Biography
Born on 22 June 1915 in Vlaardingen, Netherlands, as David Gysberet van der Linden, the musician later known professionally as Dolf van der Linden rose to prominence after the war as conductor of the Metropole Orchestra, one of Holland’s foremost ensembles. His leadership produced a series of distinctive recordings that reached listeners across many countries. Although the orchestra initially concentrated on domestic radio broadcasts, its fifty-two musicians quickly earned recognition as among the strongest ensembles anywhere in Europe. Guest engagements took him before leading orchestras in Britain, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Belgium, France and Israel, and at the 1977 Nord Ring Festival he received the award for best conductor.
Alongside his arranging work he maintained an active composing career whose pieces found acceptance in several London mood-music libraries, where they were recorded exclusively for radio, television and film use. He himself directed many of those sessions under the pseudonyms Paul Franklin, Nat Nyll and David Johnson. For his own commercial releases he appeared under a further set of names: Van Lynn, Daniel de Carlo, Gerard Blene, Alex Pinto and Guy Brain. A number of his compositions carried different titles when issued in various territories, yet the most widely known retained such designations as ‘Remembrance’, ‘Carnival Time’, ‘Table Talk’, ‘Man From Mars’, ‘Sagebrush’, ‘Utopia Road’, ‘Top Drawer’, ‘Grand Canyon’, ‘Terra Del Fuego’, ‘Park Lane Serenade’ (his signature theme), ‘Jamaica Road’, ‘Factory Town’ and ‘Rhapsody For Piano And Orchestra’.
Over the years the catalogue of albums credited to him included Casino On The Riviera (Camden), Dutch Moonlight (Capitol), Golden Violins (Epic), Listen To Nature (Camden), Bachelor’s Apartment (Capitol), Seductive Saxophone (Columbia), Starlight Reverie (Columbia), String Serenade (Philips), Moment Of Desire (Jubilee), Time For Love (Jubilee), Moonlight Madness (Decca), This Is Romance (Decca), Candlelight Melodies (Decca), Escape (Brunswick), Listening Pleasure (Brunswick), My One And Only Love (Decca), One Night Of Madness (Decca), South American Contrasts (Decca) and Whispering Moonlight (Decca).
Alongside his arranging work he maintained an active composing career whose pieces found acceptance in several London mood-music libraries, where they were recorded exclusively for radio, television and film use. He himself directed many of those sessions under the pseudonyms Paul Franklin, Nat Nyll and David Johnson. For his own commercial releases he appeared under a further set of names: Van Lynn, Daniel de Carlo, Gerard Blene, Alex Pinto and Guy Brain. A number of his compositions carried different titles when issued in various territories, yet the most widely known retained such designations as ‘Remembrance’, ‘Carnival Time’, ‘Table Talk’, ‘Man From Mars’, ‘Sagebrush’, ‘Utopia Road’, ‘Top Drawer’, ‘Grand Canyon’, ‘Terra Del Fuego’, ‘Park Lane Serenade’ (his signature theme), ‘Jamaica Road’, ‘Factory Town’ and ‘Rhapsody For Piano And Orchestra’.
Over the years the catalogue of albums credited to him included Casino On The Riviera (Camden), Dutch Moonlight (Capitol), Golden Violins (Epic), Listen To Nature (Camden), Bachelor’s Apartment (Capitol), Seductive Saxophone (Columbia), Starlight Reverie (Columbia), String Serenade (Philips), Moment Of Desire (Jubilee), Time For Love (Jubilee), Moonlight Madness (Decca), This Is Romance (Decca), Candlelight Melodies (Decca), Escape (Brunswick), Listening Pleasure (Brunswick), My One And Only Love (Decca), One Night Of Madness (Decca), South American Contrasts (Decca) and Whispering Moonlight (Decca).