Ernst van ’t Hoff

Ernst van 't Hoff (July 13, 1908 in Zandvoort – May 17, 1955 in Brussels) was a Dutch jazz pianist and bandleader. Van 't Hoff played with his own orchestra in the late 1920s, and in 1934 joined Robert De Kers's orchestra. In 1936 he worked with Jean Omer, then played in the dance orchestra of the Algemene Vereniging Radio Omroep under Hans Mossel. In 1940, after the Netherlands became Nazi-occupied territory, van 't Hoff was ordered to start a big band to play state-approved dance music, but he played some jazz anyway, recording songs such as "Pennsylvania 6-5000" and "In the Mood". He recorded for Deutsche Grammophon and played at the Delphi Filmpalast in Berlin, but in 1942 he was chastened by the Sicherheitsdienst for playing degenerate music. He was repeatedly taken into custody by the Gestapo and eventually, in April 1944, was dismissed from his post and moved back to Belgium. Once Allied troops had retaken western Europe, he began playing for American servicemen. He disbanded his group in 1946, but formed a new group in 1951, which played in Rotterdam, and another in 1953 which played at the Ancienne Belgique. He died of a sudden heart attack in 1955.