was lucky enough to hear both Jacob Fischer and Doug Raney during the same weekend. I was got an agreement with Jacob to do a feature article for Just Jazz Guitar, which was published in 2007.

In 2004

November in Copenhagen, Denmark: guitarist Jacob Fischer.

At Madam Felle, Bergen, Norway: Mike Gallaher with rhythm section and Randy Johnston together with Norwegian guitarist Øystein Norvoll in a quartet setting.

Randy was kind enough to give me a photocopy of one of his originals.

In 2003

Dutch guitarist Martijn van Itterson together with a.o. tenorist Red Holloway.

American/Danish guitarist Doug Raney, together with Danish bassist Daniel Franck.

Another Dutch guitarist; Jesse van Ruller in Amsterdam.

In 2002

Mike Gallaher, Craig Ebner (with Joey DeFrancesco). William Staffan Olsson, with a local big band in Bergen, Norway, playing his own arrangements. 

Toots Tielemans, mostly playing the harmonica as a stroke has taken away some of his dexterity on the guitar and robbed him of his ability to whistle. Last, but not least, Pat Martino with his quartet at the Cosmopolit in Oslo.

In 2001

Royce Campbell, Joe Beck, both in the Washington DC area and Sacha Distel (†) in Paris.

In 2000

Maarten van der Grinten and Jesse van Ruller in Amsterdam.

Before 2000

Tal Farlow (twice at Zinno's, 13th. St. in NYC), Kenny Burrell (Fat Tuesday and The Guitar both in NYC), Jim Hall (twice in NYC, Hull, UK and Bergen, Norway), Barney Kessel (Bergen, Norway), Peter Leitch (Bradley's NYC and Hull, UK), Joe Pass (Slukefter in Copenhagen and the Blue Note Osaka and NYC), Larry Coryell (NYC), Herb Ellis (Oslo), Freddie Green (Concert Gebouw, Amsterdam), Jon Ben Hur (NYC), Adrian Ingram (Hull), John McLaughlin (Bergen), Wim Overgaauw (Seherazade, Amsterdam), Les Paul (Fat Tuesday in NYC), John Pisano (Your Father's Moustache, Los Angeles), Bucky & John Pizzarelli (Oslo, NYC, Anapolis), Doug Raney (Copenhagen), Emily Remler (New York), Lee Ritenour (Los Angeles and Bergen), John Scofield (Bergen), Louis Stewart (London, UK, Kongsberg and Bolærne, Norway), Martin Taylor (Hull), René Thomas (Seherezade, Amsterdam), Phil Upchurch (Osaka Blue Note and USF, Bergen), Ulf Wakenius (USF, Bergen),  etc.

This all may sound like I have a one track mind and many ladies have told me that I do, through the years.

But here is a non-guitar story:  

I was most impressed by the Art Farmer quintet with Jimmy Heath on tenor at the Village Vanguard. 

They had arrangements for every tune they played. So when Art called out a tune and Jimmy started nervously paging trough a very thick binder with all the tenor parts, Art whispered; "it's number 255". 

So did he really know all arrangements by name and number? I think he did!

What do I sound like?

My oldest son plays a little guitar, but he is not really interested in jazz. 

So I have to put my bets on my grandson Iben André. 

He is only four (in this picture), but he has started (as you can see on the right)!

I am happy to play all kind of gigs, also commercial gigs, but having played for professionally for so many years, I now only play gigs I like.

Yet it sometimes it still feels a little like the cartoon on the right.

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