Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel

The origins of the Music Chapel rest on two strong personalities: Queen Elisabeth, a violinist keen to help young talent, and Eugène Ysaÿe, one of the greatest violinists and composers of his time. Both wanted to support emerging artists through a highly specialized school and an international competition. The competition has been known from the start and was to become the Queen Elisabeth Competition. The Music Chapel was inaugurated on 12 July 1939. It is known for teaching exceptionally talented young musicians. On that occasion, the famous critic of the day, Emile Vuillermoz, described the Music Chapel as a sort of “modern Villa Medici”. The Music Chapel brings talented musicians from Belgium into contact with young musicians from around the world whilst strengthening these ties through various national and international institutions of the highest level. An offshoot of ideas about musical training initiated by Eugène Ysaÿe 20 years earlier, the Music Chapel was inaugurated on 12 July 1939 by Queen Elisabeth. After the Second World War, the Music Chapel resumed its role as an educational institution in 1956. Up to 2004, it welcomed a dozen young musicians and composers in residence, each supervised by a professor of their choice, for three-year cycles. Several generations of elite musicians were to stay in the Music Chapel, occupying an eminent place on stage or in higher education.