Yonga Sun's Homepage

noreply@blogger.com (Yonga) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 15:48:00 +0000

Check out this nice poster for February's jazz concerts in Rotterdam.
I'll be playing at Lantaren Venster with trumpeter Cuong Vu and bassist Bob van Luijt on February 18. More on that soon.

Interview about Diamondway Buddhism and Lama Ole Nydahl

noreply@blogger.com (Yonga) — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 19:42:00 +0000

Some months ago people from the Dutch lifestyle website ForYou came to our meditation evening in Arnhem and interviewed me our kind of Buddhism and our Lama. Here is the interview.
Sorry, Dutch only. I'll try to get some English subtitles in there at some point.

Little Prince Tour

noreply@blogger.com (Yonga) — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 00:52:00 +0000

Hello friends & music lovers!

I'm happy to announce some upcoming concerts, most of which are part of the Release Tour for Korean pianist Soo Cho's new CD "Little Prince".
The official release will be on saturday the 16th at the Bimhuis in Amsterdam, but we'll give our best at every concert!
I hope to see many of you at one of the concerts and have a beer together afterwards! :-)

Soo Cho Quartet
"Little Prince" Release Tour

Soo Cho - piano
Angelo Verploegen - trumpet
Sven Happelt - double bass
Yonga Sun - drums

12 - Arnhem, Musis Sacrum
16 - Amsterdam, Bimhuis
17 - Maaseik (BE), De Galjaar
19 - Heerlen, Jazz on the Roof
23 - Den Haag, Regentenkamer
24 - Rotterdam, De Doelen
28 - Edam, Mahogany Hall
29 - Enschede, De Tor
31 - Alkmaar, Projekt 072

And inbetween I play three concerts that I'm really looking forward to:

14 - Joris Posthumus Free Quartet, Arnhem, Bosch
15 - Lavalu, Amsterdam, Sugar Factory
30 - Lavalu, Groningen, INtheater

See you!

Yonga

My new Trio

noreply@blogger.com (Yonga) — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 18:04:00 +0000

Photo: Monique Baan

Soon I'll start playing with these wonderful people: Corrie van Binsbergen on guitar and Hein Offermans on electric and acoustic basses. We'll invite special guests to join us for the second sets. Looking forward to this! Check the schedule on the right for upcoming gigs.

I'm a rocker now! :-)

noreply@blogger.com (Yonga) — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 00:26:00 +0000

Motorcycle Moments

I recently made a longtime dream come true. I got a motorcycle license and bought a Harley Davidson. If all goes well (meaning: if I'm not too lazy) I'll post some pictures and little tidbits about how this experience is going every once in a while. I made a special page to collect all the upcoming posts and pictures. You can access it through the menu bar above.
So stay tuned!

Concert at the BIMHUIS, Amsterdam, tonight!!

noreply@blogger.com (Yonga) — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 09:13:00 +0000

Click on the picture for a larger version.

Alright, the time of laziness is over!! :-)

While I have been quite slow in updating my website (a nice way of saying that I didn't do anything..) there has been a lot going on in real life. CDs have been recorded and released (yesterday to be exact), Countries visited and played in (Chile, Bolivia, Slovkia, Belgium, Germany), new bands created, old bands disbanded and so on.

And if all goes well I'll soon be riding a motorcycle! :-)

So as a first little announcement I want to invite anyone who reads this in time to come to tonight's concert at the Bimhuis in Amsterdam.
My band Veenendaal/Kneer/Sun will be playing a special double concert with the French Matthieu Donarier Trio.
This trio plays incredibly nice music and it's a great pleasure to be playing alongside such a great drummer (Joe Quitzke)!! Matthieu sounds beautiful on reeds and Manu Codjia inspires greatly on the guitar.

For more information on that check this website!

Scratch Fury - The Destroyer of Worlds! (www.pvponline.com)

noreply@blogger.com (Yonga) — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 01:26:00 +0000

- Posted using Mobypicture.com

I want a hat like this. Where can I find one?

noreply@blogger.com (Yonga) — Sun, 01 Mar 2009 16:23:00 +0000

- Posted using Mobypicture.com

Surrender! You are surrounded!

noreply@blogger.com (Yonga) — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 16:55:00 +0000

My bootiful drums at the SJU Podium in Utrecht, being attacked by all
kinds of nasty saxophones!

Blindfoldtest in Slagwerkkrant

noreply@blogger.com (Yonga) — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 12:03:00 +0000

The Dutch drummagazine Slagwerkkrant has a blindfold section where three editors get to listen to music without knowing who the musicians are. They then "honestly" comment on what they hear and learn afterwards whom they just praised or destroyed. :-)
In the recent issue they got to dissect the new CD "Dairy Tales" from my band Talking Cows. They're very positive about it.. whew..
Click on the image for a bigger, readable version. Sorry, Dutch only..

