Jaap Blonk (born 1953, Woerden) is a Dutch avant-garde composer and soundpoet. He is primarily self-taught, both as a sound artist and as a visual/stage performer. One of his early influences was Kurt Schwitters, whose Ursonate he first heard in 1979; he memorized the entire work, and it became one of the cornerstones of his repertory; he has recited portions of the piece hundreds of times in various public places. His performances of sound poetry are unique and world renowned, making use of words and phonetic snippets as well as clicks, hisses, and other vocal manipulations. He hooked up with The Ex guitarist Terrie Ex in 2006 and they did several gigs after that. In 2012 The Ex brought Blonk over to Ethiopia for a special soundpoetry project. This combination, Thirsty Ears, is an adventure in improvising sound and poetry; electronics, guitar and vocals."