‘Wim Mertens’

It is impossible to sum up Wim Mertens's accomplishments in just a few lines. Born in 1953, this Belgian composer, pianist, musicologist, guitarist and singer has developed into an outstanding musician over the past few decades. He is still performing his music in packed-out concert halls all over Europe, North and Central America, Japan and Russia.

It was in 1980 that Mertens began composing short accessible songs (‘Lieder’) as well as more complex cycles. For the performance of his work, he likes to take account of the circumstances in which it is played. Solo or with a small ensemble, chamber orchestra, symphony orchestra or special formats (12 piccolos, 10 bass trombones or 13 clarinets), he performs his melodious and often repetitive scores as part of a lively dialogue with his audience.

In March 2015 Wim Mertens released the album Charaktersketch, as the first part of the Cran aux Oeufs trilogy, where he questions contemporary Europe. The second part What are we, locks, to do? appeared on 4 March 2016. The third part Dust of Truths will be premiered in BOZAR on 21 October.