'I wanted to see my music move'
When Tim Meyer started the Composition for Film and Theatre programme, he mainly wanted to become a film composer. Four years later, he is graduating with a performance that brings together music, dance, film, light and installations. For this, he worked with students from the Dance Artist programme.
In his first year, Tim collaborated with dancers for the first time. That moment changed a lot for him. Until then, he had mainly thought from the perspective of composition: writing music, supporting scenes and strengthening stories. But when he saw dancers move to his music, a new world opened up. 'Music is something you hear and feel,” says Tim. “But with dance, it feels as if I can actually see my music.'
'I discovered how special it is to see my music come to life.'
That experience stayed with him. Tim picked up a camera, started making films and taking photographs, performed live and worked with makers from other artistic disciplines.
The freedom to explore
At Composition for Film and Theatre at ArtEZ Academy of Music in Arnhem, Tim first learned the basics: composing, arranging, orchestrating, producing and working with different musical styles. At times, that felt overwhelming. Ýou are given so many possibilities,' he says. 'But you also build the tools to create what you want to create.'
In the final years of his programme, Tim had more and more room to find his own direction. He could start projects, collaborate with students from other programmes and explore where his artistic practice was heading. 'ArtEZ doesn’t try to put a certain stamp on you,' he says. 'They look at who you are as a maker and help you develop that further.'
A graduation performance about creating together
For his final, Tim returns to the feeling he had when he was fourteen and making music: free, curious and without pressure from the outside world. He listened again to music that had moved him over the years. Then he started writing, without deciding in advance exactly what it had to become.
'The show is mainly a celebration of making art. Of creating, of being together and of living.'
His graduation work is both a concert and a performance. There is a band, dancers from the Dance Artist programme, film footage, light and fabric installations. Still, according to Tim, the show is not only about him: 'The show is mainly a celebration of making art,' he says. 'Of creating, of being together and of living.'
Collaboration is also central during rehearsals. Tim does not enter the studio with a fixed plan. He shares an idea and gives the dancers space to respond. 'I don’t want to say: this is what I want, and this is how it has to be. I want to discover together what can emerge.'
Building a collective
After graduation, Tim wants to continue with what he found at ArtEZ: making work with other people. His dream is to create a collective in which artists from different disciplines work together on projects they could not have made alone.
About Composition for Film and Theatre
In the Composition for Film and Theatre programme, you learn to compose for film, theatre and other forms. You also discover how music can connect with image, movement, space and performance. And perhaps most importantly: you get the time and tools to explore what kind of maker you want to become.
