In 1958, Lola Bobesco created “Les Solistes de Bruxelles” [Brussels Soloists], renamed “Ensemble d’archets Eugène Ysaÿe” [Eugène Ysaÿe String Ensemble], now known as the Orchestre Royal de Chambre de Wallonie [Royal Chamber Orchestra of Wallonia].
The orchestra has worked together regularly with the biggest names in music on the most important international stages : José Van Dam, Mstislav Rostropovitch, Aldo Ciccolini, Mischa Maïski, Maurice André, Arthur Grumiaux, Philippe Hirschhorn, Georges Octors, Jean-Pierre Wallez, Gidon Kremer, Louis Lortie, Jian Wang, Ivry Gitlis, Antoine Tamestit, Henri Demarquette, Richard Galliano, the Modigliani Quartet, Jean- Philippe Collard, Gérard Caussé, Renaud and Gautier Capuçon, Augustin Dumay, Maria João Pires ; in Paris, Beijing, Abu Dhabi, Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Bucharest, Bayreuth, Munich, Luxembourg, Zurich, Geneva, Saint Petersburg, Brussels, etc.
In 2020, Vahan Mardirossian succeeded music director Frank Braley (2014-2019). The Royal Chamber Orchestra of Wallonia performs regularly in Belgium with Jean-François Chamberlan, its principal violinist. The orchestra is a regular partner of the Queen Elisabeth Competition, the Queen Elisabeth College of Music, Bozar [Brussels Centre for Fine Arts], Flagey, and many Belgian music festivals, as well as the Queen Paola Foundation.
In Mons, its city of residence, with Mars (Mons Arts de la Scène) [Mons Performing Arts], and the support of the City of Mons, the orchestra gives concerts with a diversified and original repertoire. Frank Braley schedules a season with internationally renowned artists : Michel Portal, Paul Meyer, Eliane Reyes, Ronald Van Spaendonck, Augustin Dumay, Gérard Caussé, Steve Houben, Aurélien Pascal, Les Violons du Roy, Sylvain Cremers, Jean-Pierre Wallez, Richard Galliano, Jean-Paul Dessy, l’Orchestre Philharmonique de Liège, Renaud Capuçon, le Quatuor Modigliani, Jean-Philippe Collard, Anne Quéffelec, Miguel da Silva, Sergio Alapont, Barnabás Kelemen, Mathieu Herzog, Vahan Mardirossian, Henri Demarquette.
www.orcw.be