BACKGROUND

Often do I think of the words of the poet Robert Frost: ‘Two roads diverged in the woods and I — I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference.'

At 46, in the middle of a career in international management with a New York commercial bank and after several years with a petroleum company in Brussels, I arched back to my childhood aspiration of pursuing justice through art and music.

After reflecting on the causes of poverty and civil unrest in Africa, going back to colonialism, I left my job as head of the Africa Department of a large NYC banks and enrolled in the Western Michigan University Irving S. Gilmore School of Music. My wife supported my choice and helped me realize that simplicity and humility - not power and money - are core values. I reflected anew on the bike rides of my childhood, meandering from one First World War military cemetery to another - the fields of white crosses of Flanders Fields.

The first composition for large ensemble, “Of Barbed Wire and Red Roses” Op. 1b for large brass and timpani, was the result of reflections on the destruction caused by civil wars that I had witnessed while traveling a decade throughout in Africa. This Suite for brass was recognized with the Irving S. Gilmore Emerging Artist Award. Additional awards from the Arts Council of Greater Kalamazoo Arts Outreach Grant and the Pharmacia and Upjohn Foundation Grant, reinforced the choice to pursue music composition; to follow the road less traveled. . *** Besides the Concerto “Imagine New York” Op. 39 for piano, the large works include the Oratorio “Requiem for the Fallen” Op. 50 for soprano, choir, timpani and orchestra, inviting reflection on the losses of life due to war and violence, the Cantata “The Bells of Hope” Op. 63 inviting mutual respect and the end of all wars, and the Concerto Grosso “The Chant of the Last Forest” Op. 64, for l.h. percussion & melodic piano, percussion section and orchestra. The Concerto Grosso is about the destruction of the environment. . ***

Early on, I was not allowed to follow my passion for music because of the terrorizing Cold War context and because our parents were still traumatized by the memories of WW II and the enemy occupation. Instead, I obtained a degree in Chemistry from the University of Brussels, served in the Belgian military, worked several years for a European oil company and then earned an MBA from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

After a decade in NYC and West Africa for a commercial bank, I joined the faculty of a university in Michigan to teach international business, economics and finance. After the fall of the Berlin Wall, I worked for the US Agency for International Development and was assigned to the oversight of USAID activities in several central European countries.

This broad international exposure led to reflection on the humanity that binds us. I concluded that, rather than looking at the world through transactions, our communications must include a broader content of empathy and inclusiveness. I reflected again on the importance of art as a tool for understanding and enrolled in the Western Michigan University School of Music. Over the following years, I composed works focusing on social awareness and responsibility — the Oratorio ‘Requiem for the Fallen’, the ‘Organ Sonata’, the Piano Concerto ‘Imagine New York’, the Cantata ‘Tears of the Earth’ on Native American poetry about respect and its expanded version, the Cantata ‘The Bells of Hope’, the Toccata ‘Resolve and Pride’ for piano, and the Concerto Grosso ‘The Chant of the Last Forest’, for left hand piano, percussion & orchestra about the environment. . *** Following the 2019 premiere at Carnegie Hall of the final version of the Oratorio ‘Requiem for the Fallen’, two additional performances took place in Moscow (2020, 2021) as concerts for peace. In 2021, the short version of ‘Ave Maria’ was played at Saint Bechara Church in Jubail, Lebanon. In 2022, the ‘Ave’ and the ‘Organ Sonata’ were replayed in Graz, Austria, during a concert for peace supported by the American Embassy in Vienna. In 2023, the American Embassy in Moscow cosponsored a concert for peace at the Cathedral of the Roman Catholic Church of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary; the Ave Maria and the Organ Sonata opened the event. Two decades earlier, in 2002, the Organ Sonata had premiered at the First United Methodist Church in Kalamazoo, Michigan, in memory of the victims of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in New York City, Pennsylvania and northern Virginia. The Organ Sonata was played in 2004 at the Cathedral of Lectoure, France, in remembrance of 9-11. .  *** Other vocal works played in concert include the song cycle ‘Detours of Love’ for soprano and piano, the duets ‘Happiness’ for soprano, mezzo and piano, the song cycle ‘Yulia’ for soprano and string quartet and ‘Come Ye Who Love’ for soprano, horn and piano, commissioned by Michigan State University. The “Horn Call’ review of Come Ye Who Love reads: Emmanuel Dubois’ contribution is a hauntingly beautiful work with surprises. The moody opening solo is an extended cantabile, which is then joined by the voice in an interweaving tapestry [...]