The 2024 Flemish Open will take place at the City Theatre in Mechelen this weekend (20th & 21st April) with 23 bands battling for the honours in the four sections of competition.
Saturday will see bands compete in Division C (afternoon) and Division A (evening), with the Division D (morning) and Division B (afternoon) competitors the following day.
Live coverage of the event is being provided by www.cubrass.nl
Programmes and set-works
Section A and B bands will provide a 30-minute programme, whilst Section C will be 25- minutes and Section D will be 20-minutes. Each should consist of a short set-work and an own-choice major work.
Competition organisers Brass Band Hombeek have asked composers Wim Bex, Stijn Aertgeerts, Thibaut Bruniaux and Koen Van Biesen to each write a piece for the event.
Koen Van Biesen's work is a collaboration with the music academy of Borgerhout in Antwerp under the mentorship of teachers Maarten De Splenter, Niels Verheest and Stan Nieuwenhuis
Bex has written 'The Scattered Disc' to be played by bands in Section A, whilst Stijn Aertgeerts' 'Stormseye' will test the bands in Section B. 'Trip into the Clouds' by Thibaut Bruniaux has been set for Section C, with Koen Van Biesen's 'Elegie' in Section D.
The adjudication teams are made up of Margie Antrobus, Jan de Haan and Manu Mellaets (Saturday) with Harmen Vanhoorne replacing Manu Mellaerts on the Sunday.
Section A:
Brass Band Buizingen (Tijl Verhaeghe)
Festival Brass Band (Steven Verhaert)
Band Band Heist (Bert Van Thienen)
Brass Band Schoonhoven (Erik Janssen)
Provinciale Brassband Groningen (Gerk Huisma)
Da Bazuin Oenkerk (Jaap Musschenga)
Brassband Zele (Bart Van der Strieckt)
Brassband De Waldsang (Rieks van der Velde)
Section B:
Brassband de Grensbewoners Smeermaas (Danny Aerden)
Brassband Amersfoort (Vincent Verhage)
Mercator Brassband (Johan De Win)
Young Brassband Willebroek (Lode Violet)
Section C:
Backum Brass (Anno Appelo)
De Bazuin Oenkerk B (Richard Visser)
Brass Band Skelpucini Pro (Rokas Podelis)
Brassband David Zwolle (Wilbert Zwier)
Brassband Schoonhoven B (Joop Nijholt)
Section D:
Brassband Lembeek (Hans Goris)
Brassband Sklepucini (Vilantas Vapsva)
Brassband Kempenzonen Tielen (Kevin Van Giel)
