the Deurne world premiere prep of BEYOND THE ENDLESS BLUE - Hardy Mertens (14-04-2026)

rehearsal at Cultuurcentrum Deurne, performance at Concertzaal Tilburg (19-04-2026) Koninklijke Harmonie Deurne (NL), conductor Martien Maas Beyond the Endless Blue poem by Hardy Mertens No footsteps mark the soil, yet the earth remembers the weight of dreams Mist drifts over the hills like the breath of something asleep, ancient and listening The sun never rises; it reveals itself slowly, as if shy of what it might awaken... Beyond the edge of the known world, the horizon shimmers with promise It pulses like a heartbeat, quiet, steady, patient Every dawn, it whispers to the wind in a language no one has ever learned but everyone once knew... The rivers lean toward it, bending their courses ever so slightly The trees grow taller in its direction, leaves trembling as though catching rumors carried by light Even the stars, when the night returns, seem to pause before dipping below that edge... And sometimes, just before the first bird sings, The air itself will hold its breath And something unseen will sigh in reply... No one has crossed that horizon Not because they could not… But because the world, in its quiet wisdom, Is not yet ready for the surprise it holds beyond...