Biography

1979 – 1991
Formed and played in various music bands:
New Wave, Jazz, Funk, Clasical.
Made records, tapes and did several tours throughout Europe.

1981 - 1986
Done art performances with different forms of music, video and constructions.
These were mainly temporary, one of a kind projects, solo or sometimes invited.






1986 – 2000
Instituut Bizar.
A performance group started by Hanz Geeratz and myself.
We used the group for expression of extreme confrontation with people by utilising: music, meat, poems, the four elements and body expression.
The most important part of our concept was to never repeat a performance and to try to awaken those trapped in their comfort zone. To try to get in people’s minds and make them really think.
We broke our own rules only once with a performance we did 15 times in 3 days.




Interviews in newspapers and television
Exhibitions in art galleries
Installations
Cd recording
Short movie 35 min.

In the late 80’s we used the body to push to the limit of endurance in events lasting many hours. After a few performances of this kind it was very clear there was a change going on in the mind of the performer. That was something we wanted to explore more. During that time we met Esther Saldana who brought us to the part of the specific body & mind influences. The first ritual with her was a branding ritual in public which was half in our old performance style with lots of aggression, changing to a relaxed atmosphere in harmony with the branding as the ending. We started to use food – mind - diets to have more sensibility during and after the performance. For example drinking for a week only fruit and vegatable juice. That was and still is the part which is the most intresting to explore. The deepness that comes from that, which you normally can’t reach, is close and every time you approach it, it has a different outcome.
At the same time I also tried rituals without this diet and the results were very different. ‘Being involved’ and ‘body cleaning’ are like magical words.




2000 - present
Ego Kornus.

When Hanz moved to Germany I had to look for other possibilities. I was on my own with the exploring and sharing experiences. From that point I used the name ‘Ego Kornus’. In the following 2 years I created a more concrete, concious diet which I used a part of with the Instituut Bizar. Now I have a clear concept of the diet.
During 2 months I change my food and drink habits, stopping the consumption of alcohol, sugar and meat. Body and mind are cleansed and ready to have the full experience. The mind is wide open and very sensitive to vibrations around, good or bad. After the ritual I have a deep experience with my inner self.
Currently I am exploring old and self-created rituals which have a slow and deep impact on me. Doing the kavadi ritual or spear related rituals, is a good example of the point I want to reach. The rituals are friendly but need a lot of time to prepare and execute. The time of performing the ritual is also an important matter when trying to reach a deeper level of yourself. The changing inside brings the conclusion: your conscious mind is changing in a certain moment while ‘the real moment’ moves slowly along. I am not aware of exactly when that is happening, you go into what I call a ‘vacuum state of mind’, you get that return to consciousness when you are ‘coming back’. In my case this is always with cold. I feel super cold and want to stop the ritual after starting to shake.




The art Performances I do are another thing. They are very close to and can be easily confused with a ritual. On many occasions I have had to carefully explain the difference between them. The Art performances I do are for aesthetic reasons and to fulfill my own ideas of imagery: how to create a perfect image or story, that is the main thing in Art performances.

2003 - present
Truth Seekers Syndicate.

After receiving many questions from people who wanted to do a ritual but didn’t have the posibility I started the Truth Seekeres Syndicate for the purpose of bringing the rituals to the people. This group existed in part with the help of my good friends.
The group gave people the posibility to do suspensions, pulls, fire dances and kavadi, all in a natural setting, with or without a conscious diet element.

1994 – 2004
Having my own radio programme on the local radio station:
2 hours a week with modern classical music and opera.
With interviews, self-recorded music and special programmes as an integral broadcasting of the complete “ring der nibelungen” of Wagner, for 15 hours.




2001 – 2004
Working with a modern ballet group called “Pium”.
I wrote two dance pieces for this group which I also co-directed, the performance part of the play. The works were performed in cities all over the Netherlands, Europe.

2006 – present
Amor Infame Tormento.
Group created by 3 people with 3 different backgrounds, who each like art, ritual and performance.
With these diverse ingredients we try to compose a new style of performing.