François Glorieux (27 August 1932 – 22 September 2023) was a Belgian pianist, conductor, composer, musicologist, and academic teacher who performed internationally. As a pianist, he received the

Harriet Cohen International Music Award The Harriet Cohen International Music Award was founded in 1951 by Sir Arnold Bax and others, in honour of the British pianist Harriet Cohen. It is to be distinguished from the Harriet Cohen Bach Prize, established in 1994, for the most deser ...

in 1967, toured in Germany and Austria with conductor

André Cluytens Augustin Zulma Alphonse "André" Cluytens (, ; 26 March 19053 June 1967)Baeck E. ''André Cluytens: Itinéraire d’un chef d’orchestre.'' Editions Mardaga, Wavre, 2009. was a Belgian-born French conducting, conductor who was active in the conce ...

, and later focused on improvisation. He conducted orchestras such as the

BBC Radio Orchestra The BBC Radio Orchestra was a broadcasting orchestra based in London, maintained by the British Broadcasting Corporation from 1964 until 1991. The BBC Radio Orchestra was formed in 1964 as a large, flexible studio orchestra on the Nelson Riddle ...

, bands such as

Stan Kenton Stanley Newcomb Kenton (December 15, 1911 – August 25, 1979) was an American popular music and jazz artist. As a pianist, composer, arranger and band leader, he led an innovative and influential jazz orchestra for almost four decades. Though ...

's, and four ensembles that he founded. As a composer, he wrote music for his groups, and arrangements for

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Michael Jackson, one of the most culturally significan ...

, among others. He taught as director of the International Piano Master Class in Antwerp from 1972, and internationally, both as a guest at universities and in school concerts.

Life and career

Glorieux was born in

Kortrijk Kortrijk ( , ; or ''Kortrik''; ), sometimes known in English as Courtrai or Courtray ( ), is a Belgian City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region, Flemish Provinces of Belgium, province of We ...

on 27 August 1932. He showed early talent for music, composing already in his youth. He began studies at the

Royal Conservatory of Ghent The Royal Conservatory of Ghent () is a historic conservatory and a royally chartered musical institution in Ghent, Belgium. It is now a part of the University College Ghent. History The Royal Conservatory of Ghent is a royally chartered music ...

at age 17, piano with Marcel Gazelle and composition with George Lonque. Glorieux led nearly 6000 recitals and concerts in around 60 countries. He toured Germany and Austria as a pianist with

conducting. Glorieux conducted the

Brussels Philharmonic Orchestra The Brussels Philharmonic Orchestra (BPhO) is a Belgian orchestra based in Brussels that was established in 2002 by Antonio Vilardi, then artistic director of the Théâtre Saint-Michel, Clare Roberts, a French horn player, and Roger Bausier, t ...

, the Locke Brass Consort and

in the UK, the

band in the US, the Kyiv Chamber Orchestra, and the Mainzer Kammerorchester, among others. He collaborated with the

Ballet of the 20th Century Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...

Maurice Béjart Maurice Béjart (; 1 January 1927 – 22 November 2007) was a French dancer, choreographer and Theatre director, opera director who ran the Béjart Ballet Lausanne in Switzerland. He developed a popular expressionistic form of modern ballet, tac ...

, and also worked with the

Royal Ballet of Flanders The Royal Ballet of Flanders is a dance company based in Antwerp, Belgium, specializing in classical, neoclassical and contemporary ballet. In its current incarnation, the company was established in 1969. It tours internationally. History The ...

Nederlands Dans Theater Nederlands Dans Theater (NDT; literal translation Netherlands Dance Theatre) is a Dutch contemporary dance dance company, company. NDT is headquartered at the ''Amare'' building in The Hague. NDT also performs at other venues in the Netherlands ...

in The Hague, and the

Dutch National Ballet The Dutch National Ballet ( Dutch: Het Nationale Ballet) is the official and largest ballet company in the Netherlands. Its forerunners were Ballet Der Lage Landen, Ballet of the Nederlandse Opera, Amsterdam Ballet, and Netherlands Ballet (Nederl ...

in Amsterdam, inspired by choreographers

Valery Panov Valery Matveevich Panov (; 12 March 1938 – 3 June 2025) was a Soviet dancer and choreographer. Born and raised in the Soviet Union, he trained in Leningrad and performed with the Kirov from 1964 to 1972. He and his second wife Galina, who was ...

, André Leclair, John Koning, Ava Corelli and Monette Loza. He founded four different ensembles: Instrumentarium, Panoramic Trio, Brass and Percussion Orchestra, and Revivat Scaldis Chamber Orchestra. As a composer, Glorieux was inspired by

Debussy Achille Claude Debussy (; 22 August 1862 – 25 March 1918) was a French composer. He is sometimes seen as the first Impressionism in music, Impressionist composer, although he vigorously rejected the term. He was among the most influe ...

and

Ravel Joseph Maurice Ravel (7 March 1875 – 28 December 1937) was a French composer, pianist and conductor. He is often associated with Impressionism in music, Impressionism along with his elder contemporary Claude Debussy, although both composer ...

, jazz, blues and Latin-American rhythms. He improvised in free forms, with sometimes sudden shifts in dynamics, tempo and rhythm, with "wit, refinement and cosmopolitan sophistication". He created symphonic arrangements at the request of

. His discography includes 175 CDs and LPs. Glorieux was director of the International Piano Master Class in Antwerp from 1972. He was honorary professor of

chamber music Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of Musical instrument, instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a Great chamber, palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music ...

at the Ghent Conservatory, honorary professor at the Kortrijk Conservatory, and guest professor at

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

. He would give a number of school concerts in Belgium, Germany, the Americas and Japan. His works were published by United Music & Media Publishers and HAFABRA Music. Glorieux died on 22 September 2023, at age 91.

Compositions

Compositions by Glorieux include: * Concerto for euphonium and band * ''London Proms'', overture * ''November'', for trombone and band * ''Orgia'' * ''Régis Glorieux'', march * ''Sketches'', for trombone and band * ''Summer Meeting 77''

Awards

(1967) * Lieven Gevaert Prize (1985) * Honorary Citizen of

(2002) * Give soul to Europe, award from the European Commission (2012) * Knight of the

Order of Leopold II The Order of Leopold II is an order of Belgium and is named in honor of King Leopold II. The decoration was established on 24 August 1900 by Leopold II as Sovereign of the Congo Free State and was in 1908, upon Congo being handed over to Belgiu ...

(2015)

References

External links

* * *
Interview of Francois Glorieux – classical pianist/composer talks of MJ
mjjcommunity.com 2021 {{DEFAULTSORT:Glorieux, Francois 1932 births 2023 deaths Belgian classical pianists 20th-century Belgian pianists 21st-century Belgian pianists Belgian conductors (music) Belgian music educators Belgian musicologists Concert band composers Knights of the Order of Leopold II People from Kortrijk