History of the Hurricane Brass Band

In 1983 together with another musician Hugo started a jazz band in Maastricht. They called it “Original Stöb Jazz Band”. At the moment he still plays and leads that band, which is now called the “New Orleans Dusty Duds”. René, Petra and Franck also are playing in it. The band plays a very traditional repertoire with numbers of Joe “King” Oliver, Louis Armstrong’s Hot 5 and 7, Clarence Williams, Ferdinand “Jelly Roll” Morton etc.

 
After visiting the Jazz festival in Ascona (CH) in 1986 Petra, René and Hugo first met New Orleans brass bands. It was Doc Paulin’s Brass Band and Harold Dejan’s Olympia Brass Band. They got really thrilled of the beat and way of playing. Back in Maastricht, René took the opportunity to organise a 12 piece brass band. René on tuba was the leader and manager, Petra played bass drum and Hugo was one of the two trumpet players. The band was called “King Zulu’s Brass Band” and played strictly traditional brass band tunes. Later, in the year 1990, Franck joined the band on clarinet and in 1995 Rob became the snare drummer of the band.

New Orleans 2000
             King Zulu's Brass Band

After their first visit of New Orleans in 1997 is was time to change the way of playing and the repertoire. This was the reason to organise a new (smaller) brass band: the Hurricane Brass Band. Petra, Franck, Hugo, René and Rob started the first Hurricane Brass Band. The name recalls the first glasses of Pat O’Brien’s Hurricanes some of the members drank and the “joy” they had from it. From the start of the Hurricane Brass Band in 1997 Servé was the trombone player and Ron Schellings played the alto.

Hugo got the musical leadership of the Hurricane Brass Band. Nowadays the band still plays the traditionals, but also play some of them in a more funkier rhythm and even plays some modern tunes.

In 2002 Jan van Gaalen came into the band replacing Ron on the alto sax and since fall 2004 Fats von Gerolstein is a member of the band, first on tenor sax, now also on trumpet.

 
At the end of 2005 we made a new decision about the structure of the band. We wanted to have two trumpets in the band again. Fats, our Tenor man, regularly is a trumpet player. He agreed in picking up his “old T-bone” again if we’d find another tenor player. In January 2006 we asked Ron Schellings to rejoin the band with is tenor. He agreed and after 6 years he came back again.

The year 2006 went to be very special. In April we visited New Orleans again and even played there for Fox TV. On "You Tube" you can see 2 video takes made at French Quarter Festival 2006 ( A en B)
In June/July we were invited to play at the Ascona festival in Switzerland.

In 2006 Rob left the band and so we wish him luck with his other musical challenges. After a short membership in 2006, Ron had to say goodbye because of a lack of time.

In the fall of 2006 two new musicians came into the band and started to rehears with us, Jan Peels on tenor and HP Schüller on snare drum. We're complete again and playing that Hurricane sound all over the place again.

In July 2007 and we had to say goodbye to Fats. We wish him all the luck with everything he's gone do in the future. At the end of 2007 René Stallinga joined the band on trombone. He played jazz before in several local bands in Maastricht and the two together make a hot trombone section.

In August 2008, we had to say goodbye to Jan Peels. Although it's a pity we don't have a tenor sax now, the trombone section take this part with them and so this gives the band a very special sound.

The whole band holds on to Fats Wallers quotation:
All that matters is the musician’s attitude. It is not so important WHAT he plays but HOW he plays.

Click image for
pictures history
of the band.