Over the past years, I have had the opportunity to realise many remarkable projects with the Brussels Philharmonic. Yet this festival operates on an entirely different scale. By concentrating everything into two days, you create a completely different energy than a handful of concerts spread across a season. With a festival, you express an intention. I really believe in that.

The arc of Tectonics unfolds across two days, giving listeners the time to open their ears fully. Each concert forms a chapter in a larger journey, one in which audiences can immerse themselves completely. Magic happens when that intention and the audience are on the same wavelength – that's when the festival becomes a genuine deep dive.

An important part, and one of the principal aims of this project is to reach a curious audience that may be new to us. There is certainly an audience for this music. Not everyone, however, has yet found their way to Flagey. We continue to open up our space to others, and to audiences from a wide range of backgrounds. As orchestral musicians, we have the capacity to support as many different artists and makers as possible. In practical terms, that is not always straightforward: building a community and fostering collaboration takes time. It does not happen overnight. Yet by sharing your space again and again, something meaningful can grow.

A defining aspect of Tectonics is our search for unique performance spaces – places that would not ordinarily be used as concert venues. Here, of course, we have the extraordinary Flagey building, and we want to make full use of it. Concerts will take place in both Studio 1 and Studio 4, but audiences will also have the opportunity to discover other parts of the building.

That creates a fresh perspective. Not only on what an orchestra can do, or on what we do as an organisation, but also on music itself. The perspective shifts from one space to another: from orchestral music to vocal music to electronic music. Much of the music on the programme centres on physical experience rather than intellectual analysis. We do not want to contextualise everything or draw clear lines through music history. Tectonics is not about how we think about contemporary music; it is about how we experience it.

I have organised Tectonics in various places around the world. Each time, the festival draws its energy from the local musicians and artists involved. The aim is not simply to invite a large number of artists from elsewhere. This edition, too, will have its own character thanks to the Brussels context. The city is home to so many fascinating independent labels, all passionately committed to releasing music created here. You can genuinely feel the strength of the local scene, particularly in improvisational music and sound art. There are far too many outstanding artists to fit into a two-day festival, but it is wonderful to be able to offer at least a glimpse of it – and to be part of it ourselves.