The Marit van de Lei Nextet plays its own compositions. Deeply convinced of the soothing power of music, Marit has written her second album, entitled "Clementia". This was written from the perspective of someone who sees that, collectively, we have become less kind and have mostly moved to more radical ways of thinking. She found her music by searching out corresponding colours, noises, sounds words and chords that could put this message across. Marit is convinced that soothing is the first step towards renewed kindness, helping us to achieve a reconciliation with ourselves, each other and everything around us.
The Marit van der Lei Nextet was created in 2014 as a collective of musicians at the Utrecht Conservatoire and has now reached its fixed format, in which it has been performing over a number of years. It has become a band of top young musicians who currently represent the "Next Generation" of the jazz scene. The Nextet plays original compositions, creating soundscapes that will transport you to a gentler world. She performs either with her band or sometimes as a solo singer, manipulating her voice with guitar pedal effects to achieve unique pieces. The underlying layers of both hope and despair seem to turn the new music on her album "Clementia" into a quest for security. It is the outstretched hand of trust, searching for peace. Marit is continuously investigating different ways of using her voice; a sigh, a moan, sometimes having a greater impact than words alone could ever achieve.
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In 2018, the Marit van der Lei Nextet debuted their first album 'In Other Words', which was received with enthusiasm.
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Marit van der Lei - vocals
Matthias van den Brande - tenor sax
Kika Sprangers - alto sax
Federico Castelli - gitaar
Marre de Graaff - basgitaar
Ruud Voesten - drums
Kika Sprangers Large Ensemble
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In her Large Ensemble, Kika extends Anna's instrumental singing voice to a singing section with Sanne Rambags and Marit van der Lei. Her saxophone sound is embedded in the bass clarinet, horn, trumpet and flute. With her inspiring leadership, with which she likes to establish a connection between musicians, she seeks the refined balance between written, orchestrated arrangements and the free play of the individual improvisers. Martin Fondse described the Kika Sprangers Large Ensemble in the album liner notes as: “An exciting, orchestral line-up, where the vocals stand out in particular: they are not only idiosyncratic and original, they also represent a section that is intelligently intertwined with the wind section, occasionally counterbalancing, then excelling in independent virtuoso passages and improvisations.”
In 2020, Human Traits was nominated for an Edison in the categories Jazz National and the Audience Award.
Free The Voices​
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Together with colleague - vocalists and dear friends Anna Serierse and Sanne Rambags, Marit forms the vocal impro trio "Free the Voices". They met in the Large ensemble of Kika Sprangers. The three strong voices blend seamlessly, and their sounds are coming straight from their souls, with the intention to move spirits. Without a clear framework, they are free to ride on the waves of emotion and feminine energy towards a meditative state of being.