The Royal Conservatoire Antwerp () is a conservatory of music, dance and drama in

Antwerp Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...

, Belgium. It was founded in 1898 as the Royal Flemish Conservatoire by the

Flemish Flemish may refer to: * Flemish, adjective for Flanders, Belgium * Flemish region, one of the three regions of Belgium *Flemish Community, one of the three constitutionally defined language communities of Belgium * Flemish dialects, a Dutch dialec ...

composer

Peter Benoit Peter Benoit (17 August 18348 March 1901) was a Flemish people, Flemish composer of Belgian nationality. Biography Petrus Leonardus Leopoldus Benoit was born in Harelbeke, Flanders, Belgium in 1834. He was taught music at an early age by his fa ...

. The legislation on university colleges in Flanders in 1995 led to a merger under the wings of the newly formed Antwerp University College (Hogeschool Antwerpen) with the drama programme of the previous autonomous Studio

Herman Teirlinck Herman Louis Cesar Teirlinck (Molenbeek-Saint-Jean, 24 February 1879 – Beersel-Lot, 4 February 1967) was a Belgian writer. He was the fifth child and only son of Isidoor Teirlinck and Oda van Nieuwenhove, who were both teachers in Brussels. As ...

and the dance programme of the Higher Institute for Dance Education. In 2008, the university college assumed the name Artesis. Since October 2013, the Royal Conservatoire Antwerp is a School of Arts of the

Artesis Plantijn University College of Antwerp AP University of Applied Sciences and Arts Antwerp , founded in 2012, is a non-profit public higher education institution located in the city of Antwerp and created as a merger between Artesis Hogeschool Antwerpen and Plantijn Hogeschool /su ...

, a merger between the Artesis University College Antwerp and the Plantijn University College. The Royal Conservatoire has a music programme (bachelor's and master's in classical music and jazz), a drama programme (bachelor's and master's), a dance programme (bachelor's and master's) and a teaching qualification programme.

History

In 1843 the Antwerp voice teachers Cornelius Schermers (1799–1870) and Frans Willem Aerts (1804–1864), composer and kapellmeister of the Antwerp Cathedral of Our Lady Jozef Bessems (1809–1892) and flute player J. Van den Bogaert (1802–1851) worked out a plan to set up a music school in Antwerp. They received the approval of the city council and on 15 March 1844 the ''Ecole spéciale de musique de la Ville d'Anvers'' was founded. Its classrooms were located in the center of Antwerp in a public property in the Kaasstraat near the Suikerrui. In 1859 they had to expand and they found additional classrooms in the Blindestraat. Until then, the music school was a private initiative, albeit with subsidies from the city. In 1859 the city took over the administration and the school was promoted to ''Municipal Music School of Antwerp'' (Dutch: ''Stedelijke muziekschool van Antwerpen'', French: ''Ecole de Musique d'Anvers''). When

was asked to become director in 1867, he made it a condition that it would be a complete Flemish music school. This was accepted by the city council and the name of the school now was monolingual ''Antwerpsche Vlaamsche Muziekschool''. Benoit also wanted space for a theater and a concert hall. In 1885–86 the school received its own building at the Sint Jacobsmarkt. Benoit made every possible effort to have the music school recognized as a Conservatory. In 1895, the City, the county and the state made an agreement whereby the state took over the music school in Antwerp to transform into a conservatory. Hair Thus, in

Royal Decree A decree is a legal proclamation, usually issued by a head of state, judge, royal figure, or other relevant authorities, according to certain procedures. These procedures are usually defined by the constitution, Legislative laws, or customary l ...

of 15 June 1898, the'' Antwerpsche Vlaamsche Muziekschool'' was elevated to ''Royal Conservatory Antwerp''. In this way the Antwerp Conservatory became the first institution of higher education in Belgium with Dutch as the official language. Its first director was Peter Benoit with

Edward Keurvels Edward is an English male name. It is derived from the Anglo-Saxon name ''Ēadweard'', composed of the elements '' ēad'' "wealth, fortunate; prosperous" and '' weard'' "guardian, protector”. History The name Edward was very popular in Anglo-Sa ...

as his secretary. The new conservatory complex would only come about in 1968 at the International Arts Campus deSingel.

