Brussels Jazz orchestra (BJO) is not the kind of jazz orchestra that sticks to standards. It prefers to achieve the highest level by composing original music, creating unique arrangements and playing inventively as well as passionately. In fact, it really is jazz with a dynamic orchestral sound, with a classic strength in which each musician is also a brilliant soloist. Call it an ‘orchestrated passion for jazz’ that incites BJO to create world-class music.
Brussels Jazz Orchestra was founded in 1993 by Frank Vaganée, Serge Plume, Marc Godfroid and Bo Van der Werf and enjoys the recognition and support of the Flemish government since 1999. In 2023, BJO celebrated its 30th anniversary with several festive activities, including a collaboration with Aka Moon and a festive anniversary tour with a variety of musical guests, including Bert Joris, Tutu Puoane, Lynn Cassiers and Osama Abdulrasol.
Brussels Jazz Orchestra (BJO) strives to achieve the highest level by composing original music, creating unique arrangements and playing inventively as well as passionately. BJO plays jazz with a dynamic orchestral sound rooted in jazz tradition, where each musician is also a brilliant soloist. In the past 30 years, BJO created unique projects that didn’t solely stick to standards but incorporated other musical genres and art forms.
The only professional large jazz ensemble in Belgium has a worldwide reputation, from Singapore and Abu Dhabi to New York and Johannesburg. In addition to BJO’s own productions, the orchestra has worked with well-known musicians all over the world, like Toots Thielemans, Joe Lovano, Maria Schneider, Dave Liebman, Philip Catherine and countless others. In February 2020, Brussels Jazz Orchestra shared the stage of Bozar (Brussels, B) with the world-famous Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, led by Wynton Marsalis, for a grand big band celebration.
The recordings of BJO have received international recognition and have been awarded numerous prizes. In 2012, the orchestra was part of the Oscar triumph for the silent film ‘The Artist’, as co-performer of the soundtrack. The album ‘Mama Africa’ with Tutu Puoane received a South African Music Award for Best Traditional Jazz Album, ‘Wild Beauty’ featuring Joe Lovano (2013) scored two Grammy Award Nominations and in 2017, the album BREL with David Linx won an Edison Jazz/World Award (to name a few).
The European tour with American trumpeter Ambrose Akinmusire (…) What’s Not There in April 2026 marked the start of an artistic transition. Composer, arranger and saxophonist Lennert Baerts (born 1996), who steered the enthusiastically received project in the right artistic direction, will take over the reins in 2028 from Frank Vaganée, who will act as an adviser and mentor in the meantime.
