Annual report 2024: Reflection

Audience mediation

As part of the seasonal theme ‘Vocation’ (2023-2024), artworks by multi-talented artist Wannes Van de Velde were exhibited in the business lounge. Although best known to the general public as a chansonnier, he also trained as a visual artist and left behind an impressive oeuvre. His works graced the season and added an extra dimension to the concert environment.

With the theme ‘About Life’ in the second half of 2024, Lieve Blancquaert provided a curation especially composed for Antwerp Symphony. Her images, encompassing the beginning and end of a human life, offer a moving visual complement to the musical programme.

Focus artists Gabriela Montero, renowned pianist, composer and activist, and Jeremy Denk, pianist and author, shared their insights during an interactive lecture on their multifaceted talents and experiences. For her part, Simone Lamsma, violinist, inspired a new generation of top talents from the Royal Conservatory of Antwerp during a public master class.

In season 2023-2024, Antwerp Symphony proposed two new concepts to introduce audiences to the orchestra and symphonic music in an innovative way. With these initiatives, Antwerp Symphony strengthens its educational and audience-oriented operations, offering an enriching listening experience that increases engagement with symphonic music.

With Spotlight, visitors get the chance to experience the orchestra up close. They take their seats in the auditorium, close to the stage and the musicians, and thus experience the interplay in a unique way. In addition, host Carlo Siau offers a brief introduction to the symphonic work and engages in conversation with the orchestra and conductor about the work performed.

The Double Play concept, with its ideal length for a lunch break, first lets the audience take a seat on stage, in the midst of the musicians, to experience the music from the inside. Then they can listen to the performance again from the comfortable seats of the Queen Elisabeth Hall, just as the composer intended. In less than an hour, visitors thus get a unique insight into a piece of music and its performance. 

In addition, 2024 concertgoers could reflect on the flow of life during a lecture by cardiologist Pim van Lommel, in which he spoke about his insights into consciousness and life questions. An interactive workshop offered participants the chance to put their own life story on paper, which provided a unique combination of personal introspection and creative expression.

The Antwerp Symphony Orchestra's quarterly magazine also offered in-depth reflection on the orchestra, the works played and the personalities on stage. A personal touch by the musicians of the orchestra was added in 2024. In personal columns, they offered readers a unique look behind the scenes of this dynamic arts institution, sharing their experiences and stories from the heart of the orchestra.

Friends experience more

The Friends of Antwerp Symphony enjoy exclusive activities that bring them closer to the orchestra, both in front of and behind the scenes. In 2024, they were offered a varied programme that was both musically and culturally inspiring. The milestone of 1,000 Friends was crossed in the middle of the year 2024.

The Friends were guided through exhibitions at Bozar and KMSKA and violinist Filipe Costa Raposo gave a personal insight into the world of his instrument. They also got an exclusive presentation of the new concert season and free access to the exhibition of works by Wannes Van de Velde in the business lounge.

In November, the Friends were even able to experience a piece of Antwerp Symphony's international tour. During a visit to Munich, they not only attended the orchestra's concert, but were also given an expert tour of the city and its museums, giving the trip an extra cultural dimension.

Press

Mentions

In 2024, the Antwerp Symphony Orchestra was mentioned 240 times in domestic and foreign media - to the best of the orchestra's knowledge.

• Medium
  126x website
  54x newspaper
  51x radio
  7x magazine
  2x television
• National
  143x Flanders
  8x French-speaking Belgium
• International
  25x Netherlands
  64x other countries

Press Quotes

“L’Antwerp Symphony Orchestra livre une prestation magistrale tant dans ses tutti que dans ses individualités. On sent les musiciens en osmose totale avec leur chef d’un soir.”

04.02.2024 - Crescendo Magazine

“The best attraction is the 39-minute selection from Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet score, dispatched with impressive loving care, especially in the tenderly emotional extracts describing the young Juliet and the couple's last farewell." 

14.05.2024 - BBC Music Magazine

“Das Antwerp Symphony Orchestra präsentierte sich als technisch hervorragender Klangkörper mit kompaktem, klarem Klang und brillanten Einzelleistungen bei den Bläsern"

19.11.2024 - Kulturzeitschrift

“… mit feiner Streicherkultur und einem schwebenden Orchesterklang.”
“Straff und energetisch”

19.11.2024 - Neue Vorarlberger Tageszeitung

Recordings & broadcasts