On 15 April 2019, the unimaginable happened: Notre-Dame in Paris went up in flames. In one fell swoop, the cathedral that had welcomed believers and visitors from all over the world for many centuries lost its historic exterior and its future. But it did not fall. Studies, drawings and construction work followed. After an unprecedented restoration campaign, Notre-Dame reopened on 7 December 2024, just in time to celebrate its 800th anniversary.

So this is the ideal moment to dive deep into the wonder of cathedrals – architectural masterpieces that both transformed religious practice from the 12 th century onwards and sparked a revolution in music. Laus Polyphoniae 2025 is the story of the cathedral builders. Of the immense structures that redrew the skyline of European cities and the towers that touched the clouds, looking out over a new era. Of gravity-defying arches and elegant stained-glass windows… and yet cathedrals were more than just a delight to the eye. From the outset, they were laboratories for music-makers, places where the greatest composers and performers of their time forged the sound of the Middle Ages.

This year, Laus Polyphoniae will present music every bit as diverse as the architectural styles that give cathedrals their individual character. We will visit France, the Low Countries, England, Spain and Italy, calling in on different periods of mediaeval music history: the ‘old style’, or ars antiqua, with its search for new ways of notating rhythms; ars nova, in which polyphony became ever richer and more complex; and ars subtilior, with its exquisite musical renderings of outstanding poetry. We will also gaze out from the galleries, pinnacles and rose windows at the city squares, streets and palaces where troubadours and minnesingers gave voice to joy and sorrow.

Our summer festival is world famous for its generous programme featuring the best Belgian and international ensembles. And we are inestimably proud to present another dazzling bill: Huelgas Ensemble and graindelavoix tackle both old and new polyphony, Alla Francesca Jeune Ensemble returns to the period in which Notre-Dame was built, Hespèrion XXI explores the Marian devotions in the Llibre Vermell, and Gothic Voices performs music from English cathedrals. Then there is Mala Punica, on the trail of the Liège-based composer Johannes Ciconia, and a surprisingly rich array of mediaeval amorous escapades brought to us by Ensemble Micrologus, Le Miroir de Musique, Ensemble Céladon and ApotropaïK. And that is just a glimpse of things to come – like the mighty cathedral arches themselves, our programme inspires you to look further, deeper and higher, discovering surprising perspectives and intriguing details alongside familiar vistas.

Among the excellent venues where our concerts are held, you can visit old favourites such as AMUZ and various historical churches as well as discovering lesser-known treasures of Antwerp – have you ever been inside the Handelsbeurs or the Brabantse Olijfberg church? If we’ve done our work properly, the pieces of the puzzle will come together to reveal a panorama like nothing you have ever seen or heard before: the living tableau of a world where stones could sing and music stormed the gates of heaven.

Welcome!