Paul van Kemenade started studying in 1974 at the conservatories in Tilburg and later on in Amsterdam and began his career playing in cabarets and nightclubs. He performed in lots of (inter)national bands such as the: Podium Trio with Wolter Wierbos and Jan Kuiper; the Berlin Contemporary Jazz orchestra (Alexander von Schlippenbach) with a.o. Ed Thigpen, Kenny Wheeler, Benny Bailey, Gerd Dudek, Aki Takase; the Contraband (Willem van Manen); Vaalbleek (Niko Langenhuijsen); Surinam Music Ensemble; Paul van Kemenade Quintet; Duo Van Rossum-Van Kemenade and many other ensembles.
Van Kemenade performed with dancers, poets, painters, international big bands. He taught hundreds of workshops and played and recorded with a.o. Jamaaladeen Tacuma, Cornell Rochester, David Murray, Sean Bergin, Markus Stockhausen, Niko Langenhuijsen, Metropole Orchestra (Vince Mendoza), with the South African musicians Zim Ngqawana, Feya Faku, Sydney Mnisi, with the West African Les Frères Guissé, with David Linx, Eric Vloeimans, Han Bennink, Alexander von Schlippenbach, Pierre Blanchard, Aki Takase, Ernst Reijseger, Ray Anderson and many others. He worked with symphony orchestras, brassbands, flamenco musicans, string ensembles and renaissance vocalists.
Van Kemenade received several awards during his career:
- 1984: Podium Prijs (Stichting Jazz In Nederland)
- 1998: Jazz in Duketown award
- 1999: Moderne Industriestad Prijs Tilburg
- 1999: VPRO / Boy Edgarprijs (Dutch ouevre award for jazzmusicians)
- 2007: Lid Orde van Oranje Nassau 2007 (Royal decoration)
- 2008: Antony Kok Art award (award for the arts)
- 2020: Cultuur Prijs Noord-Brabant
- 2024: Gouden Erepenning (Gold Medal of Honor city of Tilburg)
Recorded 60 cd’s and lp’s and produced 27 under own name with 136 original compositions. His cd ‘Close Enough’ has been rewarded as one of best cd’s 2011 in the category ‘masterpieces’ (five stars) by the American magazine Downbeat. He composed more than 260 compositions in different settings for various music disciplines.
Van Kemenade started to teach workshops and masterclasses in 1979. He was the initiator of the Brabants Leerorkest for young musicians, performing between 1979 till 1984. At the moment he is coaching since 2018 the Zuid Nederlands Workshop Orkest youth orchestra for musicians between 15 and 25 years. Together with Jeroen Doomernik he is coaching youngsters at Paradox Tilburg and the Jazzwerkplaats Den Bosch Netherlands. Since 2021 he is trying to set up the ‘Art of Tolerance Youth Orchestra’ which will be an international youth orchestra for talented musiciens from different countries. The music students come together for a short period on a yearly base. They have the opportunity to rehearse and play together in order to help, learn from.. respect.. and stimulate each other.
Paul van Kemenade is the initiator and programmer of the intimate jazz-impro festival Stranger than Paranoia that is been organized every year in late december in several cities in NL. Stranger than Paranoia combines different musical disciplines and cultures with improvisation as the binding element.
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