Dutch Tilders
| Dutch Tilders | |
|---|---|
Dutch Tilders performing at the Wangaratta Festival of Jazz, October 2010
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Mattheus Frederikus Wilhelmus Tilders |
| Also known as | Matthew Tilders |
| Born |
29 August 1941 Nijmegen, Netherlands |
| Origin | Melbourne, Australia |
| Died | 23 April 2011 (aged 69) Melbourne, Victoria, Australia |
| Genres | Blues, folk, jazz |
| Occupation(s) | Singer-songwriter, musician |
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar (electric, acoustic), harmonica |
| Years active | 1956–2011 |
| Labels | Bootleg/Fable, Jazznote, Eureka/Electric, Empire/MGM |
| Associated acts | The Foreday Riders, The Blues Club, The Holey Soles, The Legends Band |
| Website | dutchtilders |
Dutch Tilders (29 August 1941 – 23 April 2011), born Mattheus Frederikus Wilhelmus Tilders, anglicised as Matthew Tilders, was a Netherlands-born Australian blues singer-songwriter and guitarist. He performed and released material as a solo artist and also issued a blues-rock album with Kevin Borich, The Blues Had a Baby and They Called It Rock'n'Roll (November 1980). He has toured with John Mayall (1974), Brownie McGhee (1976, 1980s), and Taj Mahal (1986, 1990s). Tilders was diagnosed with oesophageal and liver cancer in May 2010 and died on 23 April 2011, aged 69. In May 2012 Australian Guitar magazine listed him in the top 40 on their Definitive Australian Guitarists of All Time.
Dutch Tilders was born on 29 August 1941 as Mattheus Frederikus Wilhelmus Tilders (anglicised as Matthew Frederick William Tilders) in Nijmegen, Netherlands. His father was Frederikus Theodorus Tilders (born 25 July 1913) and his mother was Cathiarina Maria (née Luermans, born 7 November 1909), his younger siblings are Wilhelmus B F (born 2 October 1942); Johanna C (born 30 May 1944); Frederikus T J (born 17 December 1945); Johannes B M (born 30 December 1947); and Bartholomeus (born 27 October 1951). From the age of ten, Tilders was a member of the local church choir, after his voice broke he sang baritone and falsetto, and joined his secondary school's choir.
The Tilders family emigrated to Melbourne, Australia in 1955, aboard the SS Fairsea. Frederikus worked as a furniture upholsterer. The family spent about a year at the Brooklyn Migrant Hostel, where Tilders worked in a local timber yard, before they moved to Frankston. As a child Tilders had sung choral music, but later he moved towards blues music, his first paying gig was on harmonica at Collingwood Town Hall at the age of 15, at a concert also featuring Johnny O'Keefe.
In 1959 Tilders bought his first guitar, to be able to accompany himself when playing in cafes around Melbourne. His early influences were Big Bill Broonzy, Mississippi John Hurt and Blind Blake. In 1961 he recorded a 10" album at a friend's home studio. The following year he formed a duo with Shane Duckham on harmonica and they worked in the Sydney folk and blues circuit. During the mid-to-late 1960s Tilders performed less frequently.
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