Bert Van Thienen (born 1979) is well-known in Belgian banding. He studied at the conservatoires in Ghent, Brussels and Maastricht (NL): trumpet with Benny Wiame and Manu Mellaerts and conducting with, amongst others, Dirk Brossé and Norbert Nozy. Since 2001 he has held the post of 1st trumpet with the Royal Symphonic Band of the Belgian Guides. He is a man of much experience in different repertoires: opera (La Monnaie), symphonic music (l’Orchestre Philharmonique de Liège and Brussels Philharmonic) and chamber music (Prima La Musica and I Fiamminghi).
Bert’s brass banding achievements made him renowed outside the country. Until 2010 he played the soprano cornet with Brass Band Willebroek, multiple European Champions, under Frans Violet. In 2006 he was awarded the Best Instrumentalist Prize at the National Championships of Great Britain in the Royal Albert Hall with the YBS Band under the baton of professor David King. Other soloist successes were obtained on different occasions: winner of the Concours Internationale Jean Darlier 2003; laureate of the ARD Musikwettbewerb 2003 in Munich and finalist at the 3rd European Solo Competition for Brass Instruments 2004 in Glasgow. From 2008 until 2012 he played with the world famous Cory Band from Wales under Dr. Robert Childs. With this band he won the Best Soloist Prize at the 2011 European Brass Band Championship in Montreux.
As musician, conductor or adjudicator he travels around Europe and in 2013 he founded his own music publishing company ‘BVT Music’.