Rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrumm mmmpffff tillffff tooooooo!

Publisher Het Balanseer celebrates its five-year anniversary! Together with Netwerk they compose a festive event with concerts, performances, writers, musicians and contemporary artists. As Jaap Blonk paraphrased Kurt Schwitters: RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRUMMMMMPFFFF TILLFFFF TOOOOOOO!

Dutchman Jaap Blonk is a legendary sound poet who combines voice art with absurd, Dadaist humour. In the mid-eighties he broke through with a theatrical performance of Kurt Schwitters' pioneering sound poem, Ursonate. In subsequent years Blonk has built up an impressive resume, sharing the stage with such artist as The Ex, Maja Ratkje, Mats Gustafsson, Joan La Barbara and now DJ Sniff.

DJ Sniff (Takura Mizuta Lippit) is an experimental turntablist. With a turntable, a mixer and a stockpile of experimental vinyl records he deconstructs the collective musical memory into an avant-garde composition. He has shared the stage with, among others, Andy Moor, C. Spencer Yeh, Evan Parker, Mark Sanders...

Sheldon Siegel is the playground of the young dogs Gino Coomans (cello), Erik Heestermans (drums) and Gerard Herman (sax, singing tube, bicycle wheel). After appearing on a split LP on KRAAK, they now have released the double LP Grève Total (Scheld'apen Records), upon which they indulge in their love for outsider free jazz.

Pol Hoste will read some stories from his newly published volume 99, of Flemish to Catwalk. For his previous novel, De Verzwegen Boon, he received the L.P. Boon Price 2012.

In the spring of 2012, a remarkable artist's book came out: Akerselva-Oslo from 2004 to 2011 by Johan De Wilde. This book arranges topographic images made by the artist along the Akerselve, a Norwegian river that flows through Oslo.
Heleen Van Haegenborgh (prepared piano), Kristof Roseeuw (bass) and Köhn aka Jürgen De Blonde (electronics) were inspired by this book for their collaboration.

Sandrine Verstraete is a writer and performer. She animates her sensory-influenced texts into installations, performances and music. To celebrate 5 years of Het Balanseer, she collides with percussionist and sound artist Kris Vanderstraeten, a key figure in the Belgian improv-scene since the 1970’s and drummer/percussionist Ivo Machiels of a.o. B-Lectric..

The Dutch author Peter Smink has realised a dozen plays and screenplays, a collection of short stories, two novels and a book of autobiographical fiction, which the author describes as 'free exercise'. The writer celebrates 5 years of Het Balanseer by reading from his first book of poetry: Schedelmoer & Maatpak.

Harry Vaandrager reads from the collections of stories, Koprot. In 2011 Het Balanseer published the flamboyant Dutchman’s work, Aan Barrels, a disillusionating novel with explosive linguistic delight!

Authors / DJ’s Matthijs de Ridder (jazz), Marc Kregting (soul & funk) and Sven Vitse (electronics) each play their favourite discs.