Today Belgian composer, concert pianist and conductor François Glorieux gets to blow out 90 candles. The native of Kortrijk is known for his musical versatility. From jazz to classical and from pop to world music, Glorieux is at home in many genres. As a composer he composed a beautiful oeuvre of more than 300 works in total. For his contribution to the Belgian musical landscape Glorieux received the title of knight.
François Glorieux (°1932) began his musical journey at a young age. As a small boy he quickly found his way to the piano. He improvised on the instrument and wrote his first compositions. At the age of seventeen Glorieux left his birthplace Kortrijk and moved to Gent to continue his music studies at the Conservatory. There he took piano lessons with Marcel Gazelle and composition lessons with George Lonque.
Both on national and international stages Glorieux made a name for himself as a concert pianist. He enjoyed the support of, among others, Belgian conductor André Cluytens as well as the respect of other pianists such as Arthur Rubinstein and Yves Nat.
Glorieux' compositional style was strongly influenced by his chance meeting with American big band pioneer Stan Kenton. After their meeting Glorieux was fascinated by the warm sound of brass instruments. As a concert pianist he traveled the world and came into contact with various musical cultures. Latin American and Caribbean music particularly captured his interest. Furthermore Glorieux studied works by, among others, Paul Hindemith, Igor Stravinsky and Ralph Vaughan Williams. Glorieux assimilated all these influences into what translated as his characteristic rich musical language.
Various of his works are therefore characterized by non-classical styles. For example, Manhattan Op. 20 (1974) shows influences of jazz, Hello Mister Joplin (1982) incorporates ragtime elements and The Legend of Bruce Lee (1982) makes use of Chinese instruments.
But with all these different influences Glorieux does not forget his Belgian background. For instance, he used instruments such as the vibraphone and glockenspiel to give voice to the Belgian coast in The Ostend Fisherman Wharf by Night (1988). Also his most recent work Antwerp Hymn (2021) for string ensemble was an ode to the city where he has been based since 1965. The work premiered during Klassiek aan de Schelde and was performed by Great Globe Orchestra under the direction of Robert Groslot.
Throughout his career Glorieux worked on a regular basis with dance companies and choreographers. Among others the Koninklijk Ballet van Vlaanderen (now Opera Ballet Vlaanderen), the Nederlands Danstheater in Den Haag and the Nationaal Ballet in Amsterdam are some of the production houses with which Glorieux collaborated. His first collaboration was the expressionistic Mouvements – Contrastes pour piano, cuivres et percussion (1962) together with the Ballet van de XXste Eeuw.
Glorieux also worked with pop and jazz artists. His most well-known collaboration was perhaps the one with Michael Jackson. In 1989 Glorieux went to Los Angeles to record symphonic versions of MJ hits together with Jackson. One of Glorieux' most successful recordings was his album François Glorieux plays the Beatles on which he improvised on well-known Beatles tunes. With the LP he achieved gold status in Japan.
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Glorieux is also committed to inspiring younger generations to embrace different genres of music. Since 1977 he has been a chamber music teacher at the Koninklijk Conservatorium van Gent. Furthermore Glorieux gave school concerts in Europe, America and Japan, was a guest professor at Yale University for a short period and provided numerous masterclasses.
François Glorieux's contributions to classical music have been repeatedly recognized and rewarded. He is an honorary citizen of Kortrijk, Zoersel and Stabroek. In 2012 he received the prize "Give Soul to Europe" awarded by the European Commission. As a final touch he was made a knight in the Order of Leopold II in 2015.
François, our heartfelt congratulations on behalf of all KC-ers!