Herman De Rycke

Herman De Rycke studied the double-bass with Frank Coppieters and he had a jazz training with Marc Matthijs at the Royal Music Conservatory of Ghent. He started his musical career as a bass guitar player in rock music (winner of Humo’s Rock Rally in 1986) and as a double-bass player in different jazz ensembles. After he had been exposed accidentally to the gypsy music, he became fascinated by gypsy music and East-European music. He is the founder and the inspirer of the Gypsy Ensemble Kalinka.

He was the bass player of “Mich en Scène”, the band around Micheline Van Hautem and Frederik Caelen, with whom he played on several tours in Australia.