Brecht Valckenaers

Brecht Valckenaers is not merely a performer. As a pianist and composer, he combines his love of classical and contemporary repertoire with his own works and improvisations. At Bozar, the musician introduces us to Ex Nihilo, his debute album (Evil Penguin Classics, February 2026) based on Ligeti’s Musica Ricercata. This 20th century masterpiece consists of a series of eleven short pieces in which the composer experiments with different compositional techniques and styles. Brecht Valckenaers alternates the pieces with works by Lachenmann, Cowell, Bartók, Kurtág and Crumb, who approach the piano ‘ex nihilo’, far from all of playing compositional conventions. He also adds his own Rhythmic Studies: five interludes composed especially for this programme, in which he explores, challenges and pushes back his own rhythmic limits.