Michiel Braam appointed Director of ArtEZ Conservatorium in Arnhem
- Music
Arnhem, 24 November 2025 — The Executive Board of ArtEZ University of the Arts has appointed Michiel Braam as Director of ArtEZ Conservatorium in Arnhem, effective 1 December. Braam succeeds Laurien Timmermans, who recently joined the Executive Board. With this appointment, ArtEZ ensures strong and consistent further development of music education in the eastern Netherlands.
A powerful combination of innovation, craftsmanship and education
Over the past thirty years, Michiel Braam has played a key role in developing Pop and Jazz education in the Netherlands, alongside an extensive international career as a pianist, composer and bandleader. He has been awarded the Boy Edgar Prize and is widely praised for his experimental artistic practice. Under his leadership, the Jazz & Pop course in Arnhem has long been recognised as one of the best in the country, including an official Topopleiding rating and a large international student community.
In Arnhem, ArtEZ Conservatorium offers a Preparatory Music Course, the bachelor’s programmes Jazz & Pop, Composition for Film and Theatre and Music Theatre, as well as the Master of Music.
Michiel Braam: “I consider it an honor and I’m very much looking forward to, in this new role within the team, helping students further embrace their personality, including everything, and develop themselves from that core value; music is not an add-on, but an essential human need that resonates most deeply when artists fearlessly share their radically personal story.”
Jan van der Boon (Chair of the ArtEZ Executive Board): “With the appointment of Michiel Braam, we have a director who combines educational excellence with artistic innovation. He knows our programmes, brings a strong national and international network, and understands what students need in order to thrive in a hybrid professional field where the maker’s voice is central.”