When he was five years old, Bart started playing the harmonica. As a teenager his love for music evolved into different directions, like playing the guitar and singing. But a life changing encounter occurred when one day, Bart had the chance to play the conga. The very next day, he bought his first conga. After exploring different sounds, it was percussionist Raoul Burnett who taught him his first techniques. This was the beginning of a life where percussion leads the way! 

Amsterdam based Bart Fermie began his versatile musical career with the founding of the Dutch band, Small Talk. He has studied Cuban and Brazilian percussion in New York, Havana and Amsterdam. His sound is eclectic and reflects his ongoing exploration of a wide range of percussion styles.  He performed and recorded with hundreds of artists in Europe, Asia and the US. Also composing and producing his own albums called Windy Days and Beyond Words and Dreams. Always looking for new sounds and possibilities in percussion, he started creating his own instruments for Pearl Drums.

Bart has been a dance accompanist (42 years) at the Academy for Theatre and Dance and a percussion and ensemble teacher at the Amsterdam Conservatory (28 years) and the Rotterdam (14 years) Conservatory. It was here where PATEMPA started taking shape. PATEMPA is an acronym for Practical Aproach To Enhancing Musical Performance Abilities; using stepping, clapping and singing to feel and understand the layers of music. For more than three decades Bart Fermie taught 100’s of classes and workshops to 1000’s of participants, in countries like Germany, Poland, Swiss, Holland, USA, UK, Austria, Switzerland, Belgium and Curaçao. He continuously refines and designs the PATEMPA tools in order to create the best experiences. PATEMPA has been launched online, offering video’s, masterclasses and personal coachings. www.patempa.com   

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

A sampling of the artists Bart Fermie has collaborated with: 
Leonardo Amuedo & Antonio Serrano, Angelique Kidjo, Mory Kante, George Duke, Randy Crawford, Horacio ‘El Negro’Hernandez, Richie Flores, Metropole Orchestra, Brussels Jazz Orchestra, The Danish Radio Orchestra, WDR Big Band, Maria Schneider, Richard Galliano, Ivan Lins, Toots Thielemans. Frank McComb, Gino Vannelli, Deborah Brown, Branford Marsalis, Livio Gianola, Nelson Faria a.o.

Performed in NL: Peter Tiehuis/Theo de Jong, Batida, Denise Jannah, Ntjam Rosie, Cor Bakker, Ralph Rousseau, Lilian Vieira, Jan Akkerman, Eric Vaarzon Morel, Josee Koning, Wende Snijders, Francien van Tuinen, Jesse van Ruller, Karel Boehlee, Michiel Borstlap, Yuri Honing, Toon Roos, Amina Figarova, Bert van der Brink, Tineke Postma, Eric Vloeimans, Niki Jacobs, Deborah Carter, Wieke Garcia a.o.

Bart Fermie has produced albums for Blue Note (Denise Jannah) and his own label, Amaranchi.  He co-produced an album for Ernest Ranglin in Dakar with Baaba Maal and Mansour Seck. He has written and produced his own albums;  ‘Windy Days’ and ‘Beyond Words & Dreams’.

Bart Fermie is a Pearl Percussion endorser and clinician. He has presented clinics in Poland, England, Germany, The United States, and The Netherlands.

Bart’s UNGOING INVOLVEMENT, AND CONTRIBUTING TO THE WORLD OF PERCUSSION, has led to the creation of his own line of instruments produced under the Pearl Percussion label. To date they include:

The Ganzeiro and Mini-Ganzeiro (this small-percussion instrument won the 2001 MIPA Award) The Shakerine and the Mini-ShakerinE, The Ago-Sha Hi and Ago-Sha Low  Ago-Sha Double, The Agogo-Pop Hi and Low, The Patum, The Flat-Timb, The Tang-Tang, Shakelets and the PANDANZA.

Bart has been a teaching member of the jazz department at the Amsterdam conservatory (CvA) and at the latin department of the Rotterdam Conservatory (Codarts). offering classes in percussion and ensemble. Bart has been a guest teacher at the conservatories of Utrecht, Maastricht, Enschede, Arnhem, Groningen,Brussels and Berlin.