I am an improvising musician (cornet, pocket trumpet and voice) with a background in jazz and classical music. Originally from Australia I’ve been based in Amsterdam since the early 1990s and am active in the jazz/improvisation scene collaborating with a range of musicians, dancers and writers as part of established groups, shorter term projects and one-off encounters.
I also compose and write text for my own quintet exploring the freedoms of voice in combination with other instruments.
Recent performances include: The Felicity Provan 5tet; visual/sonic project ‘Close’; Duo Provan/Rave with Argentinian tenorsax/clarinettist Ada Rave; ‘Mixing Memory & Desire’ a quartet led by baritone saxophonist Jan Willem van der Ham; the acapella choir ‘August 38th’; ‘Weerklank’, a music/dance performance.
Please find out more about these and others on the projects page.
Felicity Provan 5tet
This group is since recently continuing as a quartet without vocalist Han Buhrs. During this transition time I want to present the group here as it has been for the last years. The flavour and spirit of the music including a prominent use of voices remains.
Felicity Provan – cornet, voice, compositions, text
Han Buhrs – voice
Ada Rave – tenor saxophone, clarinet, voice
Harald Austbø – cello, voice
Michael Vatcher – drums, voice
Poetic narrative and songs, lyrical melodies with rhythmic momentum best describe the Felicity Provan 5tet. The music flows from solos to quintet and surprises with moments of group acappella. It is humorous, reflective, tonal, abstract, rich in dynamics, slightly theatrical and focuses on creating a vibrant acoustic sound mixing composition and improvisation, which travels to the delicate and wild.
The group has been described as sounding “fresh” because of the extensive use of voice in combination with other instruments and that its general flavour is of a grooving chamber ensemble.
Past concerts include: ZJFT (Zomer Jazz Fiets Tour ) – Festival in Groningen Splendor: Creative Music venue Amsterdam Bimhuis: Jazz / Improvisation venue Amsterdam De Ruimte: Creative music venue Amsterdam Hothouse: Jazz / improv venue Leiden Doek Festival: Bimhuis Amsterdam Paviljoen Ongehoorde Muziek : creative music venue Eindhoven De Pletterij: Jazz / improv venue in Haarlem PlusEtage : Jazz / improv venue in Baarle Nassau De Perifeer : Jazz / improv venue in Deventer
Recordings via Bandcamp and video links available soon.
Trumpeter Felicity Provan (Naked Wolf and David Kweksilber Big Band, among others) gave one of the most exciting performances of the past Bimhuis season with her own quintet, which explores the boundaries between vocals and instruments.
Marie-Claire-Melzer
Women in Improv for Jazzism magazine – Feb/March 2018
But it is certainly not only the humor and the light theatricality that makes this quintet special, which en passant places the concept of “song” in a completely different light. There is also simply very good music made by these five musicians, facial actors in the still innovative Amsterdam jazz scene. Vatcher remains an exceptional percussionist, who not only can play very rhythmically, but also – with the help of a beautiful percussion arsenal – manages to create an interesting sound world. I already mentioned Austbø, with Vatcher he forms a beautiful rhythm tandem many times – the bass is by no means missed – but also as a soloist he is a factor of stature. Rave, here on tenor sax and on clarinet and Provan on trumpet regularly pull together with fresh harmonies. Rave also contributes several times with splashing solos, while Provan regularly collaborates with Buhrs with her vocals. The latter is not only vocalist, but certainly also fifth instrumentalist, producing many an indefinable sound. A festive end to 2019 at the PlusEtage, what more could a person want.
Our route took us at the end of the afternoon to the northernmost stage of our cycling mission. Just for topography’s sake: we headed towards the hamlet of Schaphalsterzijl, and quite a bit further along the Winsumer Diep stands a stately borg and national monument Batenborg. The house and stylishly restored barn exude the atmosphere of 19th-century nobility. Built in 1854, but completely new for the summer jazz bike tour. Originally from Australia, Felicity Provan plays cornet, sings and composes. Her 5tet includes musicians who also know how to use their voices. And that complements her very narrative songs nicely. The varied and expressive music contains ingredients of solo, (ensemble) singing, word art and instrumental. Australian songs like “Hang Your Shirt Out”, or a song about the coral reef and Injustice grabbed you by the throat in a pleasant way. And there was also a special moment for a premiere of a lustrous composition (in presence) by Joost Buis. Felicity Provan constantly amazed her listeners, taking them between graceful wisps and gruesome involvement. A concert not soon to be forgotten!
In 2020 during the first Covid lockdown I started collecting photos and making short videos of objects and scenery in my home. They are a response to experiencing the peace and quiet as well as the feelings of uncertainty and restlessness. Putting objects and the immediate environment ‘under the microscope’ is the common thread running through the selection, concentrating on small details. These images were then edited and thematically arranged by musician and photographer Andy Moor and myself. As I am interested in multimedia performances I decided to create a piece combining these images with improvised music which became CLOSE.
The images are equivalent to the music. I choose which image to use, its length, speed and texture and control these as VJ. These choices influence the musicians, as well as the other way around, with the music influencing my choice of images.
The first series of 7 performances was supported by the Fonds Podiumkunsten and took place in various churches in the Netherlands. The music was created by an improvising trio comprised of one pianist who performs when possible on the organ (ideally a small historic pipe organ), one string player (violin/viola, cello or double bass) and myself (cornet and voice).
The pool of musicians performed in differing line-ups for this first series: Pianists – Marta Warelis, Nora Mulder, Nico Chientaroli and Marielle Groven. String players- Pau Sola Masafrets (cello), Mary Oliver (violin /viola), Aaron Lumley (doublebass) and Maya Felixbrodt (violin/viola). For future performances I have added an extra colour of electronics/percussion.
This pool is in the making and Frank Rosaly joined us in one past festival performance (‘The Cutting Edge’ Den Haag 2021 ) and will perform in one upcoming concert in Zaandam (Jazz Inverdan, March 2024).