Management

Directors of the Conservatoire: * 1867–1901 –

* 1901–1912 –

Jan Blockx Jan Blockx (25 January 1851 – 26 May 1912) was a Belgian composer, pianist and teacher. He was a leader of the Flemish nationalist school in music. Biography Born in Antwerp, Blockx studied the piano with Frans Aerts, the organ with Joseph ...

* 1912–1924 – Emile Wambach **1914–1919 – Nicolaas Jan Cuperus, during the war temporarily replaced by

Paul Gilson Paul Gilson (Brussels, 15 June 1865 – Brussels, 3 April 1942) was a Belgian musician and composer. Biography Paul Gilson was born in Brussels. In 1866, his family moved to Ruisbroek in the Belgian province of Brabant. There he studied th ...

from August to November 1918 * 1924–1933 –

Lodewijk Mortelmans miniatuur Lodewijk Mortelmans (5 February 1868, Antwerp – 24 June 1952, Antwerp) was a Belgian composer and conductor of Flemish ancestry. Sometimes called ''de Vlaamse Brahms'' ("the Flemish Brahms"), Mortelmans composed in a number of forms, ...

* 1933–1941 –

Flor Alpaerts Flor Alpaerts (Antwerp, 12 September 1876 – Antwerp, 5 October 1954) was a Belgian conductor, pedagogue and composer. He graduated from the ''Vlaamse Muziekschool'' in 1901. He was artistic director of the Peter Benoit Foundation, co-directo ...

* 1942–1944 –

Jef Van Hoof Jef van Hoof (8 May 1886 – 24 April 1959) was a Flemish composer and conductor. Biography Born on 8 May 1866, in Antwerp, van Hoof was a pupil of Paul Gilson and was heavily influenced by the works of Peter Benoit. His dedication to the Fle ...

* 1944–1952 –

Lodewijk De Vocht Lodewijk () is the Dutch language, Dutch name for Louis (given name), Louis. In specific it may refer to: Given name Literature * Lo Hartog van Banda, Lodewijk Hartog van Banda (1916–2006), Dutch comic strip writer * Lodewijk Paul Aalbrecht B ...

* 1952–1968 –

Flor Peeters Franciscus Florentinus Peeters, Baron Peeters (4 July 1903 – 4 July 1986) was a Belgian composer, organist and academic teacher. He was director of the Conservatorium in Antwerp, Belgium, and organist at Mechelen Cathedral from 1923 to his dea ...

* 1968–1980 – Eugène Traey * 1980–1991 – Kamiel Cooremans * 1991–1995 – Michaël Scheck Department heads: After accommodating the Conservatoire in the Artesis University of Applied Sciences, the management was entrusted to the head of the department: * 1995–1997 – Michaël Scheck * 1997–2001 – Herman Mariën * 2001–2013 – Pascale de Groote Heads School of Arts: * 2013–2016 – Freddy Marien * 2017–present – Stefaan De Ruyck

Notable alumni

Charles M. Courboin Charles Marie Courboin (1884–1973) was a Belgian–American organ virtuoso who enjoyed popularity during the 1920s. During this time he was engaged by department store magnate Rodman Wanamaker to oversee the second enlargement of the Wanamake ...

Jet Naessens Jet Violet Naessens (4 September 1915 – 25 June 2010) was a Belgian actress and director known for her work on stage and in Flemish cinema. She is most known for the film ''Driekoningenavond'' (1972). Biography Naessens was born in Brecon, ...

References

External links

Royal Conservatoire Antwerp
{{authority control Music schools in Belgium Education in Antwerp Organisations based in Belgium with royal patronage