Electric Umbrella #32: Bastien, Monk, Lumley, Rosaly

Finally, here’s a new edition of our much-loved imrov series!
This edition of the Electric Umbrella was curated by Johanna Monk, who brought together some top-notch musicians all of whom (at various moments in time) landed in The Netherlands from somewhere else. Let us be thankful that they landed here!!
On top of all this, this evening also features the visual art and poetry of Vanita Monk (1944-2024).

PROGRAMME
A solo by Pierre Bastien
A power trio of Monk/Lumley/Rosaly (sax/clarinet, double bass, drums)
A thoughtful quartet/tutti of conducted improvisation, spoken word and visual art

Johanna Monk is a Canadian-Dutch multi-instrumentalist, literary writer and performance artist. Since the death in 2024 of her creative and life partner Vanita Monk, Johanna continues their 35-year artistic collaboration, staging multidisciplinary collaborative performances that include live improvised music, visual art, film, spoken-word performance and more. As a purely musical performer, Johanna combines the extended techniques of the avant-garde and the harsh brutality of pure sound with a melodic sensibility that betrays her roots in various folk musics.
https://www.monastery.nl/

Pierre Bastien is a French musician, composer, and experimental musical instrument builder, working at the cross between music and visual art that blends live trumpet sounds with screen projections of on-site, mechanical sound sculptures in a very poetic way. His work is described as “a timeless sounding orchestra, both futuristic and slightly dada, conjuring ancient traditions in its surprisingly sensuous music” and as a “mad musical scientist with a celebrity following.”
https://www.pierrebastien.com/

Aaron Lumley is an exploratory Canadian contrabassist and improvising musician based in Amsterdam. Recognized for his raw, aggressive acoustic tone and forward-thinking avant-garde techniques, Lumley performs on a double bass tuned in fifths using a self-made bow. He established his presence across Toronto and Montreal’s vibrant improvisational scenes before relocating to the Netherlands. As both a soloist and key collaborator in various ensembles, his distinctive playing contrasts intense lyricism with brutal, boundary-pushing textures.
https://aaronlumley.bandcamp.com/

Frank Rosaly is a drummer, composer and sound designer living in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. His musical approach stems from an exhaustive study of jazz, classical, improvisation, ritual and record collecting. For the last 20 years, these studies have been filtered through the prism of ritual and folklore of Latin America and the Caribbean, as he navigates his Puerto Rican roots. He considers his journey in sound as a student, his musical contributions as offerings.
https://frankrosaly.com/