Conductor Jurgen Wayenberg says farewell to the VUB Orchestra

Would you like to see Jurgen Wayenberg conduct our VUBorkest orchestra one last time? View the programme. 

What did your career look like?
Jurgen Wayenberg: “Many people think that being a conductor is my full-time job, but in fact it is my hobby. Education and art have always been my two passions, and I have always been able to combine them beautifully. First, I was a teacher in part-time arts education for ten years, then a director there for ten years, afterwards twelve years as director of my beloved arts secondary school, and for the past ten years I have been general director of the GO! School Group Brussels. And in the meantime, I have been conductor of the VUB Orchestra for almost thirty years.”

Where did you study yourself?
“I obtained my master’s degree in music at the Erasmushogeschool Brussels, the conservatoire. At a fairly young age, I then became conductor of the VUB Orchestra.”

And how did you end up there?
“It all actually started with and was supported by Professor Emeritus Jacques De Ruyck. He contacted me at the time with the question whether I could take over the orchestra for a while, and that eventually lasted thirty years (laughs). Together with his wife Gerda Lievens, he put an incredible amount of energy into the orchestra. Just like Tony Tillez, who was always running between different halls and organisations to arrange a concert in every province. And of course with many others, because there is an enormously beautiful dynamic in the orchestra with many volunteers, each taking on a part of the organisation.”

What makes the VUB Orchestra unique?
“We are a combination of students and alumni, but professors and staff also take part. In recent years, international students have also found their way to the orchestra, which I think is wonderful. I then have to conduct in English, of course, but that usually works out fine.”

How has the orchestra grown over the past thirty years?
“We started with a small group of twenty-two people. So many years later, we have a stable group of eighty musicians who achieve a very high level. As VUB, we can be proud of the fact that we have been able to grow in this way for years. The orchestra is well-known and plays an important role in promoting the values of the VUB. We do this together with deMens.nu.”

And how do you promote those values?
“Jacques and I have, as befits the VUB, developed a fairly unconventional format that we have been using for thirty years. First, we choose a theme that connects to the values of deMens.nu and the VUB, and from there we look for music. For example, we have already done beautiful projects on freedom and equality. During a concert, we start with classical music and then let one of our own musicians perform as a soloist, which shows the quality we have in-house. After another classical piece, we always end the first part with something humorous, because we believe that the student-like spirit should always remain. The first part after the break is always contemporary music, because we want to challenge our audience to listen to that as well. That is also a strategic choice, because then they can no longer walk out. You love it or you hate it, but people also come to our concerts especially to discover what surprises we have in store. And after we have shaken people’s conscience, we continue with Flemish composers. We finish with film music and lighter pieces. That has always been a successful formula, which has earned us a very loyal audience, and I am very proud of that.”

And will your successor continue that successful formula?
“There were thirty candidates to succeed me, and I made the wise decision not to interfere. It is not done for a conductor to interfere. At my request, the board set up a committee that selected about five candidates. Each of them will lead a full rehearsal. I expect that around the start of the concerts, in about a month, the final successor will be announced. Now it is up to the younger generation: they will decide how to shape the next thirty years and how to involve the new conductor in continuing to promote the values of the VUB.”

“The VUB Orchestra is, above all, a group of people who know each other inside out and make music together”

What do you value most about the people in the orchestra?
“They are all treasures. We were once given the name ‘cuddle orchestra’, because I think it is important to work from respect for the individual. I know how different things can be in the professional orchestral world, and I have always disliked how musicians are sometimes humiliated in professional orchestras. The VUB Orchestra is, above all, a group of people who know each other inside out and make music together.”

And what characterises you as a conductor?
“The teacher in me has never disappeared. I have always encouraged my musicians to learn to listen and create balance themselves. For every piece of music, I work with mood images. You can give musicians half an hour of technical explanation, or you can say: ‘Play that as if you were a young elephant.’ You get ten times more results from that.”

Is the orchestra accessible to everyone?
“The bar is high, but I think it is important that every musician can find a place here. The level has risen enormously in recent years, so it is challenging to keep up. Through the way we organise our workshops, candidates quickly notice whether it is for them or not. We deliberately do not organise entrance exams, because in a positive atmosphere people naturally sense when the level is too high for them. That avoids a lot of frustration and unnecessary stress. Our musicians radiate during concerts that they enjoy being there. I am not only incredibly proud of our level, but also of the sound we have developed as an orchestra.”

How much will you miss it?
“It is a bit like letting go of a child, isn’t it? But at a certain point you have to do that and give space to new ideas. Moreover, my full-time job takes up enough space. And when you are almost sixty and have four grandchildren running around, you just want to do something else than always work. There will be no black hole; I am simply closing a very important chapter in my life. Music will always be part of my life in some way.”