Depreter, Jan

Known as “the Sound Painter” of the guitar for producing the most fascinating variety and scope in sound colours on the planet, Jan Depreter is considered among the top 10 of performing classical guitarists in the world today.

A graduate of the Lemmens Institute Leuven and the Royal Conservatories of Antwerp and The Hague, Depreter holds several Master Degrees in Music and is a prize-winner at more than 15 competitions from Tokyo to Paris, including top prizes in Alhambra, Paris, Tokyo, Vienna, as well as the Francisco Tárrega and Andrés Segovia competitions in Spain. After winning the prestigious Printemps de la Guitare international concerto competition he was awarded the gold medal of Queen Fabiola of Belgium.

Having played the stages of the Far and not-so-far East, both Americas, the Russian Federation, Australia and all throughout Europe, the only continent Depreter has not played is Antarctica. But he doubts the penguins would be interested.

Apart from the guitar, Depreter is also an accomplished baritone singer, pianist and lutenist. One day he intends to learn the bagpipes.

Depreter has performed for most ruling monarchs of Europe. Recent performances include successful tours in the U.S.A., the U.K., Germany, France, Portugal, Spain, the Tchaikovsky Hall in Moscow, and in his homeland Belgium, where every year since 2010 in November he founded, organises and hosts the most important event for the guitar in Northern Europe, the Antwerpen Gitaarfestival & International Guitar Competitions.