Biography

The composer and pianist Pierre Anckaert (°1980) studied piano with Nathalie Loriers en Diederik Wissels at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels. During a stay in Havana, Cuba, in 2003, he specializes into afro-cuban music.

After being awarded first prize at the 2007 Jazz Hoeilaart International Contest and receiving the SABAM Artistic Promotion Prize 2007, he records together with Hendrik Vanattenhoven on double bass and David Barker on drums his first trio album "Candide" for the label Evil Pinguin Jazz. This album features special guests Bert Joris on trumpet and Guy Nikkels on guitar. The Pierre Anckaert Trio performed the music of this album at various music venues like the Getxo Jazz Festival 2008 (Getxo, Spain), the Bermeo Jazz Festival 2008 (Bermeo, Spain), the Feëeriën Festival 2008 (Brussels, Belgium) and the Onda Jazz Club (Lisboa, Portugal).

“The Pierre Anckaert Trio is playing difficult music
by heart, so it’s easy to understand.
It makes you listen also because the music
is so varied with dynamic vitality, latin rhytm,
changing with warm feelings and
beautiful ballad- playing
with a good trio sound.”

The Jury of the 2007 Jazz Hoeilaart International Contest

In June 2009, Pierre Anckaert explores the various possibilities of chamber music by performing the première of his "Suite épicée" with the Pierre Anckaert Chamber Ensemble and the Brussels Chamber Orchestra at the Basilica Festival van Vlaanderen (Maasmechelen, Belgium). In November 2009, he records with the support of Radio Klara and the Flemish Government, his second album "Strings Attached, Pierre Anckaert Quintet & Brussels Chamber Orchestra" on Prova Records. He featured this new album during 14 concerts in Belgium, 1 concert in Atlanta (Georgia, US) and 3 concerts at the Crosscurrents Chamber Music Arts Festival in Raleigh (North Carolina, US).

"I was fascinated by Pierre Anckaert's new CD!
A particularly happy mix of jazz and classical music,
subtle harmonizations and surprising modulations,
inventive and virtuoso improvisations,
a variety of atmospheres and terrific grooves,
all perfectly captured on this recording.
In a nutshell, a discovery!"

Frédéric Devreese

In march 2011, Pierre released the album "74 Miles Away" together with Monkey Robot (alias Louis Van De Leest & Eric Paquet) on the German label Melting Pot Music. He composed and recorded four electric jazz tracks with his trio, featuring Roman Korolik on bass and David Barker on drums. Monkey Robot has radically reworked these four songs featuring singers AHU (One Handed Music, best known from the first Flying Lotus album), Carina Andersson (the voice behind 4 Hero's epic take on Minnie Riperton's “Les Fleurs”) and Miles Bonny (MPM, DJ Day). A first single from this album "Same Dream Again" has been released early January on London-based label Brownswood.