Here's a little promovideo for the CD:

Lavalu gigs

noreply@blogger.com (Yonga) — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 09:42:00 +0000

Click on the picture to see a bigger version

Go Obama!

noreply@blogger.com (Yonga) — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 09:18:00 +0000

I checked CNN.com right after I woke up to see that Barack Obama will be the new president of the United States.
That makes me incredibly happy and hopeful. Go Obama!

Click here to read his victory speech.

Vote damn Yankees!!

noreply@blogger.com (Yonga) — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 15:17:00 +0000

I really, really, sincerely hope that many, many US citizens are going to vote tomorrow! Bush will be gone, that's good and definitive, but who will come in his place?

The possible outcome scares me! So please, vote for the other guy!!!

And I mean Barack Obama!! (Just to be hyperclear..)

Norway isn't a long way

noreply@blogger.com (Yonga) — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 13:06:00 +0000

Tomorrow I'm flying to Norway to play two concerts with my trio Veenendaal/Kneer/Sun and special guests Oene van Geel (violin) and Flamenco guitar master Eric Vaarzon Morel.

I'm very curious about the country and expect lots of nature & silence.

This is the first picture that came up when I googled Norway. Nice!

Sometimes I'm a total dumb fool, as is the case again now. I knew my passport and any other kind of international ID had expired long ago. Thinking that Norway is part of the EU I just dismissed that fact by assuming that no ID is actually needed to travel between countries.

Then on monday, while rehearsing with the band, someone mentioned that it's not part of the EU. That got me wondering..

And then that same someone suggested that one needs proper ID regardless of anything if you take a plane.

Anyway, after some ado I got an appointment at the German consulate in Amsterdam tomorrow morning at 8.30. My flight leaves at 12.45, so if anything goes wrong with getting the temporary passport issued I'm fuc... eh.. scre... no.. going to miss it.

Exciting times!! :-)

Talking Cows are mooing again!

noreply@blogger.com (Yonga) — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 13:03:00 +0000

My band Talking Cows has a new CD out. It's appropriately titled "Dairy Tales" and should be available in stores and on iTunes soon.

Sounds good, nice playing (if I say so myself), some of it Live, and again a nice cover. This one is actually nicer than the first because it has two ladies on it (next to the usual cowboy). Especially one of them. :-)

Music recommendations

noreply@blogger.com (Yonga) — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 20:13:00 +0000

I'm starting to write blogposts again! This summer was really great, filled with lots of impressions, encounters, musicmaking and listening, sun, quiet, movement, everything! Whenever I got back home inbetween little travels I just wanted to immediately leave for the next thing and didn't feel like sitting at the computer and writing about stuff.

Anyway, I'm not gonna tell about any of those summer-things right now, rather I'd like to share three music recommendations.

This is music that I could listen to all the time lately.

1. Brian Blade & The Fellowship Band - Season of Changes

It's actually been a eight years since this group released their last CD "Perceptual". This and their first release, simply entitled "Fellowship", are amongst what I would call the most beautiful collections of music that exist in this world. I kid you not, I really am that passionate about their music. It takes me to a different place every time I listen to it. Everyone I know who has heard the Fellowship's music thinks it's definitely something special.

So naturally I was very excited when they released their latest CD a couple of months ago.

And... I love it!

2. Aaron Parks - Invisible Cinema

I found this because others were writing about it on their blogs and mentioned drummer Eric Harland, who has been one of my main inspirations for a couple of years now. Parks' music is a mix between Jazz, movie soundtrack, Radiohead, Jungle and Ambient. More or less. Always difficult to label music that's not clichée.

Parks creates beatiful atmospheres and I love the combination of piano and guitar.

3. John Mayer Trio - Try (Live)

A student of mine recommended this and I immediately went out and bought the CD. Whereas I downloaded the Aaron Parks CD via iTunes I must say that I still prefer to be able to pop an original CD into the player at home.

This trio kicks ass! Steve Jordan plays incredible sounding and grooving drums and Pino Palladino provides some serious low frequencies. Not to forget Mayer himself whose guitar rocks and is very bluesy. I liked "Continuum", but this live recording has more edge.

Delicious Breakfast

noreply@blogger.com (Yonga) — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Check this great breakfast I made yesterday:

Cottage cheese, Shrimps, Seaweed salad, tomatoes, salt, pepper & almonds.
Lotsa protein and incredibly delicious!

