Winter Concert 2024 wins YAMaward for Best Opera!
News
The Belgian National Orchestra is proud to announce that its 2024 Winter Concert, À la vie, à la mort – Forever, has won the prestigious YAMaward in the "Best Opera" category. And it’s also thanks to you and your votes – thank you!
The good news comes from Viljandi, Estonia, where the YAMawards (Young Audiences Music Awards) ceremony took place. Each year, Jeunesses Musicales International (JMI) honours productions for young audiences that stand out for their creativity, artistic quality, and ability to inspire children and families. This year, more than 60 projects from 25 countries were submitted. Altogether, the JMI network makes over 30,000 youth concerts happen worldwide each year.
Mezzo-soprano and stage director Helene Bracke, together with technical director Tijl Wellens, travelled to Estonia to receive the award.
"We are so happy, moved, grateful and proud! This project is very close to our hearts, and this recognition feels like a beautiful reward for such an intense, meaningful and insightful journey. A huge thank you to all the children , our amazing partners, the cast, musicians, volunteers, and everyone who supported us and voted for us. Thanks to you, we even reached 3rd place in the audience award – wow!"
Do you remember the concert? With tenderness, honesty, and humour, the performance tackled one of life’s most sensitive topics: death and separation. But rather than dwelling on sorrow, it became a true celebration of life – in all its fragility, absurdity, and beauty. A quirky grandmother (Helene Bracke), a playful father (Charles Dekeyser), and a clownish guide (Anatoli Akerman) brought laughter, tears, and emotion, accompanied by music by Sinatra, Mozart, and Khachaturian, performed by the BNO under the baton of Gabriel Hollander.
At the heart of the show were the voices of children, woven into an evocative sound collage. Their candid, disarming questions and reflections opened up a world where meaning is not imposed, but explored. Helene Bracke also created a podcast (available in Dutch) featuring testimonies from children as well as insights from educators and psychologists.
The Belgian National Orchestra and Helene Bracke warmly thank all the artistic and technical teams, as well as our partners: National Lottery players, the Belgian Federal Tax Shelter via Casa Kafka Pictures, the Flemish Government, Missing You vzw, Internationaal Comité vzw, Joëlle Charlier, Benoît De Leersnyder – and above all, all the children who helped philosophise.
The next BNO Winter Concert will take place on 20 and 21 December 2025 at Bozar.
Experience a family-friendly concert with live drawings by Chloé Perarnau, classical music, and a global search for orchestra musicians.
Experience a family-friendly concert with live drawings by Chloé Perarnau, classical music, and a global search for orchestra musicians.
