They start this Saturday (June 13) and continue on June 20 and 27, and July 4, at the Cathedral of St. Michael and St. Gudula in Brussels.
For the third consecutive year, this is organised by the Ars in Cathedrali association.
From noon to 12.45pm, the world famous German composer will be celebrated by organists Ben Van Nespen, Charlène Bertholet, Annelies Focquaert, and Momoyo Kokubu.
The concerts will take place in the Cathedral Choir, where the organ built by Brussels organ builder Patrick Collon in 1977 is located. Baroque music, including, of course, that of Bach, sounds particularly good on this organ.
Too little known today, this instrument is inspired by the sound of the organs built during Bach’s time by Gottfried Silbermann (1683-1753), which are located in Saxony and Thuringia.
The “Bach ad Meridiem” series is a unique opportunity to hear the works of Bach on an instrument that truly does him justice.
The programme is here:
- Saturday, June 13: Ben Van Nespen
Born in Antwerp, Van Nespen gave his first organ recital at the age of 15, performing the complete cycle “La Nativité du Seigneur” by Olivier Messiaen. He has received numerous awards, played with leading Baroque ensembles, and performed throughout most of Europe.
A soloist on both organ and harpsichord, he performs a wide repertoire spanning the 16th to the 21st centuries and has premiered several works by Flemish composers.
- Saturday, June 20: Charlène Bertholet
Pianist and organist Bertholet performs regularly in both disciplines, both in Belgium and throughout Europe. She participates in international festivals such as Toulouse les Orgues, L’Europe & l’Orgue in Maastricht, the Toul Bach Festival, and the Gothenburg International Organ Academy.
Since 2024, she has been a Young Ambassador for ECHO (European Cities of Historical Organ).
She performs both as a soloist and in ensembles and is a member of early music groups such as Ensemble Myosotis and the Komorebi Consort.
- Saturday, June 27: Annelies Focquaert
Focquaert graduated from organ school in Antwerp in 2001. In 2014, she defended her doctoral thesis in Arts on the life and work of the Belgian organist Jacques-Nicolas Lemmens at AUHA (University of Art and History).
She has been coordinator for ‘Het Orgel in Vlaanderen vzw’ (The Organ in Flanders) and research assistant at the Studiecentrum voor Vlaamse Muziek vzw (Center for Flemish Music). She teaches organ and harpsichord and, since 2015, has been the titular organist of St. George’s Church in Antwerp. Annelies performs in Belgium and many other European countries.
- Saturday, July 4: Momoyo Kokubu
Kokubu was born in Osaka, Japan. After Tokyo, she continued her studies in organ, harpsichord, piano, and early music at the Royal College of Music in London.
She moved to Belgium in 1995. She has won numerous international awards and was a finalist in the International Organ Competitions in Freiberg and Maastricht.
Momoyo is the titular organist of the Loret organ at the Church of Our Lady of Finistère in Brussels, where she has organized the “Organ Mondays” series since 2000. Momoyo has recorded six CDs of works by J.S. Bach and C. Franck, which have received awards for best recordings from the Japanese magazine “Record Geijyutsu.”
Info:
Cathedral of Saints Michael and Gudula – St. Gudula Square – 1000 Brussels
Open from 11.30 am
Reservations: arsincathedrali@
Comments
20 responses to “Brussels to Host Four Highly Anticipated Johann Sebastian Bach Concerts”
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Bach concerts in Brussels? How delightfully avant-garde! I mean, who doesn’t want to relive the 18th century while dodging tourists? 🎹😂
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As if Brussels needed more reasons to show off, now we get to revel in Bach’s genius while sitting in a cathedral that might just make you feel closer to the heavens—if only the organist doesn’t hit a flat note! 🎹👌
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Bach in a cathedral? Groundbreaking! Next, they’ll tell us they discovered fire. 🎹🔥 Let’s hope the organists can keep up with the maestro’s genius without setting off any alarms! 😆
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Oh, because nothing screams “weekend fun” quite like an hour of Bach in a cathedral, right? 🎶 Who needs clubs when you can have a baroque music marathon?
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Bach concerts in a cathedral? How original! I suppose it’s either that or another waffle-eating competition. 🎶🥞
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Bach in a cathedral? How original! Nothing says “cutting-edge entertainment” like a 300-year-old composer filling the pews again. 🎶😏
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Bach concerts in Brussels? How delightfully avant-garde—just what we all needed on a Saturday afternoon, next to a cathedral where the only thing missing is a good cup of coffee and a slice of cake. 🍰🎶
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Oh joy, nothing like a good ol’ Bach concerto to remind us that even in a city of waffles and chocolate, some people still prefer to get their kicks from 18th-century German composers. 🎶🥱
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Bach concerts in a cathedral, how original! Next, they’ll be hosting a “Guten Tag” festival in the middle of Oktoberfest. 🎶🍻
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Fancy a trip down to the Cathedral to hear some Bach? Because nothing says ‘weekend plans’ like an organ concert featuring a composer who’s been dead for centuries. 🎶😏
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Oh, brilliant, just what we needed—more Bach! 🎶 Because who wouldn’t want to spend their Saturday afternoons in a cathedral like it’s the 18th century all over again? 😂
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Bach concerts in a cathedral? How delightfully original! I suppose the locals will be queuing up to hear 300-year-old tunes, because nothing screams modern entertainment quite like a good ol’ organ recital. 🎶😏
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Oh joy, another excuse to sit in a cathedral for 45 minutes while Bach’s finest fills the air. I mean, who wouldn’t want to trade a sunny Saturday for some Baroque vibes? 🎶😏
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Oh, because nothing screams “weekend plans” like a 45-minute organ recital in a cathedral! 🎶 Who needs a raucous pub crawl when you can sip on your coffee while pretending to appreciate Bach, eh? 😏
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Bach concerts in a cathedral? Talk about cultural overload! 😏 I mean, who wouldn’t want to spend their Saturday lunch listening to some dead German guy’s tunes while dodging tourists? 🎶🍷
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Bach in a cathedral? How avant-garde! Next, they’ll be serving croissants at a techno rave. 🎶🥐
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Bach concerts in Brussels, eh? Just what the city was missing – a bit of “baroque” charm to spice up our already thrilling lives. 🎶😂
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Oh, just what Brussels needed, more Bach in a cathedral—because nothing says ‘exciting weekend’ like an hour of 18th-century organ music. 🎹🙄
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Bach in a cathedral? How avant-garde! Next, they’ll be hosting a rave at the Louvre. 🎶🙄
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Bach concerts in a cathedral, how utterly avant-garde! I can already hear the tourists fighting for the best pews – must be quite the spectacle to see them all tuning their phones instead of their ears. 🎶📱
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