Bernard Foccroulle returns to Belgium as an associate artist of Les Festivals de Wallonie! Born in Liège in 1953, this musician has over the years placed his many talents at the service of the most prestigious cultural and musical institutions in Belgium: the Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie, the Royal Conservatories of Liège and Brussels, etc. Bernard Foccroulle first came to public attention as an organist, embarking from the mid 1970s on an international career performing works ranging from the Renaissance to the contemporary period, with dozens of world premieres for composers such as Philippe Boesmans, Brian Ferneyhough, Jonathan Harvey and Pascal Dusapin! He also devoted himself to German baroque music alongside the Ricercar Consort. His discography as a soloist comprises more than 40 CD recordings, including the complete works for organ by J. S. Bach, Weckmann and Buxtehude, performed on the finest preserved historical instruments. For a few years now he has engaged in a growing number of multidisciplinary collaborations, marrying the organ with dance, as in the choreographies of Jan Fabre and Salvador Sanchis, or the organ with video, contrasting languages and forms. This approach maximizes the pleasure of listening and facilitates the transmission of less-well-known repertoires to the attention of the general public. It undoubtedly illustrates his belief in rendering culture accessible to all. Indeed, in 1993 already Bernard Foccroulle founded the organization Culture et Démocratie, which works towards the greater participation of citizens in cultural life, and created the European network RESEO, dedicated to raising the public profile of opera and dance. A visionary artist, writer, composer, musician and teacher, Bernard Foccroulle has agreed to act as an ambassador for the opening message of Les Festivals de Wallonie and will honour our stages with his presence at the organ, at the harpsichord, as an orator or by means of certain pages especially written for his long-standing musical colleagues and friends, the Ricercar Consort and In Alto.

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