Aquarius' Dream

On Saturday 18 March 2017, the Royal Flemish Philharmonic will give the first performance of Wim Henderickx's Symphony No 2 (Aquarius' Dream) at the new Queen Elisabeth Hall in Antwerp. This work will be the first such performance for this orchestra in the renovated hall.

Wim Henderickx was commissioned to compose Symphony No 2 by the Royal Flemish Philharmonic in 2016, where he has been artist in residence since 2013. The soprano Claron McFadden will be the soloist and the electronics will act as both a complement and a counterpart to the orchestra.

With this second symphony, just as in his Symphony No 1, Wim Henderickx's aim is to reconcile the vast symphonic form of the past with a contemporary interpretation of it. Thanks to the staging, the spatial arrangement of the orchestra and the electronics, the audience will be immersed in a broad-based sensory experience of sound, time and space. Co-producer Muziektheater Transparant engaged Luigi De Angelis and Sergio Policicchio for the visual concept and the lighting design, which will also be an important part of the performance and will be integrated into the score.

Luigi De Angelis and Sergio Policicchio commented: 'Our aim is to make the natural relationship between light and music perceived as an intimate pulse that reverberates into this wonderful new venue, writing the light as if it was a horizontal notation, intertwined with the musical performance, taking inspiration from its geometries and shapes and imagining each source of light as if it was a musical instrument.'

Aquarius' Dream consists of three main parts, O Magnum Mysterium, Pulses from the Earth and Aquarius' Dream, flanked by two interludes Dream 1 and Dream 2. The structure is also framed by a prologue and an epilogue which consists entirely of electronic music.

Wim Henderickx says of the work: 'Symphony No 2 is about the elusive and the supernatural. Aquarius' Dream alludes to hope and to man's focus on the future. This sweeping symphony is inspired by the celestial bodies and also alludes to the human relationship with the divine, the cosmos and beyond. it consists of three large sections, in between each of which is an interlude inspired by a dream. The title of this work is also the title of the third and final part, Aquarius' Dream.

'Despite the capacity of two thousand seats, the new Queen Elisabeth Hall demonstrates the ability of an intimate concert experience for the listener. The wonderful and pure acoustics of this magnificent venue provide the possibility for me as a composer to create an overall concept. My second symphony Aquarius' Dream will appeal to multiple senses; it will be a thrilling experience of sound, space and light.'

The first performance of this symphony will be preceded by the overture of Das Rheingold by Wagner, and La Mer by Claude Debussy.

Joost Maegerman, General Manager of the Royal Flemish Philharmonic said: 'We are delighted to be able to perform Wim Henderickx's Second Symphony in our brand new Queen Elisabeth Hall. Our association with Wim Henderickx as Artist in Residence has taken the Royal Flemish Philharmonic on a wonderful journey since 2013, with audiences and critics equally enthusiastic about his compositions, and of our concerts and recordings of his work. It will be a fantastic experience to create Wim Henderickx's new symphony in the unparalleled acoustics of this fantastic new venue.'

Wim Henderickx is a Flemish composer, based in Antwerp. He studied composition and percussion at the Royal Conservatoire in Antwerp and sonology at Ircam in Paris and at the Conservatoire of Music in The Hague. Many of his works are influenced by oriental music and philosophy. Following a journey around India and Nepal he composed the Tantric Cycle. He wrote works for opera, music theatre, orchestra, choirs, wind band and chamber music. Electronics are often an important feature in his music. He has been composer in residence at Muziektheater Transparant since 1996, and in 2013 he joined the Royal Flemish Philharmonic (deFilharmonie) as artist in residence. The three Ragas were recorded in 1999 with the Royal Flemish Philharmonic and conductor Grant Llewellyn. The CD Tejas & other orchestral works was released by the same orchestra in 2011 and was conducted by Martyn Brabbins. The full CDs Disappearing in Light (2011) and Triptych (2015) were developed in collaboration with the HERMESensemble. The latest double CD was released by the Royal Flemish Philharmonic in 2016, containing Symphony No 1, Groove! and the solo + orchestral version of Empty Mind I.

Wim Henderickx's scores are published by Norsk Musikforlag in Oslo. Henderickx is professor of composition at the Royal Conservatoire in Antwerp and at the Conservatoire in Amsterdam. He is also the main coach on the annual SoundMine Summer Composition Course for young composers, which is organised by Musica. He received numerous awards, such as the Prize for Contemporary Music Flanders-Québec in 1993. In 2006 he was nominated for the Flanders Culture Prizes and in 2011 he received the Lifetime Achievement Award in Lier (BE), his birthplace. He was appointed as a member of the Royal Flemish Academy of Belgium (KVAB) for Science and the Arts in 2015.

Information: www.wimhenderickx.com

Posted: 20 December 2016

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