The Guitar Dream of Martijn van Iterson
2004 was a beautiful year for Martijn van Iterson. Unanimous praise followed the release of his second CD ‘The Whole Bunch’ (Munich Records). Its international release was ranked top of the American Jazz Chart for radio play. And then of course that award at the 29th North Sea Jazz Festival: the Bird Award as ‘Artist Deserving Wider Recognition’. Presenting the award to Van Iterson, fellow guitarist Pat Metheny had some difficulty pronouncing his name and commented to a Dutch journalist ‘What a guitar player! But can’t he change his name to Martin von Schmidt or something?’. The Bird Award Jury …