Bio
Bernard Brogue
belongs to the British ‘school’ of singer-songwriters like John Martyn, Nick Drake and Allan Taylor.
Bernard has made several trips to Scotland. In 1996 his song 'Down River', later to appear on his debut album 'Birdwatching', was voted second in a very high standard singer-songwriters contest at the Edinburgh International Festival. In Spring 1997 he did a small but successful solo tour in London and performed succesfully at the legendary folkclubs Bunjies and The 12 Bar.
Since the autumn of 2001 he performs with his new band featuring Vincent Gal on drums and percussion and Tom Janssen om fretless bass and keyboards.
In september 2006 his new album ‘Escape the day’ was released with this new band and other fine musicians. Kaz Lux (former member of the legendary Dutch band Brainbox) contributed the leadvocals of one of the songs.
Escape the day is a sentence from the song “Dream away” and refers to the desire to escape daily life, romance and the night as a symbol of the shadowside of life.
In november “Not before christmas” will be released. “Don’t go at christmas”, is the subject of this melancholic song. A beautiful counterpoint to the standards.
Though he still performs solo, Bernard performs frequently with Tom Janssen on fretless bass and Vincent Gal on drums and percussion.
"Singer-songwriter Bernard Brogue travels frequently between Holland and Scotland and is very much appreciated in the venues there. The album Escape the day reveals why. Especially if Bernard's sings with his warm voice about the pink moon there is a reference to Nick Drake. The absolutely beautiful melodies in which you can hear influences of pop and jazz are more lightfooted though, which makes he chooses more for the style of Luka Bloom.
Although, this remains spherical music for late in the evening."
(Platomania nov. 2006)
Tom Janssen
finished musicuniversity in 1992 in Arnhem. He studied double bass and electric bass.
He played in classical orchestras, toured with the Dutch studentsorchestra and in some jazzbands (Guus Tangelder Bigband en het Markus Turk Quintet).
He also played in several pop –and rockbands. He now playes with Alice Springs, a rockband and the Bernard Brogue Band. He teaches bass on the musicschool of Arnhem.
In his homestudio he is recording his own music which his symphonic rock (a bit like Genesis).
In his own music bassguitar chapmanstick and synthesizers play an important role.
Vincent Gal
is a drummer/percussionist and did musicuniversity in Arnhem.
In his childhood he already started with pots and pans and since those days he has been playing modern music. He is a sessionmusician and freelancer and plays in Grupo Azul, a salsa band and of course the Bernard Brogue Band.
His set-up is a combination of percussion-instruments and more common drumaccessoires. All together he makes his own characteristic sound out of his instruments.