An Pierlé Quartet

Pierlé made her entrance through the gates of the 1996 edition of Humo’s Rock Rally. Even though it would take a few years to come up with her debut album, the press and public immediately recognised the emergence of major new talent. Over the next two decades, Pierlé assembled a richly varied and consistently praised oeuvre that cements her status as one of our finest singer-songwriters.

A crucial turning point came in 2017, when Pierlé was granted a residency at the local museum for contemporary art (S.M.A.K.) to work with improvisation. And then serendipity struck: as she was exploring, Hendrik Lasure and Casper Van De Velde were recording their debut album in Koen Gisen’s studio. The past few years, these two musicians have become some of the key players of Belgium’s indomitable music scene, taking on a diversity of styles with a refreshing and adventurous approach. The four immediately bonded over meals and laughs and planned to work together someday.

That opportunity arrived unexpectedly soon, when the Quartet was asked to provide the music for Sylvia, a musical opera by the Théâtre National. Sylvia was a meditation on the life of poet and feminist Sylvia Plath and a multi-disciplinary enterprise merging theatre with film and music. Even within a strict format, it allowed the musicians to find common ground and work on a new language, captured on a limited LP.