Adèle Colson
{{Short description|Belgian carillonneur (1905–1997)}}
Adèle Celestine Josephina Colson (24 February 1905 – 22 December 1997) was the first woman to graduate from the Royal Carillon School "Jef Denyn" in Mechelen, Belgium, and the first woman in the world to earn a professional carillon certification.
Life and career
Colson was born in Mechelen, Belgium, and studied voice and piano at the Mechelen Conservatory. In 1924 she enrolled at the Royal Carillon School. {{ill|Staf Nees|nl}} refused to teach her because he believed the carillon should not be played by women. As a result, she was taught by the director Jef Denyn himself.{{Cite web |last=Ramski |first=Tamara |date=July 28, 2016 |title=Finding Aid to the Anton Brees Carillon Library -- Indiv -- Colson, Adele |url=https://cdm16755.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16755coll3/id/811 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200222182533/https://cdm16755.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16755coll3/id/811 |archive-date=2020-02-22 |access-date= |website=Anton Brees Carillon Library}}
Colson earned her carillon diploma on August 10, 1929, performing a range of repertoire including Jef van Hoof's {{lang|la|Praeludium quasi una fantasia}}, an original piece she composed, and Matthias Vanden Gheyn's third carillon prelude. Due to gender discrimination, she was never able to find ongoing employment as a carillonist and famously tore up her diploma.{{Cite web|url=http://mechelen.mapt.be/wiki/Ad%C3%A8le_Colson|title=Adèle Colson - Mechelen Mapt|website=mechelen.mapt.be|access-date=2020-02-22}} In the 1970s, Royal Carillon School director Piet van den Broek reissued her diploma that is now preserved in the Anton Brees Carillon Library.
References
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External links
- [https://boktowergardens.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16755coll5/id/70/rec/1 Photograph of Adèle Colson (c1929)] in the Bok Tower Gardens Digital Collections
- [https://boktowergardens.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16755coll5/id/68/rec/2 Photograph of Adèle Colson looking at the camera (c1929)] in the Bok Tower Gardens Digital Collections
- [https://boktowergardens.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16755coll5/id/58/rec/3 Photograph of Adèle Colson's carillon diploma] in the Bok Tower Gardens Digital Collections
- [https://boktowergardens.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16755coll5/id/77/rec/4 Photograph of Adèle Colson with Jef Denyn] in the Bok Tower Gardens Digital Collections
- [https://www.regionalebeeldbank.be/beeldbank?searchFields=%22%5B%7B%5C%22name%5C%22%3A%5C%22Vrij%20zoeken%5C%22%2C%5C%22term%5C%22%3A%5C%22adele%20colson%5C%22%7D%5D%22 Digitized photographs of Adèle Colson in the Regionale Beeldbank of Mechelen, Bonheiden, Duffel, Sint-Katelijne-Waver and Zemst]
- [https://hcommons.org/deposits/item/hc:22491/ Catalogue of the Municipal Carillon Museum of Mechelen, Belgium]
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Category:Belgian classical pianists
Category:20th-century Belgian classical musicians
Category:20th-century Belgian women musicians
Category:Belgian women pianists
Category:Belgian women keyboardists