Kazushi Ono 大野 和士
"This season, the Brussels Philharmonic and I would like to invite you to a musical time machine experience!"
Kazushi Ono is the definitive musical citizen of the world. He was born in Tokyo, studied in Munich and forged his early career in Zagreb, Karlsruhe and Tokyo. These influences shaped an inquiring and profound musical intellect and an ability to communicate meaning across languages and cultures. His passion and curiosity for repertoire take him to the standard classics but also to new music and he often commissions new orchestral works and operas. He is a vocal advocate for the role of culture in all our lives and works actively within the communities which his three orchestras serve.
Discover the Winter/Spring 2026 Season below.
Listening to today’s music places us at the forefront of musical history, offering a glimpse of where it may lead. It also deepens our understanding of the classical repertoire. Throughout the season, we will explore this vibrant world through new and recent works by contemporary composers.
unique architecture
What fascinates me most is the unique architecture of this Symphony. It opens with a first movement featuring the tenor horn, where Mahler instructs: “Die Natur muss schreien” (“Nature should shout”). Between the almost surreal third movement, which sends a tingling sensation through you, and the radiant fifth movement, like a walk in heaven, Mahler weaves in two Nachtmusiken.
In the fourth movement, the guitar and mandolin—appearing in a symphony for the very first time in music history—unfold their wings and float along with the charming theme.
Hearing this symphony as a young boy, I remember being deeply moved by Mahler’s musical genius.
MAHLER 7
07.02.2026 FLAGEY BRUSSELS
08.02.2026 DE BIJLOKE GENT
contrasting Japanese aesthetics
To contrast Rachmaninov’s grand, richly romantic Second Symphony, we programmed works by Toru Takemitsu and Toshio Hosokawa. I know both of them personally, and they are of course deeply important composers to me. Takemitsu spoke in a soft voice—never raising it—yet beneath that gentle manner lay an intense, unwavering passion. In Hosokawa’s work, the “silence” within the music carries its own meaning. In that sense, both of them embody the essence of true Japanese aesthetics.
RACHMANINOV
20.03.2026 FLAGEY BRUSSELS
HOSOKAWA & RACHMANINOV
21.03.2026 FLAGEY BRUSSELS
brightness and elevation
Have you ever noticed that the opening themes of each movement in Dvořák’s Symphony No. 8 all move upward?In this way, it continually lifts us up, with musical gestures creating an overall sense of brightness and elevation. As a boy, whenever I felt even the slightest bit down, I would listen to this symphony and feel energized and uplifted once more.
It is always a privilege to work with one of our own musicians as soloists, and for this concert, Emile Souvagie (principal clarinet) chose Gerald Finzi’s Clarinet Concerto: lively and full of charm, a perfect match for Dvořák.
DVOŘÁK 8
23.05.2026 FLAGEY BRUSSELS
