Wikipedia
deFilharmonie (known also as the Koninklijke Filharmonie van Vlaanderen, English translation as the Royal Flemish Philharmonic) is a Belgian symphony orchestra, with its principal home base in Antwerp. Founded by Gaston Ariën, Jef Maes, J.A. Zwijsen and Steven Candael in 1956 as the Antwerpse Philharmonie (Antwerp Philharmonic), it operates under the auspices of the government of Flanders. The orchestra performs in several venues around Belgium:
- Antwerp: Queen Elisabeth Hall, deSingel, De Roma, Our Lady’s Cathedral
- Brussels: Paleis voor Schone Kunsten (Centre for Fine Arts)
- Bruges: Concertgebouw Bruges
- Ghent: De Bijloke Muziekcentrum
The current managing director (algemeen directeur) of deFilharmonie is Joost Maegerman.
Philippe Herreweghe was chief conductor (chef-dirigent) of deFilharmonie from 1998 to 2002, and now holds the title of principal conductor (Hoofddirigent) with deFilharmonie. Daniele Callegari was chief conductor from 2002 to 2008, followed by Jaap van Zweden. In April 2010, the orchestra announced the appointment of Edo de Waart as chief conductor, with an initial contract of 5 years. Although the original press release indicated the start of de Waart's tenure as 2012, de Waart formally took up the chief conductorship of the orchestra in 2011. In November 2014, deFilharmonie announced the scheduled conclusion of de Waart's tenure as chief conductor after the 2015-2016 season.
The orchestra has recorded on the A-list, Belgian Boutique, Hyperion, Naïve and Phi labels.