Choeur de Chambre de Namur & Guy Van Waas
Biography Choeur de Chambre de Namur & Guy Van Waas
Choeur de Chambre de Namur
Since its formation in 1987, the Choeur de Chambre de Namur (Namur Chamber Choir) has championed the musical heritage of its native region (concerts and recordings of works by Lassus, Rogier, Hayne, Du Mont, Fiocco, Gossec, Grétry) while performing the major works of the choral repertoire (including Handel oratorios, Bach’s Mass, motets and Passions, the Mozart and Fauré Requiems…)
Regularly invited by the major europeans festivals, the Namur Chamber Choir works regularly under prestigious conductors such as Eric Ericson, Marc Minkowski, Jean-Claude Malgoire, Simon Halsey, Sigiswald Kuijken, Jean Tubéry, Federico Maria Sardelli, Patrick Davin, Roy Goodman, Michael Schneider, Philippe Pierlot, Philippe Herreweghe, Peter Philips, Jordi Savall, Christophe Rousset, Eduardo López Banzo, Guy Van Waas, Andreas Scholl…
The choir has made some sixty CD recordings, in particular with Ricercar, well received and largely acclaimed by the press (nominations at the Victoires de la Musique Classique, Choc de Classica, Diapason d’Or, Joker by Crescendo, 4F by Télérama, Editor’s Choice of Gramophone, Cæcilia Price of the belgian press).
The chamber choir was given the Grand Prix of the Charles Cros Academy in 2003, the Liliane Bettencourt price in 2006, awarded in Paris by the Académie Française des Beaux-Arts, and several Octaves de la Musique including in 2007 (classical music category) and in 2012 (best musical show).
In January 2010 the young Argentinian conductor Leonardo García Alarcón took over as artistic director of the ensemble. This prolific and successful collaboration gave amazing concerts and discs : Judas Maccabaeus of Haendel, Vespro has San Marco de Vivaldi, Il Diluvio universale and Nabucco de Falvetti, Motets mass of Giorgi, profane Cantatas of J.S. Bach, Requiem of Mozart, Vespro della Beata Vergine de Monteverdi,…). The Choir of Namur repertory is very broad and extends from ancient music from the Middle Ages to contemporary music.
