The Koninklijke Harmonie van Peer is a symphonic wind band with a rich history, founded in 1849. More than 120 musicians are given the opportunity to develop musically at a top amateur level. The band houses three orchestras (introductory, youth and senior) that are widely known for their progressive approach.
Beside traditional Spring- and Christmas concerts, the band developed some innovative concepts (e.g. ‘Music for Kids’ and ‘Notes and Beats’) fostering the accessibility of wind band music for a broad audience. As a cultural ambassador for their region, the band also made concert tours in Italy, Germany, Spain, Denmark, Hungary and China.
The musical programme of the symphonic wind band focuses mainly on contests and competitions. Recent participations resulted in wins at the Certamen International (Valencia-Spain, 2016) and Vlamo Open Wind Band Championships (Belgium, 2019) and in numerous honorable places in competitions at home and abroad.
Program
Since September 2015, the orchestra is conducted by the Belgian conductor and composer Kevin Houben (°1977). Houben obtained a master’s and a teaching degree in trumpet (with Leon Pétré), solfege and chamber music (with Leo Ouderits), a master’s in hafabra (Harmony, Fanfare, Brassband) and a master’s in orchestral conducting (with Edmond Saveniers) at LUCA School Of Arts - Campus Lemmens (Belgium). In addition, he trained in composition, harmony and polyphony (with Jan Van der Roost, Luc Van Hove and Jan Hadermann).
Since the completion of his studies, Houben’s music has become a favourite in the repertoires of various orchestras in Europe, America, Australia and Japan. With his compositions, Houben won several awards and composition contests.
Houben is also a renowned conductor, having worked with various professional orchestras and ensembles during recordings and at concerts all over the world. Recent examples are his work as orchestrator for the Belgian festival Tomorrowland with the National Orchestra of Belgium and his position as musical director with the symphonic orchestra La Passione for the dance performance Le Temps Perdu by top choreographer Isabelle Beernaert.
Since 2020 Houben teaches Orchestration and Instrumentation at LUCA School Of Arts - Campus Lemmens (Belgium) together with Ivan Meylemans.
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