Tom Dissevelt


Thomas Dissevelt, known as Tom Dissevelt was a Dutch composer, arranger and musician. He is regarded as a pioneer in the merging of electronic music and jazz. He married Rina Reys, sister of Rita Reys, in 1946.
Tom Dissevelt was also known as bassist/arranger of the Skymasters, and contributed to recordings by Rita Reys.
Between 1939 and 1944 Dissevelt studied at the Royal Conservatory of The Hague. He studied trombone for over three years, then went on to study clarinet, music theory and piano. Owing to schedule conflicts he discontinued his clarinet studies but later studied bass under the tutelage of Herman Stotijn of the Residentie Orchestra.
After World War II Dissevelt moved to Indonesia with the Jos Cleber Orchestra to work. In 1947 he went on an international tour with Wessel Ilcken, the husband of Rita Reys, and the orchestra of Piet van Dijk. This tour lasted three years and was particularly focussed on Spain and North Africa.
In 1955 Bep Rowold, leader of the Skymasters, hired Dissevelt as a bassist and arranger. Dissevelt became interested in twelve-tone serialism, listened to the many German radio stations, and heard works by Karlheinz Stockhausen and Anton Webern. In 1958, on Philips’ recommendation, Dissevelt was invited to work in the electronic-music studio at the company’s research division in Eindhoven, where he collaborated with Dick Raaijmakers. At NatLab they composed and recorded using test oscillators and tone generators, tape recorders, filters and reverberation chambers, splicing and layering tape to create pieces that merged jazz-derived rhythm with laboratory electronics. Their experiments are considered among the first European attempts to combine electronic sound production with structured popular music forms.
In 1958, Dissevelt and Kid Baltan released their first single, "Song of the Second Moon" / "Colonel Bogey" on Philips Records. The following year they issued the four–track EP Electronic Movements, followed in 1962 by the split single "Intersection" / "Mechanical Motions". These early pieces were later collected and reissued, with alternate titles and sequencing, on the albums The Electrosoniks: Electronic Music – A New Concept of Music, Created by Sonic Vibrations and The Fascinating World of Electronic Music, which in 2003 David Bowie would deem one of his 25 all-time favorite albums.
Furthermore, Dissevelt’s solo LP Fantasy in Orbit expanded on the NatLab material in a more melodic, space-themed form.
More of his compositions may be heard on the anthology album Popular Electronics: Early Dutch Electronic Music from Philips Research Laboratories, 1956–1963.
The emergence of pop music, along with such constitutional changes in the music industry as the disbandment of radio orchestras, compelled Dissevelt to give up orchestra work altogether. In 1965, frustrated that his electronic ideas could not be reflected in his arrangements for The Skymasters, Dissevelt left the radio orchestra when he was offered a contract as bassist with entertainer Wim Sonneveld. According to his family and colleagues, he maintained an exceptionally intense work routine, and was widely admired by peers for his arranging and bass playing.
At the age of 55 he developed emphysema, which effectively ended his composing and performing, and he died in Leiden at 68. After his wife’s death, their son Ronald discovered a suitcase containing 33 original tapes, which were donated to the Institute of Sonology; the materials helped corroborate recording histories and the construction of works such as Fantasy in Orbit.

Discography

Studio albums

  • The Electrosoniks: Electronic Music – A New Concept of Music, Created by Sonic Vibrations – Philips PHM 200-047 / PHS 600-047, LP, US, January 1963
  • The Fascinating World of Electronic Music – Philips P 08168 L, LP, Netherlands, May 1963
  • Fantasy in Orbit: Round the World with Electronic Music – Philips B 633 302 L / 840 233 BY, LP, Netherlands, July 1964; US release Philips PHM 200-189 / PHS 600-189, '''October 1965'''

    Singles and EPs

  • “Song of the Second Moon” / “Colonel Bogey” – Philips 315 538 NF, 7″ mono, Netherlands, June 1958
  • Electronic Movements – Philips 430 736 PE, 7″ mono, Netherlands, December 1959
  • “Intersection” / “Mechanical Motions” – Philips 430 791 PE, 7″ mono, Netherlands, '''November 1962'''

    Compilations

  • Song of the Second Moon: The Sonic Vibrations of Tom Dissevelt and Kid Baltan – Limelight LS 86060, LP, US, 1968.
  • The Fascinating World of Electronic Music / Fantasy in Orbit – Basta Audio-Visuals BASTA 30-9099, CD, Netherlands, 2003.
  • Popular Electronics: Early Dutch Electronic Music from Philips Research Laboratories 1956–1963 – Basta Audio-Visuals BASTA 30-9105, 2 CD, Netherlands, 2004.