Will Tura has Alzheimer’s and stops making music

AFPTura during the premiere of the musical Forget Barbara in which his songs can be heard

NOS Nieuws•vandaag, 18:06

Flemish singer Will Tura (82) stops making music. He suffers from Alzheimer’s disease and, according to his management, “needs all his strength to resist his disease as best as possible and to suppress the symptoms for as long as possible”.

Tura announced earlier this year that he would no longer perform, but did not say anything about his illness at the time. He then stated that he would continue to compose and play. So now he stops. His latest single Als Ik Kijk Kijk was released today and a compilation album will follow next month, which also includes the song.

Will knows what he wants

“Somewhere you have to put an end to it,” says the singer in a video released by his management. “I feel and understand that nothing lasts. I want to put it out in a sensible way,” he says of his illness and his latest issue. “That people realize: Will knows what he wants. And if he sees it that way, then he should do it that way.”

Tura is well known in Flanders, but was also successful in the Netherlands. His biggest hit is Lonely without you (1962), but he also had success in 1981 with Hopeless. The singer has more than a hundred albums to his name.

In Belgium Tura had many big hits. He also sang at the funerals of King Baudouin in 1993 and Queen Fabiola in 2014:

2014: Will Tura sings ‘Hope makes life’ at the funeral of Queen Fabiola of Belgium

Tura received several high Belgian awards. In 2001 he was elevated to the Belgian nobility. He was then awarded the title of knight.

At the moment, the musical Forget Barbara can be seen in Belgium. This includes Tura’s greatest hits. According to Studio 100, the company that produces the musical, more than 100,000 tickets for the musical have been sold so far.

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