Famous Belgian Composers

Cesar Franck was a Belgian-born French Romantic composer, organist, pianist, and music teacher. Franck, who worked in Paris, is credited with popularizing new instruments made by Aristide Cavaillé-Coll all over France. From 1858 until his death in 1890, Franck also served as an organist at the Basilica of Saint Clotilde in Paris. Franck also taught future composers like Vincent d'Indy.

Orlande de Lassus was a composer widely regarded as one of the three most influential and popular European musicians of the 16th century. One of the most versatile and prolific composers of the late Renaissance, Orlande de Lassus wrote over 2,000 works during his illustrious career. He is also considered the chief representative of the Franco-Flemish school's mature polyphonic style.

Eugène Ysaÿe was a Belgian virtuoso violinist, conductor, and composer. Referred to as The King of the Violin, Ysaÿe is best remembered for his finely honed technique which was without the shortcomings of violinists before Eugène Ysaÿe. He is also remembered for his great interpretations of Bach and Beethoven as well as early modern composers like César Franck.

Salvatore Adamo is a Belgian-Italian musician, composer, and singer best known for his romantic ballads. He is counted among the world's most commercially successful musicians, having sold more than 20 million singles and 80 million albums. Salvatore Adamo, who performs in multiple languages like French, Italian, Spanish, Japanese, and English, is currently the highest selling Belgian musician.

Guillaume Dufay was a French composer and music theorist active during the Renaissance. He was regarded as the leading European composer of the era. Dufay was one of the first composers of the Franco-Flemish School and was also associated with the Burgundian School. His most famous work, the complex motet Nuper Rosarum Flores, is considered an icon of Western culture.

Johannes Ockeghem was a composer, choirmaster, singer, and teacher. One of the most popular composers of the 15th century, Ockeghem was renowned for his expressive music and technical prowess. The most popular and influential composer of the Netherlandish School, Johannes Ockeghem served as an inspiration to a generation of composers, including Josquin des Prez. 

Milow is a Belgian singer-songwriter who has achieved immense popularity in mainland Europe and Canada where one of his albums sold more than 500,000 copies in the late 2000s. Over the course of his illustrious career, Milow has won many prestigious awards such as Music Industry Awards, MTV Europe Music Award, and European Border Breakers Award.

Henri Vieuxtemps was a Belgian violinist and composer best remembered as one of the most important exponents of the Franco-Belgian school of violin. He is also famous for owning a legendary violin, which is now called the Vieuxtemps Guarneri del Gesù. This violin, which was built by Giuseppe Guarneri, is counted among the finest examples of the craftsmanship of Guarneri.

Wim Mertens is a Flemish Belgian countertenor vocalist, composer, guitarist, pianist, and musicologist. A prolific musician, Mertens has released over 60 albums. His musical piece Struggle for Pleasure has achieved an iconic status in Belgium and has been covered by many other popular musicians and bands.

Marka is a Belgian composer, singer, songwriter, and film-maker. First and foremost a live performer, Marka has toured across the world and often uses the exotic locales to shoot his documentary films as well. Marka is also known as the father of well-known performers, Angèle and Romeo Elvis.

Gilles Binchois was a composer and one of the most important and earliest members of the Burgundian School. He is also counted among the three most popular composers of the early-15th century. Binchois' works were often cited and used as source material even after his demise. Also remembered for his compositions, Binchois is regarded as the 15th century's finest melodist.

Adrian Willaert was a Netherlandish composer who is credited with founding the Venetian School. Apart from being remembered as a versatile composer, Willaert was also the most influential musician in Europe during his time. Also renowned for his teaching skills, Adrian Willaert taught students like Cipriano de Rore, who went on to become respected composers in their own right.

Kirill Pokrovsky was a Russian musician and composer best remembered for his work as a video game score composer. He is credited with writing the soundtrack for the Divinity video game series. Kirill Pokrovsky is also remembered for his association with popular heavy metal bands like Master and Aria where he was a keyboardist.

Considered a Flemish cultural icon, Gert Verhulst is especially known for his contributions to children’s entertainment. Equally well-known as a presenter and entertainer, his childhood goal was to become famous and he quickly achieved that with his first show, Samson en Gert. Also a successful entrepreneur, he is a co-founder of Studio 100 and holds substantial stake in the company.   

Remembered especially for his contribution towards the development of German music, Heinrich Isaac was a leading fifteenth-century composer, belonging to the Franco-Flemish school. A prolific composer, he wrote numerous masses, motets and songs in French, German and Italian, all the while maintaining a close tie with the Habsburg Court, which helped to popularize polyphonic style of the Netherlands in Germany.

