David Navarro-Turres
Conductor
Chilean-Belgian conductor and arranger David Navarro-Turres has been acclaimed for his dynamic
performances, his commitment to innovative programming and his passion for artistic openness to
diverse audiences in Europe.
He currently holds the position of Music Director and Artistic Director of the Brussels Philharmonic
Orchestra (www.bpho.be), the chamber choir Serenata Vocale and the Ensemble Confluences.
As guest conductor, he has performed with orchestras such as the Belgian National Orchestra, the
ensemble EST-OEST, the ensemble Confluences, the Chamber Orchestra of Chile, the Pazardjik
Symphony Orchestra, the Commonwealth Symphony Orchestra, the Antofagasta Symphony
Orchestra, El Sistema Belgium, the Concepción Symphony Orchestra, the St. Petersburg Symphony
Orchestra, the Symphony Orchestra of the Royal Brussels Conservatory and the HKU Utrecht
Conservatorium Orchestra.
He graduated from the National Conservatory of the University of Chile and the Conservatoire Royal
de Bruxelles. He has received scholarships for conducting masterclasses in Zurich with David
Zinman and the Tonhalle Orchestra, in London with Benjamin Zander and the London Masterclass
Orchestra, and another with Guerassim Voronkov and the St. Petersburg Symphony Orchestra.
In April 2016, he premiered Sir Karl Jenkins' orchestral version of "The Armed Man" at the Palais des
Beaux-Arts in Brussels. In 2017 he conducted the opening concert of the BALKAN TRAFIK Festival
with Goran Bregovic and his composition of the Three Letters from Sarajevo. In 2022, together with
Ensemble Confluences, he opened the Festival of World and Sacred Music of the International
Festival of Contemporary Music in Mons and Namur (Belgium). It will continue with a series of
concerts of Hommage à Brel & Edith Piaf - the Symphonic Version, new Belgian composers, the
recording of Haydn's "The Creation" at Flagey's Studio 4, Mahler's "Titan" No. 1 Symphony for the
20th anniversary of the Brussels Philharmonic Orchestra and Mendelssohn's "Elijah" at BOZAR. In
June 2022, it will continue with the closing concert with EULAT 4culture, an activity realised in
collaboration with the European Commission and the Latin American diplomatic representations. In
August and September 2022 he made his debut with the Orquesta Sinfónica de la Universidad de
La Serena and the Joven Orquesta de Portugal; ending 2022 with a tour of the operetta "Barbe
Blue" in different cities of Belgium.
www.davidnavarroturres.com
Mary Gow
Assistant Music Director and Pianist
Mary comes from Wellington, New Zealand. She holds the degrees of BA and BMus from Victoria University, Wellington together with the LRSM and FTCL diplomas in piano. She studied for five years at the Royal Conservatorium of Brussels in Flemish, gaining two First Prizes and Higher Diplomas in Piano and Chamber Music.
Her other Christmas passion is to stage performances of The Snowman, the Christmas fantasy based on the story by Raymond Briggs, music by Howard Blake. In 2018 The Snowman was complemented by a dip into "Christmas and the World of Jazz", offering much additional enjoyment to the adults in the audience.
Performances of The Snowman in the past have been paired with a commissioned opera by Alexander McCall Smith and Tom Cunningham, The Baboons Who Live By the River, and Carnival of the Animals, Peter and the Wolf, Tubby the Tuba, along with versions of Britten's Young Persons' Guide to the Orchestra.
The Snowman Concert this year is on Sunday December 6 at 3 pm.
This year in the June King's Birthday Honours in New Zealand, Mary was awarded a KSM (King's Service Medal) for services to music in New Zealand and Belgium. It is a huge honour and she is indebted to the musicians who love her Mulled Wine Concerts in NZ and the musicians in Brussels who play in her concerts.
Julie Gebhart
Soprano
Julie is an internationally acclaimed Belgian soprano who has performed with leading opera companies and orchestras across Europe and internationally. From 2017 to 2021, she was an artist in residence at the Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel under the direction of José van Dam.
Her opera roles include Pamina in Mozart’s *The Magic Flute*, Cinderella in Pauline Viardot’s *Cendrillon*, L’Amour in Gluck/Berlioz’s *Orphée et Eurydice*, and Adina in Donizetti’s *L’Elisir d’Amore*. She has appeared in prestigious venues including Bozar in Brussels, Salle Cortot in Paris, Boulez Saal in Berlin, Royal Festival Hall in London and Cairo Opera House.
Her awards include the Audience Prize at the Young Soloists competition and first prize at the International Cobelli Lieder Competition.
Andrew Glover
Master of Ceremonies
Born and raised in New Zealand, Andrew studied and worked first as an actor, then took further study into the world of opera.
After winning a string of awards and scholarships, and a brief sojourn to study Topeng Pajegan dancing and mask carving in Ubud,
Bali, he headed to London to see if the streets were paved with gold.
They were not. However, here are a few highlights from his otherwise glittering career. R
eceiving a call on new year’s eve in Paris, glass of champagne in hand, from the Royal Opera House Covent Garden to step
in and sing a role the next day. Rehearsing and performing Italian opera with a Japanese choir and orchestra in Tokyo, Japan.
Performing Shakespeare in Singapore, Singing Jazz in Cambodia, Performing a French operetta in Mauritius with a
Creole Choir and a Swiss orchestra then swimming in the moonlit lagoon with guitars and singing on the beach.
He has also sung in France, Germany, Italy, around Great Britain a few times, as well as many trips to perform back home in New Zealand.
“I am thrilled to be the new narrator for the famous Brussels Snowman Concert, a very special production for a cause that is dear to my heart”.
andrewglover.net