Lerinckx, Jos

Els Stevens after Michel Lejeune (translation: Jo Sneppe)

Jozef Philip Michel Antoine Lerinckx was born on 13 June 1920 in Halle. From 1934 tot 1938 he studied at the Preparatory Seminary in Mechelen. During that period he took private piano lessons from Biencourt, the conductor of a Mechelen salon orchestra that also accompanied films at the movie theatre. Here he got to know and to appreciate the modern light music current at that time. A few years later Lerinckx also took private harmony lessons from Henri Durieux. Edgard De Laet, later canon, selected him as assistant organist, giving him organ lessons free of charge.

In 1938 he started his first year of philosophy at the Mechelen St Joseph's Seminary. There Lerinckx set to music Vier witte eendjes (Four White Ducklings), a pleasant tune composed for the mobilised troops. As he was fascinated by all styles, a Gregorian work on jazz rhythm was peanuts to him. Such improvisations, however, were not always welcome to the teachers.

Lerinckx was ordained on Sunday 4 June 1944. After his philosophy and theology studies at the seminary, the diocese assigned the young priest to enrol at the Lemmens Institute, where subsequently he studied from 1944 to 1947, in 1946 obtaining the Laureate Degree for organ and in 1947 the Excellence Degree. Jules Van Nuffel requested him to continue his studies and to take the Lemmens-Tinel degree, which Lerinckx declined with all due respect. Nevertheless he asked the then director if he could perfect himself in fugue with Marinus de Jong, which was granted.

The prevailing liturgical constellation made sure that Lerinckx received a musical education in Gregorian and modern sacred music as well as classical polyphony, which was responsible for giving a special colour to his oeuvre.

Starting with the school year 1947 the bishopric appointed Lerinckx as a teacher of French and history at the Mechelen St Rombout's secondary school. This school's boys' choir was part of what had become the famous Mechelen cathedral choir, at that time led by Jules Van Nuffel. From 1947 on Lerinckx could work in the shadow of this masterly autodidact. It was his duty as repetiteur of the alto part and as accompanist-organist to help prepare the choir for big events in the cathedral.

In substitution for Jozef Joris, who had been appointed as director of the Lemmens Institute, Lerinckx was promoted to professor of liturgical music at Mechelen's Major Seminary (1963) and at the St Joseph's Seminary (1965-1970). In 1965 he also became teacher of liturgical choral music at John XXIII's Seminary as well as professor of Gregorian music and accompaniment of church and popular music at the Lemmens Institute (1965-1985).

Staf Nees was the one who advised him to compete in 1952 in a composition contest for carillon organised by the Mechelen carillon school. Though he was not really familiar with the instrument, his Variaties over het lied Het Waren Twee Conincskinderen (Variations on the song They were two Royal Children, 1952) was awarded the First Prize "Staf Nees". One year later the carillon school awarded the Second Prize "City of Mechelen" to his Passacaglia (1953) in the category "own composition".

In October 1971 Lerinckx enrolled at the Mechelen carillon school "Jef Denyn", where one of his teachers was Jef Rottiers. There on 25 July 1974 he obtained his final degree, on the occasion of which Lerinckx had set to music his carillon piece Impromptu in D minor. That same year he became assistant carilloneur in Halle after the city carilloneur Gaston Van den Bergh.

In 1983, spurred on by the American carilloneur Margo Halsted the Leuven University carillon was completely restored. On the occasion of the solemn inauguration Halsted wanted to edit a special anthology. At the request of the American carilloneur, Lerinckx was willing to assist in this publication. Looking for an appropriate theme he recalled his time as a student, which led him to Brahms' Academische Festouverture (Academic Feast Overture, 1879) also including the Gaudeamus. The Leuvens Beiaardboek (Leuven Carillon Book) that was published in 1983 contains 15 works, the first one being the Fantasy on Gaudeamus Igitur.

Lerinckx was a highly esteemed composer, who remained devoted to traditional values of harmonisation and melodic structure. He is also the man who in addition to his exquisite liturgical compositions and arrangements for brass also expressed his invincible joy of living in works such as Vier witte eendjes (Four White Ducklings, 1940) and Groeiende krachten (Growing Forces, 1952).