Ekseption was formed in Haarlem in the Netherlands in 1967. The group emerged from the school band The Jokers and later The Incrowd. The founding members are Rein van den Broek (trumpet, flugelhorn), Rick van der Linden (piano, organ), Rob Kruisman (saxophone, flute, vocals), Huib van Kampen (guitar, saxophone), Cor Dekker (bass) and Peter de Leeuwe (drums, vocals). The band's genre is symphonic rock, progressive rock and jazz fusion. Ekseption reinterprets classical originals and combines them with rock and jazz elements. Rein van den Broek was born on September 10, 1945; he died on May 11, 2015 in the Netherlands. Rick van der Linden was born in 1946 and died in 2006. Other key members are Cor Dekker, Peter de Leeuwe, Dick Remelink and Hans Jansen (keyboard from 1974). The debut album Ekseption (1969) impresses with rock adaptations such as "The Fifth", "Air" and "Sabre Dance" and reaches number 2 in the Netherlands and number 44 in Germany. Beggar Julia's Time Trip followed in 1970, Ekseption 3 in 1970 (No. 44 DE, No. 1 NL), 00.04 with Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in 1971 (No. 35 DE, No. 1 NL), Ekseption 5 in 1972 (No. 7 DE, No. 6 NO) and Trinity in 1973 (No. 14 DE). During this time, the band won the Edison Award for their second album in 1970. Further albums include Bingo (1974), Mindmirror (1975) and Dance Macabre (1981). After a phase with offshoot bands such as Trace and Spin, Ekseption returned in 1978 with Ekseption '78. Ekseption '89 was released in 1989, followed by the live album The Reunion in 1994. Ekseption received the Edison Award in 1970. The band breaks up several times, but remains active until the death of Rick van der Linden in 2006. They left their mark on the classic progressive rock genre with virtuoso classical adaptations.
