Catherine Struys * classical guitar
Wouter Vercruysse * cello
"Catherine Struys and Wouter Vercruysse are two passionate people, opening up new avenues towards a repertoire that we did not even think could exist... A worthwile endeavor carried out by two inspired musicians with a strong technique and driven by a sense of profound poetry!" Laurent Graulus (Musiq'3 - December 2017)
In 2016 Catherine Struys and Wouter Vercruysse founded the Edenwood Duo based on the idea of bringing alive repertoire written originally for guitar and cello from the 1950s onwards.
The duo have followed masterclasses with Sophie Hallynck and Guy Danel and has been performing since its creation both in Belgium and abroad. They were awarded the second prize at the International Music Competition Léopold Bellan in Paris in November 2017. Passionate and committed musicians, they have developed a powerful and expressive language in service of the works they interpret.
The Edenwood Duo has made several recordings, including the world premiere of Alan Charlton's Suite for cello and guitar on the album Cloud and Mirrors (Et’Cetera Records, October 2019) and the works of Koshkin and Gismonti for the album The GCM Project (A Croch'Note Production). Their first complete album, Another Place (A Croch'Note Production), is a selection of works written originally for guitar and cello over the past 30 years.
Edenwood duo is ensemble in residence in Beeldenstorm, Centrum van Verbeelding, Anderlecht, Brussels, Belgium.
Edenwood duo is part of the catalog of artists recognized by the Wallonia-Brussels Federation (Tournées Art & Vie), code S.T.A.R. 8440.
About the musicians
Catherine Struys * guitar
Graduate of the Royal Conservatories of Music of Brussels and Liège (under the tutelage of Luc Vander Borght) and the IMEP (Master obtained with great distinction in the class of Maria-Nieves Mohino), Catherine Struys has perfected his mastery of the instrument with by Johan Fostier and Yves Storms as well as masterclasses with internationally renowned artists such as Eduardo Isaac, Susanne Mebes, Oscar Ghiglia, Pablo Marquez, Alvaro Pierri, Hopkinson Smith, Zoran Dukic, Roberto Aussel, Pavel Steidl, ...
Passionate about chamber music, she followed the teachings of André Siwy and Sophie Hallynck and perfected during masterclasses, notably with Guy Danel.
Catherine Struys performs regularly in Belgium and abroad as a soloist and chamber musician, notably in the Edenwood duet (with Wouter Vercruysse on cello), a duo who won a 2d prize at the Leopold Bellan International Competition in Paris in 2017.
Her debut album "Saudade", released in 2008, features 20th century Spanish and Latin American works for solo guitar. In 2014, Catherine Struys released a second album "Amasia" with the duo Escala (with Belgian cellist Stéphane Parent). The album "The GCM Project" released in October 2017 brings together chamber music with flute, cello and guitar. In December 2018 the album "Another Place" by duo Edenwood appeared.
Since 2014, Catherine Struys is artistic director for the festival Kaléidoscope de la Guitare (Rixensart - Belgium).
Wouter Vercruysse * cello
Wouter Vercruysse holds a Master of Music degree with highest distinction for cello at the Royal Conservatory of Ghent, where he was under the tutelage of Judith Ermert. Prior to his studies in Ghent, he had the privilege of studying with Jan Van Kelst at the Conservatory of Courtray. Armand Coeck has been Vercruysse's personal mentor, under whose tutelage he has been able to expand his skills as a guitarist, improviser, composer, and chamber musician. Just as well, he has taken masterclasses in cello from Yo-Yo Ma, Alexander Rudin, Alain Meunier, Jean-Guihen Queyras … and had chamber music coaching from Rainer Schmidt (Hagen Quartet) and Claus-Christian Schuster (Altenberg Trio of Vienna) among many others.
To his credit, he has won first prizes in the Belfius Classics and Rotary competitions and won with the St. George Quintet the chamber music competition Supernova Classics in 2016.
As a soloist and chamber musician, he has performed concerts in the world's most prestigious halls: Carnegie Hall of New York, the Shanghai Oriental Arts Center, Cité de la Musique in Paris, the Muziekgebouw aan 't IJ in Amsterdam, and the Bozar Center for Fine Arts in Brussels.
He shared the stage with classical guitarists Catherine Struys, Jan Depreter, Roberto Aussel, Atanas Ourkouzounov and Victor Villadangos among others, and is founding member of Edenwood Duo, Amici della Musica Quartet and the St. George Quintet. In the world music scene he performed with Yo-Yo Ma and the Silk Road Ensemble, Kudsi Erguner and Osama Abdulrasol.
