Singer-songwriter Silke Veld: "The Academy of Pop Music feels like family"
- Music
While she is taking the bachelor's course Academy of Pop Music at the ArtEZ Academy of Music in Enschede, Silke Veld is making a name for herself in the singer-songwriter industry. In this video story, she describes her vision, her experiences at ArtEZ, and her goals for the future, which she is determined to achieve. "I don't want to say that I never doubt or that I'm never afraid. Still, I find it a scarier idea that I didn't try something because it seemed too impossible."
About her future goals, Silke says: "Since the second year, I've been making this joke with the band... Our final goal is that we end up next to the Ziggo Dome. Because we're not sure if I can get on the stage as we don't know whether they have a ramp. So we want to end up next to the Ziggo Dome. But if we get the chance, we prefer to end up inside of it."
Anything is possible
"I've noticed that at ArtEZ there's an everything-is-possible mentality that I've always been very much in tune with. I think that's the only way to eventually get to where you want to be. ArtEZ is full of willing, sometimes slightly crazy, people who think outside the box, so that together you get things done that initially seemed unrealistic. This mindset has allowed me to get everything out of my years at the Academy of Pop Music."
Like family
Those 'slightly crazy people' at the Academy of Pop Music are like a family to Silke. She feels the freedom to be able to ask anyone anything. "The Academy of Pop Music has meant an awful lot to me. It brought me knowledge, network and opportunities. But above all, I have cool people around me here, who want to help me and with whom I always manage to take my music to a higher level. I want to keep doing that."
An excellent starting position
With the ArtEZ Academy of Pop Music course, you graduate with the right skills, expertise, experience, and network. The focus is on instrument skills, management, and education. This course is taught both physically and digitally as online education prepares you for future collaboration with international professionals. You also get to collaborate with students from the MediaMusic course; this opportunity provides you with more knowledge, extra facilities, and a larger network. Your graduation project is also your introduction to pop music. This can be a performance, an album, a label, or your own business. You can get started as a musician with your own label or in a booking office.
More information about the course
About Silke
Silke's debut single 'Waarheen' did not go unnoticed. She played it live at Qmusic, NPO Radio 2 and various pop festivals. And VPRO's music platform 3voor12 reports, "Silke's music has a 'Maaike Ouboter meets BLØF' like atmosphere, and is about all the normal and not so normal things in her life that she feels something about." In the spring of 2023, Silke’s debut EP is coming out. Before that, she’ll release two more singles.
