Johan van Stratum is a Dutch bassist tied to Ayreon's live line-ups and to other projects of European symphonic metal. His function points to a peculiarity of Ayreon: since it is not a band but a studio work with dozens of guests per record, the project has to build an instrumental ensemble from scratch every time it performs live. Van Stratum is part of that body of musicians, charged with reproducing onstage arrangements that were recorded in layers, often with Arjen Lucassen himself playing several instruments. In the repertoire the bass has a supporting task in music that alternates heavy metal, acoustic passages and orchestral sections within a single track — it demands harmonic constancy in a context of unstable instrumentation. He also works in Stream of Passion and in other bands of the Netherlands, a region that concentrates much of European symphonic metal production.
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