Photos by Monday Jr
HU!
Karen van Schaik – baritone, alto and sopranino saxophone, compositions, toys
Pierre-Antoine Savoyat – trumpet, flugelhorn, toys
Bruno Grollet – tenor saxophone, toys
Lúcia Pires – flute, toys
Nico Chkifi – drums, toys
Fil Caporali – double bass, WHOA!
About HU!
HU! is a Brussels based jazz sextet that brings surprising inventive compositions covering the entire emotional spectrum of the “HU!mankind”.
From aggressive grooves to dreamy melodies with a cinematic quality, from wild free improvisations to playful themes in which toys play a role, from bluesy passages to Messiaen modes. Style wise one can recognise influences of Charles Mingus, John Zorn, Carla Bley, Matana Roberts, Henry Threadgill, Ennio Morricone and the Art Ensemble of Chicago.
HU! playfully questions a current underlying theme, namely the fact that in 2025 only 5% of professional jazz instrumentalists are women.
HU! also examines in more detail the (sometimes limiting) role of gender stereotypes (for men, women and people who identify differently).
Which mechanisms in our society maintain this situation, what can we do about it?
HU! plays with the traditional roles of musical instruments, transforms relatable situations from daily life into music and brings to the table fragile subjects with musical pieces like “Jeans with Tiny Pockets and Toothpaste for Men”, “Circlusion”, “High Pitched Voices Often Get Interrupted” and “Ballad For The Frozen Eggs.”
By using the power of music and humour, HU! is a friendly invitation to question our unconscious gender biases.
And those who have no interest in gender issues, can simply enjoy the music!
More music by HU!
HU!story
In 2021 Karen got the “carte blanche” of Brussels music production house MetX, which was the start of the creation of her project HU!.
In 2024 HU! was selected for the Brussels Jazz Alert. After their concert for the Brussels Jazz Weekend on the outdoor stage on place Cathérine, Mathieu Jouan of Citizen Jazz magazine wrote the following:
“…HU! de la saxophoniste Karen van Schaik. HU!, c’est un projet qui porte un sens, une parole féministe et politique. Van Schaik a des choses à dire et elle s’entoure d’excellent·es musicien·nes pour le faire. On y retrouve entre autres le trompettiste Pierre-Antoine Savoyat.
Ce programme très expressif et écrit avec un grand sens de la narration a fait sensation (et a écarté les nuages).”
Click here for the full article
Interview with Lefto for Brussels Jazz Alert
A little personal insight in how Karen created HU!
Karen: “I draw inspiration from my own experiences as a female jazz musician and parallel to writing music for HU! I am doing research about female jazz musicians in history (see my essay “Women Instrumentalists in Jazz” ) and gender stereotypes in general. The “Carte Blanche 2021” at production house MetX made it possible to develop this musical project that I named HU!.
I interviewed 28 people of different ages, backgrounds, nationalities and gender identities and read many books and articles about gender, psychology, gender in music, sexism and women in jazz. This resulted in my presentation about “12 mechanisms that still form obstacles for women to pursue a career in music”.
My goal with this presentation is to create more awareness and understanding, to help musicians who suffer from these mechanisms to recognise them and others to be able to speak up when these mechanisms happen. The presentation leads to a very inclusive open discussion about possible solutions. With reaching especially musicians, programmers, music educators and parents of future musicians, I hope to be part of the change that I would love to see on jazz stages. It has been scientifically proven that mixed teams function the best and that people feel happier, so we all have something to win when the jazz scene and music becomes more inclusive!”
On the HU! Research tab you can find out more about this.
Musical concept & style
“I translated these mechanisms I found with my research into musical ideas and musical concepts. The titles of the songs reveal the content of the music. Who would like to know more can ask and maybe recognise things in the music. Who isn’t interested in the subject, can ignore the titles and just enjoy the music.
HU! is a sextet with four horns (flute, trumpet, and two saxophones), drums and double bass. The diverse voices of the horns, that resemble the human voice, give me a lot of possibilities to express emotions, humoristic situations and to “tell stories”. The double bass adds a lot of colours, especially with bowed passages, harmonics and driving bass lines. The drums adds a pallet that goes from gentle colouring to an aggressive energy and rhythmic complexity.
Style wise I draw a lot of inspiration from composers like Charles Mingus, John Zorn, Carla Bley, Matana Roberts, Henry Threadgill, Ennio Morricone and the Art Ensemble of Chicago.”
Teasers
The following teasers date from an earlier phase in the creation of HU!, when I worked towards a more theatrical show. After that the team has changed a bit, I expanded it to a sextet and I have shifted my focus to a concert version for jazz venues and festivals.
But the video’s represent well the origin and spirit of the project.