ICP Orchestra – Misha Mengelberg 90!

Globally leading collective honors influential composer/pianist. The ICP Orchestra has been a household name for years. In 1967, Han Bennink together with pianist/composer Misha Mengelberg laid the foundation for this versatile orchestra, known as one of the most creative groups in modern jazz. Mengelberg passed away in 2017 and would have turned 90 exactly on this day, June 5, 2025. The ICP Orchestra still plays his music, but of course in the typical ICP style; while Mengelberg’s oeuvre is the starting point, no concert sounds the same and the orchestra members improvise in all directions. The musicians in the ICP Orchestra learned to deal with the peculiarities of timing or intonation of fellow players, how to confuse their colleagues, how to bend or undermine the music during performance. The music is full of surprises, unexpected turns, nimble grace and strange outbursts. “…The Instant Composers Pool Orchestra, from Amsterdam, ….they are scholars and physical comedians, critics and joy-spreaders.” – The New York Times