René CLIQUET (1899-1977)
International Queen Elisabeth Competition, 1951
Commemorative medal
Bronze
d 7 cm, carrier 11 x 11 cm (per side)
Coll. KBR, Mus. Obj. 476
Medal offered to René Defossez, grand prize of composition
The Belgian composer and conductor René Defossez (1905, Spa -1988, Etterbeek) was trained in piano and violin by his father at a very young age. In 1923 he completed his studies at the Conservatory of Liège. In 1936, he was hired as conductor at the Théâtre de la Monnaie in Brussels, a position he held for 22 consecutive seasons, directing nearly 120 operas. His career as a composer was rewarded twice at the Queen Elisabeth Competition, with his imposed violin concerto in 1951 and his piano concerto in 1956.
His musical archives were donated by his children to KBR and now form the René Defossez fonds. The Belgian sculptor and medallist René Cliquet (1899-1977, Brussels) was appointed portraitist of the Court for making busts, statues, medallions and medals of the Belgian royal family, such as this medal for the Queen Elisabeth Competition in 1951.
