At home in Antwerp & Flanders ambassador

At home in Antwerp

We combine our residence in the Queen Elisabeth Hall with events in locations across Antwerp, our home city. Each season, we organise concerts in external venues, e.g. deSingel, De Roma and the Church of St Charles Borromeo. These are all unique Antwerp venues, and each has something special to offer our audiences.   

At Home in Flanders / Flanders ambassador

The Antwerp Symphony Orchestra is Flanders’ leading symphony orchestra. Our base in the Queen Elisabeth Hall allows us to reach large parts of Flanders, but we also regularly perform in other Belgian provinces. Every season features guest performances in Hasselt, the Concertgebouw in Bruges and Muziekcentrum De Bijloke in Ghent. We also perform in Bozar in Brussels.

For us, having a broad reach is not just about physical distance – we are also working hard to break down other barriers. Knowing that it is not easy for everyone to come to us, we take classical music to them. Every year, we organise a free open-air festival on Sint-Jansplein square, and our opMaatorkest project also gives primary school children in schools across Antwerp the chance to learn a musical instrument in class.

The Antwerp Symphony Orchestra is a cultural ambassador for Flanders. International tours raise the orchestra’s profile while also boosting the image of Flanders and Antwerp abroad. Concerts in the Netherlands and Germany are therefore a regular part of our schedule. We also go on annual tours further afield.

We are also conscious of our responsibility to preserve and promote Flanders’ musical heritage, as we are a recognised cultural institution with official Flemish Community status. The Antwerp Symphony Orchestra therefore regularly performs works by traditional and contemporary Flemish masters to broad audiences. We also aim to provide leadership in the arts sector. Our efforts include an initiative adopting productivity software to optimise the operational side of managing a cultural institution as well as partnership projects with smaller players in the creative industries, allowing the exchange of best practice in management, accounting and engagement.

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