Ronald Van Spaendonck

Ronald Van Spaendonck is teacher at the Brussels and Mons (Arts2) Royal Conservatories and at the famous "Ecole Normale de Musique" in Paris (Alfred Cortot). He is also teacher "Honoris Causa" at the Guangzhou Conservatory (China). He is endorser for the "Buffet Crampon group" and "Artist" for the "Vandoren" mouthpieces, reeds and ligatures. Since 2016, Ronald Van Spaendonck is artistic director at the Lasne Festival. Ronald Van Spaendonck is considered as one of the best clarinettists of his generation. In September 2000, he was selected as a BBC New Generation Artist and was invited to perform with the BBC Scottish Symphony, BBC Philharmonic Orchestra and the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, the latter with whom he made his debut at the BBC PROMS in July 2002. He gives both recitals and chamber music concerts at the Wigmore Hall and plays very often at the prestigious Edinburgh festival. Ronald Van Spaendonck has performed in the greatest concert halls with the best orchestras (Liège Philharmonic Orchestra, Het Brabants Orkest, Belgian National Orchestra, Fench National Orchestra, Orquestra Clássica da Porto, Oulu Orchestra  Finland, Symphonic Orchestra of Zürich, Luxembourg Philharmonic Orchestra, das Deutsches Symphonie Orchester Berlin, Simon Bolivar Orchestra Venezuela and Sao Paulo Orchestra Brazil). In 2002, he was invited to perform at the Suntory Hall in Tokyo as part of the "JAL Classic Special New Artist Series". He is a founding member of “Ensemble Kheops” with cellist Marie Hallynck and pianist Muhiddin Dürrüoglu. His other chamber music partners include strings quartets like Skampa, Ysaye, Belcea, Ebène, Szymanowski, Aviv, Modigliani and the Royal string quartet, the pianists Alexandre Tharaud, Johan Schmidt and Frank Braley, the violinists Gidon Kremer, Renaud Capuçon, Graf Mourja, Lisa Batiashvili and Ning Kam, the violists Lise Berthaud, Laurence Power and Antoine Tamestit, the cellists Mischa Maisky, Marc Coppey, Peter Whispelway, Alban Gerhardt and Jean-Guihen Queyras, the flautists Emmanuel Pahud, Marc Grauwels, Gaby Van Riet, Aldo Baerten and many more. Ronald has received numerous international awards as follows: European First Prize at the International TROMP competition, First Prize at the Dos Hermanas International Competition and First Prize at the A.Gi. Mus Wind Instruments International Competition in Rome. He is also Laureat "Juventus" in 1991 and "Rising Star" in 1998, which gave him the opportunity to play in the world's greatest concert halls. In 2014 he received the "Fuga Price" and in 2018, the Heritage Commission of the Royal Conservatory of Brussels awarded him the DARCHE FRERES prize for a musician whose entire life is devoted with honor and devotion to the service of musical art. Ronald Van Spaendonck studied the clarinet with Léon Jacot, Walter Boeykens, Anthony Pay (London) and Karl Leister (Berlin). He recorded extensively (Harmonia Mundi, Naxos, Supraphon, Fuga Libera...) to great unanimous critical acclaim (Choc du "Monde de la musique", 10 de "répertoire", ffff de "Télérama", "Diapason d'or", "Gramophone" Choice, joker de "crescendo"...).