After initially starting his career in the world of classical music, Gaël Rassaert gradually drifted towards the contemporary music scene with multidisciplinary projects that cross musical aesthetics. He studied violin under Elizabeth Balmas and Claire Bernard at the Conservatoire National Supérieur Musique et Danse de Lyon, focussing on harmony and orchestration, and graduating in 1995.
Keen to meet other virtuoso musicians, he went to Utrecht in The Netherlands to study under Philip Hirshhorn, whose exceptional talent left a strong impression. He then completed his studies in Aachen, Germany, under Charles-André Linale. He is influenced by artists such as Menahem Pressler, György Kurtág and even members of the Amadeus Quartet, from whom he also received advice.
Gaël has won several chamber music competitions. He has performed as a trio and quartet in many countries (France, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Portugal, India, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Thailand, Venezuela, the West Indies and the USA), and plays in both a string sextet and octet.
Gaël is passionate about knowledge sharing and teaching. He regularly leads educational projects with string students from conservatoires and music schools, which for him is a way of giving something back to the next generation of young musicians and keeping abreast with other tutors.
Gaël Rassaert was a member of European Camerata lead by violinist Laurent Quenelle, and violin soloist with the Orchestre Chalon-Bourgogne. Together, these various experiences motivated him to create La Camerata string orchestra in 2004, taking on the musical and artistic direction.
He joined the Ensemble Orchestral Contemporain as a violin soloist in 2007, under the baton of Daniel Kawka. This 15-strong orchestra boldly rediscovers repertoires from the beginning of the 20th century to present day, along with commissions from composers and monograph recordings (Hugues Dufour, Pierre Boulez, Ondrej Adamek). B-Partita by Philippe Manoury was written for a violin solo, an ensemble and music informatics, and was released in May 2019 on the Austrian label Col Legno. At the end of 2020, he also performed the violin solo part with the same ensemble in Edith Canat de Chisy’s concerto Missing II, under the baton of the new artistic director, Bruno Mantovani.
He is a violinist with Ensemble Darcos in Portugal, with composer Nuno Côrte-Real as music director. Together with the ensemble, he regularly pays concerts for Portuguese radio and television, and has recorded several albums (Volupia, Mirror of the Soul, Agora Muda Tudo, Cante, Florbela/Porter).
As well as being a chamber musician, soloist and music director, Gaël Rassaert is often invited to play soloist for the Orchestre National de Lyon, Opéra National de Lyon and Orchestre des Pays de Savoie.