Orchestras & Conductors
The
Belgian National Orchestra
The Belgian National Orchestra, founded in Brussels in 1931 as the Brussels
Symphony Orchestra, received its current name in 1936. From the start it worked
with celebrated artistes such as Désiré Defauw, Franz André,
Erich Kleiber, Hans Knappertsbusch, Karl Böhm and Pierre Monteux. In
1958 André Cluytens became its chief conductor. Under his baton, the
orchestra forged an international reputation and, thanks to him, the BNO can
pride itself on a rich tradition of foreign tours. Michael Gielen succeeded
him in 1969 and devoted himself to broadening the Orchestra’s repertory
to contemporary music. After him, André Vandernoot, Georges Octors,
Mendi Rodan and Ronald Zollman presided successively over its musical fortunes.
Since 1994 the Russian conductor Yuri Simonov has been in charge of the BNO.
At his instigation the repertory has widened to include more Slav music, in
particular the works of Shostakovich, whose Fourth Symphony has been recorded
by the orchestra. Tour has followed tour, such as that, highly successful,
in Spain in 1998. In Belgium also this renewed activity has been felt, with
various new collaborations (Ghent International Film Festival, Queen Elisabeth
International Competition in 1999 and 2001, etc.). The BNO has started a new
phase in its development with a policy of regular recordings with the Cyprès
label, and has already released a widely hailed first CD of Cello Concertos
by Henri Vieuxtemps, with Marie Hallynck as soloist and the conductor Theodor
Guschlbauer. Lastly, in September 2002, the brilliant young Finnish conductor
Mikko Franck will take over from Yuri Simonov as the orchestra’s musical
director.
Gilbert
Varga
Born in London, Gilbert Varga studied the violin from the age of five with
his father, the famous Hungarian violinist Tibor Varga. In 1973 an accident
put an abrupt end to his promising career as a soloist and for three years
he turned to the study of conducting with three different teachers: Franco
Ferrara, Sergiu Celibidache and Charles Bruck. In 1980 he was appointed principal
conductor of the Hofer Symphoniker, and in 1985, principal conductor of the
Philharmonia Hungarica in Marl, with which he undertook his first tour in
Hungary with Yehudi Menuhin. Regularly invited to several European countries,
he became ever more appreciated in the classical repertory, and in 1991 was
appointed permanent guest conductor of the Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra. Henceforth
invited regularly by the leading German orchestras and by several important
European ensembles, Gilbert Varga also gained a reputation in North America
(Toronto, Milwaukee, Indianapolis, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Aspen Music
Festival). Gilbert Varga’s career is today fully occupied: highly active
in recording (with, among others, the symphony orchestras of Göteborg,
Malmö and Bamberg as well as the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra), he is
also music director of the Basque Symphony Orchestra (San Sebastian) with
which he regularly goes on international tours, principal guest conductor
of the Malmö Symphony Orchestra (Sweden), and artistic director of the
Tibor Varga Festival in Sion (Switzerland). He is regularly invited by front-rank
orchestras all over the world.
Royal
Chamber Orchestra of Wallonia
Founded in 1958 by Lola Bobesco, the Royal Chamber Orchestra of Wallonia has
thrived under the musical direction of exceptional violinists — such
as Philippe Hirshhorn, Jean-Pierre Wallez and Georges Octors — and has
accompanied outstanding soloists, including most recently Anner Bylsma, Nikolaj
Znaider, Sonia Wieder-Atherton, Vitaly Samoshko and Patrice Fontanorosa. The
Royal Chamber Orchestra of Wallonia combines classical and contemporary music,
creating a repertoire rooted in Classicism, at home with Romantic pieces and
open to exploring the fertile imagination of contemporary works. Currently
under the musical direction of Jean-Paul Dessy, the orchestra performs little-known
musical masterpieces of yesterday and today, including compositions by John
Adams, Aaron Jay Kernis, Sofia Gubaïdulina, Giacinto Scelsi, Michael
Nyman and Astor Piazzola. The Royal Chamber Orchestra of Wallonia receives
support from the Ministry of the French Community of Belgium, the National
Lottery and the City of Mons where the orchestra is based.
Georges
Octors
A laureate of various international competitions, Georges Octors began his
career as a violin soloist. In 1956 he created the Antwerp Bach Ensemble,
a well-renowned chamber orchestra which was received enthusiastically during
its many European tours. André Cluytens, musical director of the Belgian
National Orchestra, appointed Octors as his assistant in 1960. From 1975 to
1989, Georges Octors served as the orchestra’s conductor and musical
director. He is highly regarded in the Netherlands, where he conducts several
orchestras and served as musical director of the Gelders Orkest in Arnhem
for ten years. Georges Octors has been a popular guest conductor with orchestras
in Eastern and Western Europe, the United States and the former Soviet Union
— including the St. Petersburg Philharmonic Society and the London Symphony
Orchestra — as well as in South Korea where he conducts each year. He
conducted the finals of the Queen Elisabeth Competition every year from 1976
to 1989. Georges Octors then became musical director of the Royal Chamber
Orchestra of Wallonia for seven years, making several recordings which were
highly acclaimed by the international music press: Fanfare (USA), Diapason
(France), Crescendo (Belgium).