Diplomatic World_nummer 56.

CONSERVAMUS, an enthusiast organisation working
with public funding, recently started the renovation of
the windows, and an official political agreement has been
signed for the entire restoration of the site.
THE TRADITION AND EMANCIPATION OF A
UNIQUE EUROPEAN MUSIC CULTURE
From the first director on, François-Joseph Fétis, in
1833, the conservatory aimed at a high-quality institution
for music education with an international reputation.
The specific commitment of the musicians, the unique
intercultural Brussels context and the later Flemish support
for an excellent and autonomous higher music education,
have contributed to develop this goal. The Flemish
emancipation under director Kamiel D’Hooghe, resulted
in a music institution of high quality, endorsing
its international position in multilingual Brussels.
A specific recruitment policy was and still is one
of its pillars: the resolute choice for great international
musicians with an established reputation, to whom the
opportunity is given, next to their high quality teaching,
to continue an artistic career as cultural ambassadors of
the institution. For example, the Brussels Conservatoire,
together with the Conservatoire of Paris, lies at the
birth of the great Franco-Belgian violin school. This
tradition, started by Eugène Ysaÿe, Henrik Wieniawski
and Arthur Grumiaux, still resonates in Brussels,
complemented by other rich traditions.
A unique Ysaÿe manuscript, recently donated to the
conservatory library, will be produced by our students and
teachers in May 2018. Another example is the connection
between the conservatory and the famous Queen
Elisabeth competition of which many teachers still
today are laureates. While other music teachers combine
their exceptional pedagogical qualities with positions
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