Henri Koch

François-Henri Koch, born in Liège on July 10, 1903, and passing away in the same city on June 2, 1969, was a distinguished Belgian violinist. His musical journey began at an early age, guided by Jean Quitin, the concertmaster of the Royal Theatre of Liège, who prepared him for the entrance exams to the Royal Conservatory of Liège. Koch was admitted in 1914 and quickly excelled, earning first prizes in solfège (1917), violin (1918), chamber music (1920), music history (1921), and harmony (1922). In 1923, he was awarded the Vermeil Medal for violin.

Koch’s career took off when he became the first concertmaster of the Royal Theatre Orchestra in Liège from 1925 to 1938. During his military service with the 1st Regiment of Guides in Brussels, he played in the Royal Guides Band under the direction of Arthur Prévost. After 1919, Koch also performed as the second violin in the Marcel Lejeune String Quartet. He moved to Paris in 1923 to further his studies with Maurice Hayot, a former student of the Paris Conservatory and concertmaster of the Conservatoire Concerts.

In Paris, Koch performed on various radio stations, including Radiola and Radio Paris, which marked the beginning of his career as a virtuoso. His talent was recognized when he won the prestigious Kreisler Prize in 1928. Koch was also a member of the Liège Quartet, alongside Jean Rogister, Joseph Beck, and Lydia Rogister-Schor, performing across Europe and the United States, including a notable performance at Carnegie Hall in New York.

In 1932, King Albert I of Belgium appointed Koch as a professor at the Royal Conservatory of Liège, where he taught until 1967. He also served as a professor at the Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel in Brussels from 1939 to 1944 and as the first violin in the Queen’s Quartet. Koch held the position of concertmaster for the Conservatory of Liège concerts from 1934, the Liège Philharmonic Orchestra from 1947 to 1969, and the Solistes de Liège, a chamber orchestra he founded in 1957.

Koch’s influence extended to his family, with his son Henri-Emmanuel Koch, who succeeded him as a professor of violin at the Royal Conservatory of Liège, and his grandson Philippe Koch, who is the first Konzertmeister of the Luxembourg Philharmonic Orchestra and a violin professor at the Royal Conservatory of Liège. The musical tradition continues with his great-granddaughter, Laurence Koch, who also pursues an international career as a violinist.

François-Henri Koch’s legacy is honoured in Liège with a bust sculpted by his friend, Vicomte Jacques de Biolley, and a street named after him. His recordings with the Liège Quartet and the Solistes de Liège remain highly sought after by collectors, especially in Japan, where they have been reissued on CD. His discography includes notable recordings such as Guillaume Lekeu’s Piano Quartet (1932) and César Franck’s Sonata for Piano and Violin in G Major (1957).

Source: Wikipedia