Wilhelmus Frederikus "Pim" Koopman (11 March 1953 – 23 November 2009Nieuws.be
/ref>) was a Dutch musician best known as the drummer,

percussionist A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Ex ...

and occasional lead singer of rock band

Kayak ] A kayak is a small, narrow human-powered watercraft typically propelled by means of a long, double-bladed paddle. The word ''kayak'' originates from the Inuktitut word '' qajaq'' (). In British English, the kayak is also considered to be ...

Biography

Born in

Hilversum Hilversum () is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of North Holland, Netherlands. Located in the heart of the Gooi, it is ...

, Koopman co-founded Kayak in 1972, along with Ton Scherpenzeel, Johan Slager and Max Werner. Koopman left the band in 1976 because of health problems and issues with the group's manager. He went on to become a record producer, and was successful with acts such as Maywood, José Hoebee, Valensia, Petra Berger and Robby Valentine. He returned to Kayak for the reunion in 1999, and had been playing drums in Kayak again until his death in 2009.Line-up page on the Kayak official website
/ref> As a musician, writer, producer and arranger, Koopman was also involved in two other bands: Diesel and The President. In Diesel he worked with (amongst others) Rob Vunderink, who later joined Koopman in Kayak. The President was a collaboration with Okkie Huysdens. He was the composer of six entries to the

Eurovision Song Contest The Eurovision Song Contest (), often known simply as Eurovision, is an international Music competition, song competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) among its members since 1956. Each participating broadcaster ...

: “Jouw lach" performed by Dick Rienstra (1977), "Later" by Brigitte (1984), "Champagne" and "Déja Vu" by Willeke Alberti (1994) and "De wereld is van jou" by Gina de Wit and "Met of zonder jou" by Clau-Dya's in 1996. Apart from his work as a musician, Koopman often lent his voice to Dutch versions of cartoons and films. For example, he can be heard in '' Barnyard'', '' Happy Feet'' and '' Lilo & Stitch''. Koopman died on 23 November 2009, at the age of 56, from a heart attack.

Discography

Solo

* '' Doctor Vlimmen'' (soundtrack) (1978) * ''Kort Amerikaans'' (soundtrack) (1979)

With Kayak (studio albums)

* '' See See the Sun'' (1973) * '' Kayak II'' (1974) * '' Royal Bed Bouncer'' (1975) * '' The Last Encore'' (1976) * '' Close to the Fire'' (2000) * ''

Night Vision Night vision is the ability to see in low-light conditions, either naturally with scotopic vision or through a night-vision device. Night vision requires both sufficient spectral range and sufficient intensity range. Humans have poor night v ...

'' (2001) * '' Merlin – Bard of the Unseen'' (2003) * ''Nostradamus – The Fate of Man'' (2005) (Double CD) * ''Excerpts from Nostradamus'' (2005) (Single CD) * '' Coming Up for Air'' (2008) * ''Letters from Utopia'' (2009)

With Kayak (live albums)

* ''Chance for a Livetime'' (2001) (double CD) * ''Kayakoustic'' (2007) * ''The Anniversary Concert'' (2008) (double CD + 'Highlights' DVD) * ''The Anniversary Box'' (2008) (4 CD + DVD)

With Diesel (studio albums)

* '' Watts in a Tank'' (1980) * ''Diesel on the Rocks'' (2000)

With The President (studio albums)

* ''By Appointment Of'' (1983) * ''Muscles'' (1985)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Koopman, Pim 1953 births 2009 deaths Dutch rock drummers Dutch male drummers People from Hilversum Kayak (band) members Diesel (band) members 20th-century Dutch male musicians