WIM MERTENS

WIM MERTENS

After first working as a musicologist and radio producer, Wim Mertens started creating music in 1980. His first release, For Amusement Only, consisted only of the sound of pinball machines. It was followed by At Home-Not at Home (1981), Vergessen (1982), Struggle for Pleasure (1983) and Maximizing the Audience in 1984.

Over the past 40 years, he has developed his musical output into a carefully crafted personal language, writing for different ensembles. He has also composed for vocals and for symphony orchestra.

Today, Mertens has more than 70 albums to his name. In 2019, he released Inescapable (2019), a limited-edition box set that provides an overview of four decades. This was followed by The Gaze of the West (2020), Heroides (2022), Voice of the Living (2023) and Ranges of Robustness released in June 2024.

In his latest composition, Ranges of Robustness, Mertens explored the numerous forms and degrees of the notion of ‘robustness’. In only nine compositions, all variants are discussed, “in the way that our time requires”, in the words of Mertens. The contemporary symphonic approach is in line with today’s robust challenges. The first single was Polytics.

He regularly releases solo and ensemble albums, performing his melodical and lyrical compositions with ever-changing line-ups. His main achievements are Struggle for Pleasure (1982), Maximizing the Audience (1984), Time Passing (1987), Often a Bird (1996), Iris (1991), The Scene (1997), Old Katarakt (2007) and Polytics (2024).

His current performances feature music from his latest album, Ranges of Robustness, along with his best-known compositions.