Dolf van der Linden, Master of Light Music

This blog has presented a great deal of light music over the years - Kostelanetz, Paul Weston, Morton Gould and Leroy Anderson, among others. Today we turn our attention to one of the music's finest practitioners, Dolf van der Linden, who was and is almost unknown in America.

Van der Linden (1915-99) was the founder and leader of the Metropole Orchestra for 35 years (1945-80) while working for Netherlands Radio. He became well known throughout Europe for his orchestra's superb technical command, along with his own arrangements and compositions.

Renown in America didn't follow for a number of reasons. While RCA Camden and Capitol released several albums under his own name, as many or more came out under the pseudonyms of Daniel De Carlo and Van Lynn (both on Decca) and Gerard Blene (on Jubilee), among others.

Today we have two of the three LPs that Camden released under the conductor's own name. These mainly comprised van der Linden's compositions, although it's difficult to tell with certainty because he also used pseudonyms for many of his works.

The Camden LPs are labeled as being by "Dolf van der Linden and His Orchestra," but it's fair to speculate that this is the Metropole Orchestra, or substantially so.

Dolf van der Linden and the Metropole Orchestra 

Floating on a Cloud

The van der Linden LPs on Camden date from 1956, although I suspect they were recorded earlier. The sound is fine, but more characteristic of the postwar years than later in the 50s.

Floating on a Cloud is the more romantic of the two albums. "Love Affair," "Stormy Heart" and "Little Romance" are the bandleader's contributions under his own name, and he added "Meditation," "For Us No Moon Is Shining" and "Keep Pretending" as Guy Brain.

Also contributing songs were Metropole pianist and arranger Manny Oets, and European bandleaders José Fontaine and Emile DeRadoux. Two songs came from Gun Finlay, whom I know from "Rain," the fine tune on the flip side of Sinatra's "Three Coins in the Fountain."

All these items are immensely pleasing and exceptionally well played. They are sure to appeal if you like string choirs, woodwinds and harp playing beautiful arrangements.

In a Casino on the Riviera

I don't suspect that the casinos on the Riviera are playing Palm Court music these days, but if they were, they could do worse than the music on this second Camden LP.

In a Casino on the Riviera is no less appealing than Floating on a Cloud, but the compositions are much different.

Van der Linden immediately is in Leroy Anderson territory with the first item, "Fiddler's Escapade," written by Belgian arranger-composer Johnny Steggerda. Dolf then breaks out the castanets for his own "Prima Ballerina." He also contributes "Song of Spain" (more castanets), "Les Danseurs Mondains" and "Slavia," all under his own name. The latter is a quasi-Slavonic dance.

Dolf's Guy Brain persona provided the tango "Tus Ojos," "Round and Round" and "Concha." Other items came from the Belgian composers Fud Candrix and René Costy and van der Linden arranger Joop Elders. H. Ackermans and B. Speguel wrote "Her Majesty's Gypsy," a Lisztian Hungarian dance.

The only familiar item on either LP, to me at least, is the "Petite Waltz" from French songwriter Joe Heyne. I suspect you would have to be of my advanced age to recall this tune, but it's delightful either way, and here in a stellar performance.

If you want to learn more about the Metropole Orchestra and van der Linden, the orchestra has a series of brief videos on their history along with associated playlists.

I strongly recommend these albums if you like light music. My thanks to friend and discographer Nigel Burlinson for passing along a helpful article about van der Linden and his recordings.