Artists:Des De Moor

English chansonnier Des de Moor is one of only a handful of British-based performers originating material that's broadly in a theatre-cabaret and chanson tradition more familiar in mainland Europe.

Des draws on the great names of European cabaret and chanson such as Brel, Brassens and Brecht, along with other influences as diverse as Latin music, jazz, folk and German romantic Lieder, to create new English chansons in a style that is still uniquely his own, a potent combination of high-profile lyrics full of wit and passion with sophisticated music dynamically and dramatically delivered.

Des is an accomplished and intense performer with a distinctive and powerful voice, unafraid to confront the gamut of emotions on stage, and his sets also include provocative and imaginative interpretations of other people's songs. Alongside more familiar names like Brecht, Brel, Bowie and Schubert, expect to hear gems from many lesser-known songwriters, many in original translations from French, German and Dutch.

Des is also the founder and host of Pirate Jenny's, a unique monthly musical cabaret night which in December 2004 celebrated ten years as one of London's most provocative nights out. Pirate Jenny's ran for many years at the Vortex in Stoke Newington before moving to the Drill Hall in central London in September 2004.

Des has so far released two albums of his own excellent compositions. 1999's Water of Europe is a set of sparkling acoustic chansons featuring many live favourites. Its predecessor, Photographs in Empty Houses, helped set his current musical direction back in 1992. The next album of original songs, Testing Times, is now composed and is due to be recorded during 2004.

In April 2000 Des launched Darkness and Disgrace, a music theatre piece based on the songs of David Bowie as adapted and presented in collaboration with former Julian Clary foil Russell Churney and directed by one of Britain's leading interpreters of chanson and musical caberet Barb Jungr. The show enjoyed several extended runs, including a stint on the Edinburgh fringe, proving a hit with both critics and audience with its unexpected and provocative stripped-down reinterpretations of well-loved songs. A first class CD of all the songs from the show was released in Autumn 2003.

Des is often seen in the company of pianist David Harrod, one of London's leading cabaret accompanists and a composer in his own right. Occasional members of an extended band have included ex-Happy Ender, Cats Cradle member and jazz/Tango specialist Julia Doyle on double bass, and extraordinary cellist/electric bassist and Mike Westbrook and Arthur Brown collaborator Stanley Adler.

Des is also known as a collaborator with other artists and a faithful translator of songs in French, German and Dutch. He worked with Barb Jungr on her French cabaret-themed album Chanson: The Space In Between, helping select material and providing new translations for both familiar and unfamiliar songs from Jacques Brel and Léo Ferré. He regularly appears alongside artists such as Jungr and Robb Johnson singing his own versions of songs by Brel, and contributed to the seminal 1998 Brel compilation CD Ne me quitte pas. One of his two tracks on 2002's English chanson compilation 9x2 was an English version of a song by Flemish kleinkunst artist Wannes Van de Velde. In 2005 his version of veteran English chansonnier Leon Rosselson's 'Jackboot Democrats' appeared on a tribute compilation, And they all sang Rosselsongs.

Des has worked as a theatre composer, with composition and arrangement credits for five shows with ESC offshoot Sturdy Beggars, including an acclaimed score and sound design for their production of Strindberg's A Dream Play. A varied previous career has involved everything from busking to rave music.

Since 1997 Des has worked regularly as a DJ at London's 100 Club, where you can currently catch him most Saturday nights playing swing, classic R&B, jazz, soul, lounge, ska and pop. As a journalist, he currently writes regularly for walk magazine and the CAMRA newspaper What's Brewing among others..