ABOUT
Mees Vervuurt (2000) is a composer and director based in Amsterdam. He graduated from BA ‘Music & Performance Art’ and ‘Composition’ at Utrecht Conservatory in 2022.
Currently he works in the music, performance and theatre field in the Netherlands and abroad with his collective ‘Studio Vacuüm’, in which he moves among genres, roles and disciplines. His most recent works VACUÜM (2023), STABAT MATER (2022) and ‘Sometimes I visualize myself back in the belly of my mother’ (2021) are characteristic for their interdisciplinary, ambiguous character.
The stuttering of a voice, the moving atonal harmonies of howling wolves, or the ongoing falling harmonies of strings, are some examples of sound fascinations that Mees uses to research the dramaturgy of the concept.
By showing these inner worlds in a music, but also image and performance focused way, he attempts to show these creaking thoughts, causing the opening of a sometimes uncomfortable world that touches in the breaking moment of sound.
These performances are always site-specific, in which Mees researches a combination of (contemporary-classical) music, movement and space. The location is always one of the starting points for the performances he creates. It questions immediately why we are there, it reflects us on our being. Every reverb, echo, corner and history is unique. We háve to relate to the rules and laws of the space, we can’t ignore it.
Currently Mees is very much focused on the relationship between humans and the thing we call ’nature’. How we have become so detached from this earth, it’s movements, loudness and silence, while we are still always living on it (and with it) and are always a part of.
Right now Studio Vacuüm is working together with Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ in Amsterdam as their main partner.
Mees’ works have been performed at the Amsterdam Fringe Festival, O. Festival (Rotterdam), Tête-à-Tête Festival (London), Frascati Theatre (Amsterdam), Gaudeamus Festival (Utrecht).
Besides Mees’ own work, he created music for Peeping Tom, Het Nationale Theater (The National Theatre), TEN Productions, Koen Verheijden, Doris Vervuurt and Charlotte Gillain.
Mees studied Composition with Ned McGowan and Wiek Hijmans at Musician 3.0.
Click here for CV.
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