Joss Whedon's Dr. Horrible Sing-Along Blog

noreply@blogger.com (Yonga) — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 18:55:00 +0000

Ooooooh boy, you gotta check this out! Joss Whedon, the maker of the TV series Firefly & Buffy the Vampire Slayer has done it again.
His mission is to change the entertainment industry for the better and he's made a first step with Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog.

Three short episodes of sheer action and musical delight. They're only up until tomorrow so go, go, go!

Click here to join the fun!

Be sure to read his masterplan of the whole thing. You wouldn't wanna miss this Wedonesque piece of explanation.

Religions, Ego & Love!

noreply@blogger.com (Yonga) — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 10:54:00 +0000

I am reading "A New Earth" by Eckhart Tolle.
It's a very inspiring book that explains how things are in this world. I like the matter-of-fact style that isn't linked to any religion in particular (even though he uses many examples from Jesus', Buddha's and other teachings).
While having breakfast I read this passage that really spoke to me and I wanted to share it here. It may be a bit out of context for some, but I'll post it anyway.

This excerpt is part of Chapter 3 "The Core of Ego" and starts on page 70 of the US hardcover edition.

"...you won't find absolute truth if you look for it where it cannot be found: in doctrines, ideologies, sets of rules, or stories. What do all of these have in common? They are made up of thought. Thought can at best point to the truth, but it never is the truth. That's why Buddhists say "The finger pointing to the moon is not the moon." All religions are equally false and equally true, depending on how you use them. You can use them in the service of the ego, or you can use them in the service of the Truth. If you believe only your religion is the Truth, you are using it in the service of the ego. Used in such a way, religion becomes ideology and creates an illusory sense of superiority as well as division and conflict between people. In the service of the Truth, religious teachings represent signposts or maps left behind by awakened humans to assist you in spiritual awakening, that is to say, in becoming free of identification with form."

Ok, so this was a bit about religions and how they can be (mis-)used. Many people should give this some thought..
Now it gets more interesting:

"There is only one absolute Truth, and all other truths emanate from it. When you find that Truth, your actions will be in alignment with it. Human action can reflect the Truth, or it can reflect illusion. Can the Truth be put into words? Yes, but the words are, of course, not it. They only point to it.
The Truth is inseparable from who you are. Yes, you are the Truth. If you look for it elsewhere, you will be deceived every time. The very Being that you are is Truth. Jesus tried to convey that when he said, "I am the way and the truth and the life." These words uttered by Jesus are one of the most powerful and direct pointers to the Truth, if understood correctly. If misinterpreted, however, they become a great obstacle. Jesus speaks of the innermost I Am, the essence identity of every man and woman, every life-form, in fact. he speaks of the life that you are. Some Christian mystics have called it the Christ within, Buddhists call it your Buddha nature; for Hindus, it is Atman, the indwelling God."

And here comes the part the made me stop my thoughts for a while for it is so... TRUE:

"When you are in touch with that dimension within yourself - and being in touch with it is your natural state, not some miraculous achievement - all your actions and relationships will reflect the oneness with all life that you sense deep within. This is love. Laws, commandments, rules, and regulations are necessary for those who are cut off from who they are, the Truth within. They prevent the worst excesses of the ego, and often they don't even do that. " Love and do what you will," said St. Augustine. Words cannot get much closer to the Truth than that."

Wow.
This is love.

Have a great day!
Yonga

(I am probably in violation of a couple of copyrights by posting this excerpt, but it's all meant in good faith and I hope no one's gonna sue me for this.. :-)

My mom's great Korean cooking!

noreply@blogger.com (Yonga) — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 14:51:00 +0000

I am very food-inspired today. First I had breakfast which I thought looked delicious, so put up a picture of it. :-)
Then I wanted to visually share my yummy oatmeal snack and while browsing through all the pictures that were still in the camera I found the ones below.

A couple of months ago I visited my parents with some friends. Since I always brag about how great my mother cooks I asked her to prepare a traditional Korean dinner with lots of little cups and bowls full of delicious little food thingies. It takes ages to prepare and my mom usually avoids it if she can, but not this time.
Well, needless to say, that evening was a culinary success and everybody lived happily everafter (in anticipation of yet another one of those dinners.. :-)

Here my mother serves a plate with fried zucchini, mushrooms and.. eh, many other things. Notice the Korean sushi, called Kimbap, in the middle of the picture. Then there are all kinds of sauces, little dried fish, spinach with sesame seed, tofu and, of course, Kimchi, THE famous Korean spicy food.

This is the Bulgogi station. Bulgogi is thinly sliced, fine meat that's cooked at the table. You take a green leaf, fill it with rice, the meat, some sauce and eat it. It's absolutely delicious.
We had pumpkinsoup as an appetizer. Notice the white thingies in the soup. Those are riceballs which I just love.

