Hi all,
Just read that Gerard Koerts, keyboard player of dutch prog-rock band Earth & Fire, died at 71. I own his Mellotron, seen here in this YT clip while it was still in it’s original white. He painted it (badly) black later on.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ctmaapt68LgFrom Dutch newspaper AD:
https://www.ad.nl/show/earth-and-fire-toetsenist-gerard-koerts-71-overleden~a2f0446f/Via google translate:
Earth and Fire keyboard player Gerard Koerts (71) died
Composer and producer Gerard Koerts passed away at the age of 71 today. That is what guitarist Hans Ziech and Koerts wife Ella know. Ziech was in the 70s and 80s with Koerts active in the Hague pop group Earth and Fire.
Koerts died in France, where he lived with his wife for the last ten years. He suffered from lung problems and had been in a coma at the Perpignan hospital since Monday. "He had been ill for a while, the last days he went backwards quickly" said Ziech.
Koerts started at the age of 14, with his twin brother Chris, a musical duo under the name The Singing Twins. This later developed further into Earth and Fire. Gerard (on keyboards) and Chris (on guitar) wrote several songs, including the hit Weekend from 1979, which was sung by Jerney Kaagman.
After his brother left the band later that year, Gerard continued until 1983. After that he started a music studio with Chris and released two albums under the name Earth and Fire Orchestra.
Gerard Koerts had a summer and a winter house in France. With his wife he had two children, a son and a daughter. His son died a few years ago. Chris Koerts also lives in France.
Ben