Nadar Ensemble was founded in 2006 by a group of young musicians sharing a mutual interest and passion for contemporary music. The name for the ensemble was chosen as a reference to the real Nadar: the pseudonym of Gaspard-Félix Tournachon (1820-1910), whose multidisciplinarity and adventurous spirit the ensemble wishes to portray. The historical Nadar was a well-known photographer and balloonist, and also quite accomplished as a caricaturist, a spy, an art critic and much more. He regularly organized informal "salons" at which his contemporaries, artists, thinkers, writers and scientists were invited; thus creating a cross-disciplinary dialogue.
Nadar Ensemble has performed upon invitation at several important concert halls and festivals, both nationally and internationally. Examples include the Ars Musica in Brussels, Handelsbeurs in Ghent, deSingel in Antwerp, De Bijloke in Ghent, TRANSIT in Leuven, Concertgebouw Bruges, Harvest Festival in Denmark, the Internationale Ferienkurse für neue Musik Darmstadt (2010, 2012, 2014), Festival Musica in Strasbourg, Tzlil Meudcan in Tel Aviv, Blurred Edges in Hamburg, Rotterdam Philharmonic Gergiev Festival and the Donaueschinger Musiktage (2012, 2015), Acht Brücken in Köln, Forum Neue Musik Deutschlandradio, Tage fur Neue Musik in Zürich, Ultima Oslo, Muffathalle in München, Porgy and Bess in Wien, Open Music in Graz, Nowy Teatr in Warsaw, and Platforma in Moscow, reMusik in Saint-Petersburg.
Since 2010, Nadar coproduces a Summer Academy for young musicians (14+) in Sint-Niklaas, together with MATRIX [New Music Centre]. In 2015, this project was nominated for a YEAH! Award.
In the summer of 2014, the ensemble has performed for the third time at the Internationale Ferienkurse für Neue Musik Darmstadt (works by Stefan Prins and Michael Maierhof, in a project curated with American-Iraqi artist Wafaa Bilal). Recently, the ensemble premiered "RECHT", a music theater piece by Hannes Seidl and Daniel Kötter in Frankfurt (Mousonturm), Ghent (De Bijloke) and Berlin (MaerzMusik). During the 2015 Donaueschinger Musiktage, Nadar has premiered Mirror Box Extensions by Stefan Prins and Bluff by Michael Beil and Thierry Bruehl.
Recently, NEOS released a live recording of Nadar's 2012 concert at the Donaueschinger Musiktage with works by Kreidler, Prins, Pasovsky and Schedl. "EXIT F" by Michael Maierhof for four hot-air balloons and ensemble is released on Migrorecords, and "Fremdkörper #1" by Stefan Prins was released on a monographic CD on the label Sub Rosa. Nadar's recording of "In Hyper Intervals" will be featured on Johannes Kreidler's upcoming portrait CD at Wergo.
Over the past 10 years, Nadar has premiered more than 30 pieces by composers such as Malin Bang, Michael Beil, Vladimir Gorlinsky, Daan Janssens, Matthias Kranebitter, Johannes Kreidler, Dmitri Kourliandski, Michael Maierhof, Maximilian Marcoll, Yoav Pasovsky, Stefan Prins, Jorge Sánchez-Chiong, Klaus Schedl, Alexander Schubert, Martin Schüttler, Hannes Seidl and Daniel Kötter
Nadar currently has a 3-year partnership with Muziekcentrum De Bijloke Ghent. From 2017 on, Nadar was ensemble-in-residence at Concertgebouw Brugge and in 2021 they became ensemble-in-residence at deSingel.