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Flying Piekniek was an all instrumental acoustic 'chamber-folk ensemble'.
The band rarely performed live,
a memorable debut at the long gone 'Blou huis' theatre cafe
in 1996,
there was a great show at the legendary De Akker Hidden
Cellar, an arts and craft gig or two,
about two club gigs and a rather untoghter 'comeback' performance
at the 1998 Wingerdrock.
At the Wingerdrock period Johann and Annamarie was already jamming with Alex Van Zyl.
They formed 'Been' (as in 'bone')and played a string of club dates that included Piekniek material before splitting up at the end of 1998.
Both groups, with the jembe and world music feel, were way ahead of their time in small town Stellenbosch. Members included Springbok Nude girl bassist Arno Blummer (who left FP when the SPNG started to gig regularly) and also their drummer, Francois, on one gig. At the height of the ensemble the Piekniek included multiple percussion, and cellist, but always centred around the core rhythm guitarist/songwriter Johann Kotze, violinist Anri Serfontein, flautist Christa Meyer, bassoonist and percussionist Annamrie Slabbert (all the girls classically were trained musicians) and jembe and digeridoo player Jantie Schutte.
Flying Piekniek released a limited copy cassette in 1996.
It was the first 'classical' recording made at Jurgen's (pictured above left) Sunset studio's.
Mp3 tracks
She came to me (6 min - high quality version, 3.5 KB) was our strongest live track, with a soaring flute melody and wild, improvised middle section (1 min 17, 600 KB) with violin solo over a jembe rhythm. A long, hypnotic track with the basson playing a bass melody overe the guitar.
Piekniek Music ( 4 min - high quality version, 2.4 KB) is a typical 'impressionist baroque folk' composition titled to represent the band's identity of style. One can almost hear the influence of the Penguin Cafe Orchestra here.
Gentleman in the garden of spring (3.34 min - high quality version, 2.09 KB) another baroque type arrangement of a repetitive melody loosely built around a 12 bar blues format.
Sweet Horisons (4'33 min - high quality version, 2.14 KB) works quite nicely for solo guitar but the soaring melody of Anri's violin takes it places.