Where curiostiy lies
Driven by a fascination for French and Belgian musical heritage, Babette's artistic projects explore the rich repertoire of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, with a particular focus on Impressionism, overlooked composers, historical keyboard instruments and new music inspired by the past.
femmes de légende
Duration: 60 minutes
Format: solo piano recital
Suitable for: concert halls, house concert series, galleries, museums, lectures, …
Behind every score lies a network of people whose stories continue to echo through music.
Femmes de Légende explores the women who shaped the French and Belgian musical world around the turn of the twentieth century—not only as composers, but also as performers, dedicatees, patrons and artistic muses.
Through thoughtfully curated programs, historical research and performances on modern and historical keyboard instruments, the project uncovers unexpected connections between music, history and cultural heritage. Familiar names stand alongside rarely performed voices, revealing a musical landscape in which women's artistic contributions become part of a broader cultural narrative.
Rather than looking back with nostalgia, Femmes de Légende seeks to reconnect these stories with today's audiences, allowing them to be heard in a new light.
Featuring works by Mel Bonis, Arthur De Greef, Lucie Vellère and Joseph Jongen, among others.
This project is currently being developed in collaboration with Museum Vleeshuis, Bibliotheek Conservatorium Antwerpen and Studiecentrum voor Vlaamse Muziek.
HIstoire perdue
Duration: 60 minutes
Format: solo piano recital
Suitable for: concert halls, house concert series, museums, galleries, …
Every score carries traces of the people, instruments and places that shaped it. Histoire Perdue begins with the belief that these traces continue to influence the way we listen today.
Histoire Perdue is an ongoing artistic project exploring the rich yet rarely performed French and Belgian piano repertoire of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
Rather than presenting this music as a historical curiosity, the project seeks to rediscover it through today's ears. Historical repertoire is placed in dialogue with contemporary works, revealing unexpected connections in colour, harmony and imagination. At the heart of the project lies a fascination with musical heritage as a living source of inspiration rather than a closed chapter of history.
Through performances, research and collaborations with museums and living composers, Histoire Perdue uncovers new connections between musical heritage, historical instruments and present-day artistic creation.
Featuring works of Noah Senden, Piets Swerts, Joseph Jongen among others.
This project is currently being developed in collaboration with Museum Vleeshuis and Bibliotheek Conservatorium Antwerpen.
Le Faux Miroir
Duration: 60 minutes
Format: solo piano recital
Suitable for: concert halls, house concert series, galleries
Le Faux Miroir is a solo piano program exploring the fragile gap between what we hear and what we think we hear.
Inspired by René Magritte’s painting of the same name, this program unfolds in a world where perception and reality never fully align.
Beginning in the tranquil sound world of Emmanuel Durlet, where resonance and simplicity take center stage, the music gradually opens toward greater ambiguity.
In the work of Alain Craens, structures become more porous, culminating in Meditation, written especially for Babette Craens.
With Debussy and Ravel, sound becomes fluid and suggestive, while Poulenc introduces a lighter yet subtly unstable tone.
Le Faux Miroir traces a journey from stillness to movement - from clarity to ambiguity.
Also available in a version with historical piano.