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Nicole De Paepe was born in Antwerp on July 11, 1958. Encouraged by the musical pursuits of her father, who played piano as a hobby, and her grandmother, who was an opera singer, she entered the music academy in Borgerhout at the age of eight, where she studied piano, cello, harmony, and chamber music. In 1974, she earned a distinction for piano at the Gunther Competition in Brussels and in 1977, she was awarded a government medal in Borgerhout. At the age of 14, she took the entrance exam at the Royal Flemish Music Conservatory in Antwerp, where she studied music theory, harmony, practical harmony, counterpoint, music analysis, music history, and art history. She specialized in piano and chamber music.
Passionate about music and guided by her intuition, she began composing at a young age. This continues to inspire her to this day.
For two years, she worked as a ballet accompanist. At 21, she became a
practical harmony teacher at the Royal Flemish Music Conservatory in
Antwerp, a position she held for 14 years. She retired to devote more time to raising her three children and to developing her career as a freelance pianist and composer.
As a pianist, she has accompanied various choirs, including
the Antwerp Philharmonic Choir (Philko), the Royal Mixed Choir Alma Musica, and the Don Bosco Choir in Hoboken. She is also regularly invited to accompany choirs such as the Sanseveria women’s choir in Duffel, the Edegem Family Choir, and, in the past, our Schola Gregoriana, Camerata Vocale, and Cantabile from Hove, among others. She has also accompanied soloists at various concerts and competitions at home and abroad.
Nicole also plays the organ, and you can hear her perform Bach interpretations as well as her own works. She has also performed in various churches in Antwerp, including those of St. James, Charles Borromeo, Christ the King, Pius X Wilrijk, the Holy Family, and St. Joseph in Hoboken.
From 2002 to the present, Nicole De Paepe has also participated in various (art) projects, such as the Night of Museums, the Summer of Antwerp, the Channel exhibition, the Golden Derailment on July 11, 2002, in Brussels, and the Galerie Utrecht in the Netherlands. She has also collaborated with cultural centers and given various private concerts.
Her music has been featured several times on numerous radio stations,
including Marc Brillouet’s Funiculi Funicula. Radio 2 presenter Els Broekmans has also interviewed her several times. Nicole is also actively involved in various concerts and accompaniments, including for German and Dutch television.
She has composed music for Antwerp legends and stories such as Brabo and Antigone, Lange Wapper, and Nello and Patrasche. In this final storytelling recital, she brings the story of A Dog of Flanders to life musically. Nicole sometimes collaborates with Milly Jennes, the driving force behind the puppet theatre Mirantibus, in this recital, acting out the story with her beautiful puppets.
Nicole previously recorded the CD Bagatelle in collaboration with violinist Marcel Andriesii.
She is working on new concerts with hornist Ernest Maes and cellist Viviane Abdelmalek, and new CDs featuring her compositions have been recorded.