Well hello to you! Why have you come here? If you've come to listen to music, it's the right place! You wouldn't believe it though, would you? You're right, it's a bit unusual to have a farm converted into a concert hall! In the past, this really was a farm, with the manure heap in the middle of the yard and the livestock all around it. Can you imagine it? There were cowsheds, stables, a pigsty and a blacksmith. Oh well I could only look after my chickens for so long!
I sold my farm to the UCLouvain in 1969, but I was still able to farm my land for a few years afterwards. I left in 1977 because I could no longer bear sharing with this gang of students who had arrived in the meantime. I was the only farmer who was allowed to stay on the Lauzelle plateau. The other farms had been purchased to make way for the new town, except the Lauzelle farm in the north,. But it wasn't too bad. In the end it turned out well because my farm is looking so nice nowadays, it's been almost completely renovated. The new owners have made a good job of it!
Date created
- 12th Century.
- The Biéreau Farm Cultural Centre, a place for all kinds of music, was opened in 2005.
Management
A three-way non-profit organisation administered by the Ottignies-Louvain-la-Neuve town council, the university and the Wallonia-Brussels Federation.
Function
- Cultural centre specialising in music, open for literary events, conferences, workshops and exhibitions. All types of music can be heard here ; from jazz to world music,as well as classical and contemporary music.
- ANcient Meeting place for the residents' association of Louvain-la-Neuve
Characteristics
- Laid out in an enclosed square shape, typical of the large farms found in the Brabant.
- Large central rectangular courtyard, where in olden times the slurry pit had pride of place.
- Function: the main farmhouse on the south side, two wings of stables, sheds and a pigsty on the side, with a barn along the north side.
- Main entrance through the porch topped by a dovecote.
To begin with
- The Biéreau farm was one of the rare buildings left on the Lauzelle plateau before the UCLouvain built its university here. In the 12th century it was owned by the Cistercian monks of the Florival Abbey, and had a total of 134 hectares of land. It was built from wood and cob, masonry walls were added in 1722. The name “Biéreau” comes from the Wallonian word “bierwart“ that means “a wonderful view”, evoking the countryside which used to spread out in front of the farm.
To see
- The farm's courtyard, from where you can admire the different buildings of which it is composed.
- Located in the former cemetery behind the farmhouse is the Arboretum, or Botanical Gardens, with rare species.
- The small pond behind the farmhouse, by the side of the porch.
- The coat of arms of the Abbess Anne Josèphe de la Croix, framed in the farmhouse facade and which decorated the entrance door pediment before it was restored.
- On the front facade, along the Scavée du Biéreau, old sections of the wall in rubble stone and sandstone, no doubt dating from the 18th century.
The hidden side
Listed 17th century barn with a framework made from timber more than 300 years old, converted into a concert hall. The restoration related to acoustic insulation, as well as the installation of a huge stage, dressing room and a small reception area for the artists.
Artists' corner
In the Arboretum, Jocelyn Aubin designed the stone amphitheatre entitled “Concerto en bleu“ (Concerto in Blue), composed of around fifty stone blocks and inspired by the legend of the fairy Melusina.
The little extra
Just before going on stage, the singer Aaron was stuck in the lift with his band during the recording of the D6bels On Stage broadcast,. A small graffiti tag in the lift bears witness to this.
Practical information
www.fermedubiereau.be
