Frederik van Rossum (born December 5, 1939, in Ixelles, Brussels; died February 24, 2025, in Brussels) was a renowned Belgian composer and pedagogue whose career was marked by a blend of tradition and innovation. As the grandson of the celebrated Belgian symbolist painter Léon Spilliaert, he inherited a rich artistic legacy that complemented his comprehensive musical education at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels, where he quickly established himself as a leading figure in European music.
In 1965, van Rossum won the prestigious First Grand Prix de Rome, an achievement that launched a prolific career as both a composer and an educator. During his early years, he held teaching positions at the Royal Conservatories of Brussels and Liège, instructing in piano, musical analysis, and counterpoint. Concurrently, he served as the director of the Music Academy of Watermael-Boitsfort throughout the 1970s and 1980s. Later in his career, he transitioned to working exclusively as a freelance composer, devoting himself entirely to his creative output.
Van Rossum’s musical style has been described as a “romantic expressionist tradition” enriched with contemporary and avant-garde elements, making his works both accessible and artistically compelling. His extensive oeuvre includes orchestral works, operas, chamber music, stage music, and piano compositions. Notably, his first Violin Concerto was selected as the compulsory work for the 1980 edition of the Queen Elisabeth International Music Competition, while his piece Aria a modo di vocalizzo was commissioned for the competition’s semi-final vocal session in 1988. Additionally, his Saxophone Concerto, Pathetic Story—composed for alto saxophone, string orchestra, harp, piano, and percussion—was chosen as the required work for the Adolphe Sax International Competition in Dinant in 2006.
His contributions to music were widely recognized with numerous accolades. Beyond the Grand Prix de Rome, he received the Koopal Prize in 1972, the Grand Prix Musical Paul Gilson in Quebec in 1973, the Fuerison Prize in 1977, and the First Prize at the UNESCO International Composers’ Tribune in 1981 for his Réquisitoire for brass and percussion. From 1995 to 2000, he was the composer-in-residence for the Flanders Festival, and in 2004 he was inducted as a member of the Royal Academy of Science, Letters and Fine Arts of Belgium.
Van Rossum’s creative legacy continues to influence contemporary music, with his works widely distributed and performed on international stages, securing his place as one of the foremost European composers of his generation.
