Interview with Candy Dulfer by Arjan "Hugman" Hoogvorst for Rodi Media.

I took the liberty of translating it from Dutch to English, so there might appear some errors in the translation.


With the pleasure of a cup of coffee, delicious muffins and croissants the conversation with Candy Dulfer starts.
"Bought this morning at a Marocq Bakery, please take some, they’re delicious" says the saxophone player. Despite her busy schedule, she new to get an hour off for this interview at her parents place.
Despite her full agenda, it’s gonna be a cosy and relaxed conversation. That is Candy’s way of approach: all she does, must feel good and stay nice. That is her way to get pleasure out of it.

Who reads the discographies of Candy Dulfer, would hardly believe she’s just 33 years old. The impressive list with titles starts somewhere around 1981 and contains a serial of names to get jealous. Among others, she worked with Dave Stewart (Eurythmics), Prince, Pink Floyd, Maceo Parker, Van Morrison and Lenny Kravitz.
How could it be else, when you’re brought up with music the way she was!
"Yes, I started to play the Saxophone when I was 6, of course with my father (sax-player Hans Dulfer) as role model. He never pushed me though, even when he saw me making mistakes. With a lot of parents that is often different. Only when I ask my father, I get an enormous amount of information. He’s got huge experience and an opinion on everything. I consider it an art not to push that experience and those opinions through."
At home of the Dulfers’ you could always hear music and the family often visited performances, what gave a good base for Candy.
"Most of all, my father had very much fun in making music. At that time he was also working as a salesman of cars, playing Saxophone wasn’t just for money by than. Music is something special which you can’t consider to be a job. The fact that everything my father did was always fun and special, has been very important to me."
At the Dulfers’ was always the necessary discipline, by which it became clear that a musician’s life is not an easy job. So the image of the musician who often sleeps till the afternoon, doesn’t come close to Candy’s lifestyle.
"No way, I usually sleep 5 or 6 hours a night and get up quite early, often around 7 am. Like my father I want to arrange everything." Hans Dulfer, who just walked into the room, agrees.
"To delegate is not our strongest point."

Candy’s biggest examples are Maceo Parker and David Sanborn, both globally leading Saxophone players. And still there come new great saxophone players along, according to Candy.

Every musician has a few people with whom he or she likes to work with most.
"I work best with my current band members Ulco Bed and Thomas Bank. They understand me best and we also grew up together. One look is enough for us, so to speak. And working with Van Morrison, Dave Stewart and Prince is very relaxed. Three total different personalities, but all very special. I’ll never work with as**oles. Everybody I play with is very sweet."

Who would she like to play with, when she could choose?
"Yeah, pfffff ... all nice collaborations happened spontaneous. But when I’ve got to give names: D’Angelo, Tina Turner or Sonny Rollins. I don’t even have to play with them. Just to meet them would be great!"

Last but not least, the critics some have on her "thin" singing voice and remarks by critics, she’d better stop singing herself.
"Ah, people are influenced by what they hear from others. I’m surely not a great singer like Chaka Khan. But for what I do it is good enough and when I hear myself on recordings, I like 99 percent. For a long time now I don’t care what is said by critics. I remember very well that I was reading an article about my first performance in a newspaper when I was 6 years old, in which the editor wrote that Hans Dulfer next time could better leave his daughter at home. The editor didn’t understand it at all. ‘Get used to it sweetie, that’s the way people are’ my mother said. She was right .."

GertjandeR said:

She should also have mentioned David Bowie and Sananda Maitreya, but that's just my opinion.
[Edited 1/2/05 8:10am]