Oxalys, Johannes Witt , Katrien Baerts, Thomas Bauer, Lise Bruyneel

Founded in 1993 by students at the Brussels Conservatory, Oxalys has developed into a chamber music ensemble with a unique profile and a strong international reputation. The original line-up of string quintet, flute, clarinet and harp often blossoms into a larger ensemble that can perform a wide range of works and create unusual projects. Oxalys takes its basic repertoire from the Belle Epoque (1870-1930) and looks backwards as well as forwards from that time. 

Johannes Witt is a multi-faceted conductor with a rapidly growing international presence. A trained percussionist, he studied orchestral conducting in Cologne and St. Petersburg. He regularly appears at renowned opera houses across Europe, conducting a versatile range of works from classical masterpieces to contemporary compositions. Witt is permanent conductor of the Aalto Theater Essen and the Oper Wuppertal, and he also led the German premieres of Salvatore Sciarrino’s Il canto s’attrista, perché? And Christan Jost’s Heart Sutra.

Belgian soprano Katrien Baerts has been acclaimed for her powerful and sensual voice, as well as her profound and heartfelt interpretations. On the operatic stage, Baerts most recently made her debut with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra as Beatrice in Andriessen’s The City of Dis, which shows her passion for contemporary repertoire. Baerts is also an active and avid chamber musician, as demonstrated in her performances of Kurtág’s Kafka-Fragmente alongside violinist Wibert Aerts, featuring striking video imagery by Lise Bruyneel.

Thomas Bauer is a fascinating vocal artist of our time, celebrated for the baritonal beauty of sound and precise diction of his expressive voice. As a concert singer, Bauer recently made guest appearances at the Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal with Schönberg's Gurrelieder and at the Warsaw National Philharmonic with Mahler's Das Lied von der Erde. He has sung several world premières of operas, such as the world premiere of Jörg Widmann's oratorio ARCHE at the inauguration of the Hamburg Elbphilharmonie in 2017. 

Lise Bruyneel designs publications and communication projects for the performing arts, curates alternative art projects and creates video art during classical concerts. In a creative and emotional way, often rhythmic, she stands at the interface between artists and the public. From her earlier career as a cellist, finding the right image for a performance, to creating video collages or devising which poetic project will appeal to passers-by on the street.