Walter Hus is a Belgian

Belgium

Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...

 composer and musician.

Walter Hus studied at the music conservatories in Ghent and Brussels. In 1984, he graduated with excellence (Diplôme supérieur) for piano

Piano

The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...

 with Prof. Dr. Robert Steyaert and soon became involved with new music in many different expressions. He performed improvised piano recitals (1984: LP Eight Etudes on Improvisation); occasionally flirted with free jazz

Free jazz

Free jazz is an approach to jazz music that was first developed in the 1950s and 1960s. Though the music produced by free jazz pioneers varied widely, the common feature was a dissatisfaction with the limitations of bebop, hard bop, and modal jazz, which had developed in the 1940s and 1950s...

 (Belgisch Pianokwartet) and rock (Simpletones); collaborated with painters (Michel Thuns) and video artists (Walter Verdin, Marie André).

He wrote film scores for Suite Sixteen (Dominique Deruddere

Dominique Deruddere

Dominique Deruddere is a Belgian film director.- Filmography:* Crazy Love * Wait Until Spring, Bandini * Everybody's Famous! -External links:...

) and The Pillow Book

The Pillow Book

is a book of observations and musings recorded by Sei Shōnagon during her time as court lady to Empress Consort Teishi during the 990s and early 11th century in Heian Japan. The book was completed in the year 1002....

(Peter Greenaway

Peter Greenaway

Peter Greenaway, CBE is a British film director. His films are noted for the distinct influence of Renaissance and Baroque painting, and Flemish painting in particular...

); toured the world with his ensemble Maximalist

Maximalist! (band)

Maximalist! was an ensemble formed to perform the compositions that Thierry De Mey and Peter Vermeersch wrote for the dance choreographies of Wim Vandekeybus. The music they performed mixed avant-garde jazz with minimal music; hence the name of the band.De Mey and Vermeersch had met each other in...

 and wrote and performed for theatre and ballet (amongst others Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker

Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker

Anne Teresa, Baroness De Keersmaeker is one of the most prominent choreographers in contemporary dance...

, Wim Vandekeybus

Wim Vandekeybus

Wim Vandekeybus is a Belgian choreographer, dancer, film director and actor. His dance company is based in Brussels, and is called Ultima Vez. He directed several shows, since his first piece in 1987, What The Body Does Not Remember...

, Roxanne Huilmand, Needcompany

Needcompany

Needcompany is an international, multilingual and multidisciplinary performance group which debuted in 1986. Jan Lauwers is the company’s founder and artistic director. Jan Lauwers and Needcompany have also produced a number of video projects and a full-length film...

, Discordia, Beukelaars, Kortekaas, Ritsema).

From the nineties on, he appeared less on stage and concentrated on composition as his main interest.

He was commissioned by a number of music institutions and festivals, such as the Kaaitheater, DeSingel, the Beursschouwburg, Octobre en Normandie, Festival van Vlaanderen, Antwerpen '93, Happy New Ears, Vooruit

Vooruit

Vooruit Arts Center is a historic complex in the Belgian city of Ghent. Vooruit was originally the festival and art center of the Ghent labor movement, with a ballroom, cinema, theater, etc...

, Felix Meritis

Felix Meritis

Felix Meritis is the name of a former society and its building on the Keizersgracht in Amsterdam. Since 1988 The Felix Meritis Foundation has been located in the building as a European centre for art, culture and science.- Society :...

, Hebbel Theater and De Rode Pomp.

Recent works include four String Quartets ("La Théorie", "Le Désir", "Le Miroir" and "La Folie") and their symphonic transcriptions; chamber music for various combinations of instruments; music for choir and wind-ensembles; one Violin Concerto; one Piano Concerto; solo pieces; two song cycle; a children's opera ("de Nacht"); "Orfeo", an opera.

His trilogy of operas ("Meneer, de zot & tkint" / "Bloetwollefduivel" / "Titus Andonderonikustmijnklote"), lyrics by Jan Decorte, toured in Belgium and other European countries.

He composed a cycle of twenty-four preludes and fugues in four volumes, for multiple combinations of instruments. In 2004 he performed Books II & III of Preludes and Fugues for 2 pianos with pianist/composer Frederic Rzewski

Frederic Rzewski

Frederic Anthony Rzewski is an American composer and virtuoso pianist.- Biography :Rzewski began playing piano at age 5. He attended Phillips Academy, Harvard and Princeton, where his teachers included Randall Thompson, Roger Sessions, Walter Piston and Milton Babbitt...

.

Since 2004, Walter Hus is artist in residence at Namahn

Namahn

Namahn is a user-centered design consultancy based in Brussels, Belgium.Considered a pioneer in user-centered design in Belgium, Namahn focuses on interaction design and information architecture....

. Walter Hus' recording studio, featuring a Decap organ, is located in the Namahn spaces.