Drummer and multi – instrumentalist Han Bennink was born in Zaandam near Amsterdam in 1942. His first percussion instrument was a kitchen chair. Later his father, an orchestra percussionist, supplied him with a more conventional outfit, but Han never lost his taste for coaxing sounds from unlikely objects he finds backstage at concerts. He is still very fond of playing chairs.

In Holland in the 1960s, Bennink was quickly recognized as an uncommonly versatile drummer. As a hard swinger in the tradition of his hero Kenny Clarke, he accompanied touring American jazz stars, including Sonny Rollins, Ben Webster, Wes Montgomery, Johnny Griffin, Eric Dolphy and Dexter Gordon. He is heard with Gordon on the 1969 album “Live at Amsterdam Paradiso“ (on the Affinity label) and with Dolphy on 1964’s “Last Date“ (Polygram). At the same time, Bennink participated in the creation of a European improvised music which began to evolve a new identity, apart from its jazz roots. With fellow Dutch pioneers, pianist Misha Mengelberg and saxophonist Willem Breuker, he founded the musicians collective Instant Composer's Pool in 1967. Bennink anchored various bands led by Mengelberg or Breuker, and appeared in their comic music – theatre productions.

Bennink attended art school in the 1960s, and is also a successful visual artist in several media, often constructing sculpture from found objects, which may include broken drum heads and sticks. He has designed the covers for many LPs and CDs on which he appears. A book covering all his art work for LP and CD covers was voted one of the best packaged editions of 2008.

汉·班宁可1942年出生于毗邻阿姆斯特丹的赞丹市（Zaandam）。汉·班宁可不仅是优秀的爵士鼓演奏家，还是一名精通多种乐器的多面手。班宁可人生中的第一件打击乐器是自家厨房的椅子。后来，在乐团担任打击乐手的父亲给了他一套像样的乐器，但是班宁可却始终钟情于那些放在后台的器物所发出的声音，而对于击打椅子的兴趣也始终未减。

上世纪60年代在荷兰，班宁可崭露头角，被公认为是难得一遇的全才型鼓手，前途无量。班宁可视传奇鼓手肯尼·克拉克（Kenny Clarke）为自己的偶像。与克拉克一样，班宁可也与众多美国爵士乐大师联手进行巡回表演。这其中包括索尼·罗林斯（Sonny Rollins）、本·韦伯斯特（Ben Webster）、韦斯·蒙哥莫里（Wes Montgomery）、强尼·格瑞芬（Johnny Griffin）、埃里克·多菲（Eric Dolphy）及戴克斯特·哥顿（Dexter Gordon）等。哥顿1969年发行的《住在阿姆斯特丹天堂》（Affinity）和多菲1964年发行的《最后的约会》（宝丽金）等专辑中可以聆听到班宁可的演奏。与此同时，班宁可还参与并见证了欧洲即兴音乐从爵士土壤中萌芽、一路走来、并最终焕然一新的全部过程。1967年，班宁可与钢琴演奏家米夏·曼贺伯格（Misha Mengelberg）、萨克斯风演奏家威勒姆·布鲁克尔（Willem Breuker）和其他荷兰音乐人一起组建了荷兰即兴爵士乐队“Instant Composer’s Pool”（ICP）。班宁可在曼贺伯格或布鲁克尔率领的各个乐队中担任主创，并参与了他们的一些音乐喜剧作品演出。

20世纪60年代，班宁可进入艺术学院进修。除了在音乐演奏上的才华，他同时还是一个成功的视觉艺术家，擅长各种艺术媒体创作。他常常把诸如断裂的鼓和鼓槌等各种日常物件运用自己的雕塑作品中。他还亲自设计了许多自己参与录制的唱片封面。2008年，一本收录了他所设计的各款唱片封面的专题图书被票选为年度最佳图书包装奖。

班宁可曾在意大利拉文纳、挪威康斯堡、比利时安特卫普、波黑萨拉热窝、加拿大卡尔加里等地举办多场个展。