Hm.. I'm getting hungry. Luckily I'll visit my parents tomorrow! Who knows what might be for dinner... :-)

Midday Snack

noreply@blogger.com (Yonga) — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 14:17:00 +0000

Oatmeal with soy milk, apple, nuts & honey. Yummy!

Today's Breakfast

noreply@blogger.com (Yonga) — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 11:31:00 +0000

Quick update

noreply@blogger.com (Yonga) — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 12:57:00 +0000

Ooooooh, there are sooo many nice musical things happening right now and I wish I had an internet connection at home to write about them all at my own leisure.

Here's a quick list which I hope to expand on once the data flow is established in my humble abode.

- Playlab
A "spontaneous" session organized by Muzieklab Brabant. Five musicians, unknown to each other, meet and rehearse for a couple of hours and play a concert at night. This was nice! We played at the Paradox in Tilburg as part of the Gypsy Festival to a very enthusiastic audience.
I met the Rumanian Cimbalom player Marius Preda and we really had a click. Looking forward to future collaborations. We're gonna record some music together with Bulgarian (or Rumanian??) bass player Decebal Badila in July.

- Pavlov Five
My trio Veenendaal/Kneer/Sun joint forces with the group Pavlov, which consists of Albert van Veenendaal (piano), who is the connecting factor, Hans Hasebos (vibraphone) and Oene van Geel (violin). We recorded a couple of songs together and shot some pictures. Playing together is gonna be nice!

Photo by Lisa Haskins

- Oruga
My band Oruga (Mark Tuinstra - guitar, Jasper de Beer - bass) recorded five songs together with Ethiopian singer & Massenkoplayer Afework Nigussie. Nice nice nice NICE! :-)
Driving African grooves, beautiful singing (and dancing, but you'll only see that at concerts..) and fun interactive playing. I'll post a picture of the group as soon as I have it.

- Lavalu
Lavalu is playing more and more and we are developing a really nice band sound together with our latest "acquisition", celloplayer Jörg Brinkmann. Watch out for Jörg! He's on his way to be big!!
See us this sunday in the Vondelpark in Amsterdam at 15h!
A new CD might be recorded as early as september. Kickin'!

- As Guests Quartet
I'm playing with the As Guests Quartet now. It's led by the Slowakian musicians Michal Vanoucek (piano) and Miro Herak (vibraphone). They won the Dutch Jazz Competition in 2004 and play great music. Lots of odd-meter stuff and complex arrangements that are quite challenging. Tomorrow's our first gig together and I'm really looking forward to that! Last, but not least: Janos Bruneel from Antwerp plays the double bass.

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT: Michal Vanoucek won the Deloitte Jazz Prize at the Bimhuis (Amsterdam) yesterday! It's the most outstanding reward for upcoming Dutch jazz musicians. Congratulations!

- Matthias Goebel Quartet
I finally have a band in Germany. I'm coming home! :-)
Matthias Goebel is a fine vibraphone player from Germany who asked me to play in his new quartet, together with Philipp van Endert (guitar) and André Nendza (bass). Many things come together in this group. Everybody's just a great person and the gig we played two weeks ago was a blast! The first set lasted about 80 minutes, but everybody thought it was much shorter. That's a good thing! We were totally in the moment and made some very nice, spontaneous and interactive music. Again, this is a project that I'm really looking forward to playing with a lot more. I've known André for 12 years now, from back when I was a little nobody on the drums (now I'm a little bigger nobody.. :-). We played occasionally during that time, but I really value the chance to do more with him now. He plays sooo beautifully!

Talking Cows
We're halfway finished with our new CD. And we now have a booker and a PR guy in Germany. If that don't get us playin' all da time I don' know what will! :-)

There's even more happening, but I gotta go now.
I'll post links to the bands' websites as soon as they're up.

To do or not to do

noreply@blogger.com (Yonga) — Fri, 23 May 2008 20:58:00 +0000

I probably won't be posting any updates for another month or so because due to some mishaps it'll take until June 20th for my internet provider to set up the signal at my new house. That's pretty inconvenient, but the fact that I am NOT online most of the time has quite a positive effect on my life.
I guess it proves that I am quite the 'net-junkie. As in.. (mildly) addicted.
Now I have so much more time to do useful things and I have four more weeks to change my habits for the better before my daily dose of the world wide web will be readily available again.

As the saying goes: JUST DO IT! (Change my habits that is.)

As Yoda says: DO OR DO NOT. THERE IS NO TRY.

Michael "India" Jackson

noreply@blogger.com (Yonga) — Thu, 01 May 2008 19:24:00 +0000

Look at this guy (or should I say these guys?) giving their own twist to Michael Jackson's dance moves. Great stuff!

By the way, this is from "Britain's Got Talent".