Introducing

home git dogIn 1999, while working on a musical production, Jim and Victorine fell in love with each other. Victorine was already perceived as a stage director. Also she had been the singer and front woman of several bands. In her early days, still studying, she earned some money as a jam singer in addition to her scholarship. In 1999, after working for years as a music teacher, studio musician (and in the spare time as frontman and composer of Jim Rensson and the Crew), Jim had became and worked as a neuropsychologist. Both Victorine and Jim had a second career in progress in science and healthcare. Notably, both Jim and Victorine have become doctors in neurosciences. In artificial intelligence and music science, Jim contributed with a computational model (robot) for musical structure (composition), a melody generator. home-git-dog After their marriage in 1999, they wrote several theater productions (plays, lyrics and theater direction by Victorine; music composition and directing by Jim). The musicals were frequently performed in hospitals and care centers (the workplaces at the moment of Jim and Vic), art and free festivals, and schools. The three musical productions are about the (delusional) sense of telecommunications (Noble dame Edelmoed), the loneliness of masquerades (The three fools out of the west) and the demise of the imagination in the post-modern society (In search of the door to wonderland). The pieces were performed by Probono, the theater club led by Victorine and performed by amateur and professional musicians. Besides the three musicals, each about 15 times carried out, they produced some 10 CD's, two with Wilko Rietveld (Expedition Sugerband, and Mixed Feelings). As a producer and / or engineer, Wilko played an important role in all Jim and Victorine work – both stage art and CD's. Mark Baan often played the acoustic (contra) bass, the Hammond organ and the accordion (live and especially the organ on CD's). In live performances guitarist René Schipper accompanied us in the last 10 years, sometimes supplemented by Eelco Arends. Eelco starred already in some of Jim's production from '79 till '84. On drums Ton ten Dam, and Jean Paul Steeghs, among others, accompanied a number of productions. On the website you find several CD productions, and of each a number of songs. One CD with lyrics in Dutch of Victorine and music of Jim is produced for singer Ron Mulder (Romulus and Nuchter), produced, again, by Wilko. Of course, Jim is a remarkable multi-instrumentalist, who plays instruments himself varying from piano to (fretless)bass, from cello to guitar, and from vocals to drums. Jim Rensson is the pseudonym of Jan Willem de Graaf. Victorine is a great singer and writer, also well-known as scientist and writer of '365 days Miss Communication'.

We hope you enjoy listening.

Jim Rennson & Victorine

Jim Rensson

jimLet me introduce myself. I was born in November 1959. Already as a teenager I started to compose music and played several instruments. In high school I led quite a few bands, but the 'real fame' came in 1982 with 'Jim Rensson and the crew'. Together with Bert Bredeweg, Erik Veldwijk, Ernie Hoffmeister, Hans van Ees, and Elly van Eijk, Wil Meijer and Hanny Brouwer I had lots of fun. It resulted in a contract with PLATO (record company). We made two albums. You still can buy 'Whirling Dust' online. I finished music-education and worked for a few years as a teacher, not only at music-schools, but also at home I taught the guitar. The dog in the picture was our Great Dane. She guarded our house, but is very friendly to our family. When I became 28, I thought there should be more in life and I studied Technical Cognition and psychology at university. I became a PhD and worked for years as neuro-psychologist, mostly with older adults. Music never left me. I still compose lots of different things; from hard-rock to classical music, from ballads to music for theater scripts. My wife Victorine writes most of the lyrics. Together we record our own CD's at home. We don't do lots of gigs. However, we sometimes performed our music in the 'Aeilko Zijlkerhuis'. Furthermore, we sometimes play at festivals and in a more acoustical setting at the openings of galleries. After we lived in Nieuw Beerta where they owned a beautiful big house, we moved to Amersfoort in 2010. I started over again at the Saxion University of applied science, where I became lecturer Neuro/bio psychology and manager of the tranfer center. Together with Maryke Tieleman
I also wrote two books about development and neuropsychology (Ontwikkelingspedagogiek and ontwikkelingsgerontologie, both published by Boom-Lemma Publishers), with a new good friend , which were released May 22 2012. an may 22 2013. So much tot do and so less time, but like the music; the show must go on!! Recently (march 2013) we moved back to the city of Groningen.

Victorine

victorineVictorine de Graaf-Peters was born on the 18th of November 1972 in Steenwijk, the Netherlands. After attending Highschool, Victorine studied the Dutch program of HBO-V, where she received a cum laude degree. After her studies she worked several years in a leading management position of various healthcVictorine de Graaf-Peters was born on the 18th of November 1972 in Steenwijk, the Netherlands. After attending Highschool, Victorine studied the Dutch program of HBO-V, where she received a cum laude degree. After her studies she worked several years in a leading management position of various healthcare institutions. At the age of 28, she decided to combine her academic interest with her interest in human behaviour, which resulted in an academic study at the Rijksuniversiteit Groningen.
Three years later she graduaded with a degree in development psychology, clinical psychology and neuro-/bio-psychology. After her graduation she started her PhD project in developmental neurology. Her thesis included a multidimensional evaluation of early (physiotherapy) intervention with infants at high risk of developing cerebral palsy. Having started as an academic teacher in the field of behavior and communication, neuropsychology, neurology and scientific development, at the Hanze University Groningen, she has filled the position of Program Manager Healthy Ageing. When Jim and Victorine decided to move to Amersfoort, she accepted a postion at the KNGF as a senior policy advisor ons science and professional content. This was a postion Victorine liked much; there was lot to do on more then 80 projects, from monodisciplinair guidelines and statements to multi disciplinair, from science to the professional workspace and between reason and politics. However, in january 2013 a new perspective, even more challenging showed up, back at the Hanze University of applied science in Groningen. Victorine and her family moved back to Groningen, where she became Dean (director) of the Institute of Life Science and Technology of the Hanze University of Applied Science in Groningen. In this function she is able to combine her creativity with her scientific background, in working toward a more durable world. Educating new professionals in the field of biomedical research, chemistry, chemical technology and bioinformatics by initiating innovative collaboration with entrepreneurs in the field of sustainable energy.
Next to science, Victorine developed a passion for music and literature. In her private time she has written, acted in, and directed three musicals. Besides all of this, she has written a large number of musical lyrics and she has often written about her personal missteps especially emerging from the tension between social desirability and creative individuality. A website of '365 days Miss Communication' as her alias is, will be published soon. Next to her professional life, she has already vocally attributed to seven CDs.