Christian
Leroy

Composer, pianist, silent film accompanist. He writes for silent cinema and performs mostly with his ensemble Metarythmes de l'air.

With Philippe Saucez (clarinets), Piet Van Bockstal (oboe) and Jeannot Gillis (violin).

Book a film concertSee the scores
Rehearsal on piano and melodica in an empty hall
01
Film concert, “The Fall of the House of Usher”
02
Film concert, Nanook of the North
03
At the keyboard in a church, reflected in the piano
04
Four musicians in black and white
05
Laurel and Hardy film concert in a church
06
Rehearsal, piano lid open
07
Film concert at the FIFAV festival, 2021
08
Rehearsal at the keyboard in front of a projection
09

Silent film, played live.

Christian Leroy at the keyboard, in concert
Photo: Jean Michel Cousseaud

Born in Belgium in 1952, Christian Leroy has accompanied silent films since the start of his career. As improviser or composer, he has worked through the silent repertoire on nearly 200 films.

200films accompanied
40years of creation
50film scores

Invited to festivals and national stages in Italy, France, Ireland, the Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, Tunisia, Romania, Bulgaria, Morocco, Syria, Egypt, Cameroon, Algeria, Spain, Corsica and the Americas.

Film concerts, an introduction · YouTube video, loaded only when you click

Scores

Scroll sideways. From the first Dracula in 1994 to Tabu in 2023.

1994

Dracula

Tod Browning

1997

Nanook of the North

Robert Flaherty

2003

The Last Laugh

F. W. Murnau

2005

Cenere

Febo Mari, 1916

2006

I Was Born, But…

Yasujirō Ozu

2007

The Adventures of Prince Achmed

with Irène Jacob

2008

The Passion of Joan of Arc

Dreyer, for organ

2010

El Sexto Sentido

Manuel Sobrevilla

2011

Beauty and the Beast

Cocteau, with P. Ducourtioux

2013

The Pioneers

13 short films, CNC

2015

Au bonheur des dames

Julien Duvivier

2016

Sherlock Jr.

Buster Keaton

2017

Seven Chances · A Trip to the Moon

Keaton · Méliès

2018

Sunrise

F. W. Murnau, 1927

2019

Coups de génie

Laurel and Hardy

2023

Tabu

Murnau and Flaherty

In progress: Dziga Vertov's Man with a Movie Camera. Beyond silent film, some fifty scores for animation, documentaries and auteur cinema, awarded in Rome, New York, Cannes, Berlin, Annecy, Bogotá and Namur.

Artistic collaborations

Musicians

Other disciplines

Painters

Sculptors

Some fifty scores for the theatre, written for directors including:

Founder of the Belgisch Pianokwartet. Works released on Polydor, Igloo, EMI, Gega New and Cristal Records.

Awards

Teaching and training

For many years, Christian Leroy has guided young people in writing music. Thousands of them, across many European countries, have written their own music, shared it and, often, heard it played in concert.

Working with young musicians around keyboards and a computer
Working with young musicians around keyboards and a computer
Young musicians in concert, on stage in front of an audience
Young musicians in concert, on stage in front of an audience
Classroom workshop around the computer
Classroom workshop around the computer
Live piano accompaniment of a silent film, in front of an audience
Live piano accompaniment of a silent film, in front of an audience
At the keyboard, in front of the computer and a projection
At the keyboard, in front of the computer and a projection

Who is it for?

  • Young people curious about music, trained or not: no prerequisites, just the wish to create.
  • Conservatoire students: a complement to traditional writing, linking instrument, score and computer.

His approach

Everyone starts from their own culture and taste. Computer music becomes a writing tool in its own right: you imagine, record, arrange, then put your work in front of real musicians. You learn to compose by doing, with a concrete goal: a performance before an audience.

What he offers

  • Introductory workshops in composition and computer music
  • Masterclasses and courses for conservatoire students
  • Residencies and creative projects before or after festivals
  • Programmes combining instrumental writing and digital tools

What young people take away

  • Turning an idea into music, from sketch to finished piece
  • The basics of music production software
  • Working with performers and presenting their work in public

Let’s talk about your project.

Listen and watch

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Sunrise / Tabu / NanookDuo with P. Ducourtioux