Kazushi Ono has been announced as the new Music Director of Brussels Philharmonic, succeeding Stéphane Denève in September 2022. The appointment marks a return to the city where Ono was Music Director of La Monnaie between 2002 and 2008. This weekend he conducts the orchestra in two concerts of Schubert, Berg and Elgar, in Brussels and Brugge.
Ono has a home in Brussels, as well as in Tokyo, where he has been Music Director of Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra since 2013 and Artistic Director of New National Theatre Tokyo since 2018. In Europe he has also served as Music Director of Barcelona Symphony Orchestra since 2014, with his tenure closing this year.
Ono said of the appointment: ‘I am thrilled to accept the position of Music Director of the Brussels Philharmonic. Our first encounter early this year was a real pleasure. I could feel that we have chemistry and that we share the same musical values. I am impressed by the players’ sound, sensibility, flexibility and passion, and I am certain of our potential to achieve something meaningful together. In my role as Music Director I will try to construct a broad base in my programming, with repertoire ranging from Classical through to the music of today. As we develop our relationship, we will open many doors and create a different world inside each one.’
Gunther Broucke, manager of Brussels Philharmonic, said: ‘After a very intense and successful collaboration with Maestro Denève, I am very much looking forward to a new step toward the future of the Brussels Philharmonic under the baton of Kazushi Ono. Most of all, it is the clear and ambitious plans for the repertoire that have captivated my imagination. More about this in the spring!’