Frédéric François is a French-speaking singer and composer based in Belgium. Over the course of his illustrious career, François has performed at many sold out concerts, apart from selling more than 35 million copies worldwide.

Charles Auguste de Bériot was a Belgian artist, violinist, and composer. De Bériot composed a significant volume of violin music which includes 10 concertos. His Romantic style of composition and pioneering violin technique make him an ideal teacher for any violin student. His pedagogical compositions are still being taught to violin students all over the world. 

Joseph Jongen was a Belgian composer, organist, and music educator. Jongen started composing at age 13 and continued well into his 70s. He composed a great deal and produced gems like Symphonie Concertante of 1926. From 1925 to 1939, he also served as the director at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels where he had been teaching a technique called fugue.

Best known for his electro house music, Basto is an internationally known musician, DJ and record producer. Born as Jef Martens in Belgium, he emerged as a successful disc jockey around the age of thirty. He gained international fame using various aliases while producing records for well-known artists including Azealia Banks and Britney Spears.  

Pierre de La Rue was a Franco-Flemish singer and composer of the Renaissance. He is often compared with other great composers like Alexander Agricola, Antoine Brumel, and Jacob Obrecht and is counted among the most influential and famous composers in the Netherlands polyphonic style during the early 1500s.

Nicolas Gombert was a Franco-Flemish composer best remembered for championing a complex polyphonic style of music of the Renaissance. Widely regarded as one of the most influential and popular composers of his generation, Nicolas Gombert was highly admired by his contemporaries as well as musicians from future generations.

François-Joseph Fétis was a Belgian composer, musicologist, and teacher. He is also counted among the 19th century's most influential music critics. Apart from musicology, Fétis had a profound influence on music theory as well. As a writer, François-Joseph Fétis is also known for his massive compilation of biographical data which remains a prominent source of information today.

Philippe de Monte was a Flemish composer who was active all over Europe during the late Renaissance. Born into a family of madrigalists, Monte wrote more madrigals than anyone else from his time. During his lifetime, Philippe de Monte was also considered the best composer in the whole of Flanders.

Alexander Agricola was a Netherlandish composer who lived during the Renaissance. A renowned composer during the early 1500s, Agricola is remembered for his versatility as he could write different forms of music like motets, masses, and motet-chansons. Alexander Agricola is also remembered for creating music in a highly distinctive style.

Johannes Tinctoris was a Renaissance composer and music theorist from the Low Countries. During his lifetime, Tinctoris went on to become the most important European writer on music since the advent of Guido of Arezzo. A multi-talented personality, Johannes Tinctoris was also known as a poet, cleric, lawyer, and mathematician.

Henri Pousseur was a Belgian composer, music theorist, and teacher. Pousseur taught many students at prestigious institutions such as the University and Conservatory of Liège where he founded a center for music, which was renamed Centre Henri Pousseur in his honor in 2010. Apart from his teaching and compositional activities, Henri Pousseur also published many articles and books on music.

Nicholas Lens is a Belgian composer best known for his operas. Apart from composing operas and contemporary music, Lens also scores music for films. In 2006, the short film Love Is the Only Master I'll Serve, which Nicholas Lens wrote and directed alongside composing its music, was showcased at the Brooklyn International Film Festival.

Peter Benoit was a Flemish composer best remembered for his compositions like De Schelde and Lucifer. He also wrote numerous essays on musical matters. Peter Benoit, who studied primarily with François-Joseph Fétis, earned the latter's respect and praises over the course of his illustrious career. 

Frederic Devreese was a Belgian composer whose works have been performed all over the world. A multi-talented personality, Devreese was also known as a conductor and for his film scores. During his lifetime, Frederic Devreese was honored with several prestigious awards including Joseph Plateau Award in 1990 and Georges Delerue Award in 1994.

Patrick De Meyer is a Belgian composer, producer, arranger, and remixer. He is best known for his association with the now defunct Belgian electronic music project Technotronic, which was formed by Jo Bogaert in 1987.

Matthias van den Gheyn was a Flemish musician best remembered as an outstanding virtuoso of the organ and carillon. Matthias' most important work was his 11 famous preludes for carillon. These 11 preludes have become standard repertoire since the early 1900s among carillonneurs worldwide. His biographer Xavier-Victor-Fidèle van Elewyck regarded Matthias as the greatest musician of 18th century Southern Netherlands.