Willem Vermandere unexpectedly broadcasts his retirement from the stage in a thirty-word message. “The confusion strikes between my rhymes, music and tales. Goodbye stunning folks, be effectively. Play and sing on and I … preserve strolling alongside the streets …”
It sounds a lot extra poetic than saying that the prefrontal cortex typically fails throughout live shows, that the again is not as resilient, as latest guests to his live shows could have seen – with out seeing an issue, by the best way. Vermandere’s lengthy, usually enumerative tales additionally required a superb reminiscence.
Vermandere has been on stage for 54 years. Taking part in on the opposite aspect of the nation within the evenings, usually within the Netherlands: he was a circuit in himself. On stage he had a singular presence, a terrific craft and a wealthy musical character. He was a vibrant storyteller, a musician singer and what remained underexposed: an enchanting thinker. He made his folks music appear easy, but it surely was the results of planing, submitting and onerous work.
That was how he had began way back, a sculptor from Lauwe who briefly visited the monastery however most well-liked to see the world, and wrote songs about it: the folks within the countryside and their animals have been an early supply of inspiration. That discipline opened up, and he developed a broad spectrum during which warfare struggling, refugees, individualization and modernity have been mentioned in addition to his personal pleasures and “blemishes”.
He obtained a type of dents in the summertime of 1991, when he sang the music “Bange witteman” (Scared White Man) on the Grand Place in Brussels, which known as for tolerance in the direction of migrants. A delegation of the then Vlaams Blok marched in the direction of him via the viewers, solely to be stopped in entrance of the stage. The expertise stayed with him for a very long time. He drew perception and energy from it.
Comprehensible dialect
His use of language was of nice significance. Like contemporaries Wannes Van de Velde and Walter De Buck he sang in a dialect, however as a result of he didn’t wish to be “an vintage vendor”, he didn’t preserve it pure: the foundation was West Flemish, the tons have been quite Verkavelingsvlaams, which made him sufficiently comprehensible exterior his province. With this he impressed singers corresponding to Wannes Cappelle and Boudy Verleye, aka Brihang.
Over time he additionally refined his musical taking part in. He drew inspiration from classical music by Bach, but additionally from obscure musicians such because the Armenian duduk participant Djivan Gasparyan, to make use of his bass clarinet to discover a deep connection between his polders and his soul. Typically he was a bit sarcastic about his “rhymes”, unjustly, to make room for that new, instrumental music. His music was most stunning when he introduced each collectively, a recreation of recognition and reflection.
With a set trio of musicians he had his personal type, and the halls have been full for that till the final live performance, within the Kursaal of Ostend. It’s typical that he solely introduced afterwards that it was over. No farewell live shows for this man, no interviews. He introduced at the moment that he’ll proceed to make music at dwelling and work in his studio. There can be extra time to learn books, in that quiet village of Steenkerke, within the shadow of the Sint-Laurentius church. Via his supervisor he thanks his viewers for these 54 years.
Willem Vermandere cancels all deliberate live shows: Dranouter (3/8), Kursaal Oostende (Cabaret Competition 14/9), Oostburg (NL, 27/10), Oostkamp (30/11), Oostrozebeke (22/12) and Bree (1/3/25).
