Dr. Veerle Spronck

Biography

Veerle Spronck is a researcher at the Maastricht Centre for the Innovation of Classical Music (MCICM). She investigates the roles classical music plays in today's society. In July 2022, Veerle obtained her PhD from Maastricht University for her ethnographic study on innovation and participation in classical music practices entitled 'Listen Closely'. She analyzed how Dutch symphony orchestras experiment with the role of the audience to make practices socially and artistically relevant in new ways. During her PhD research, she collaborated with fellow researchers and orchestra staff to design public concert experiments called People's Salon, creating a learning model that changes orchestral practice. Veerle is continuing her efforts in organizing and designing concert experiments into 2023 and 2024. With an interdisciplinary background in Art History from Vrije Universiteit and Science & Technology Studies/Artistic Research at CAST (Maastricht University), she works ethnographically in practice-oriented research and engages in artistic experiments alongside artists, designers, musicians, theatre makers, and cultural institutions. Her research methods evolve as she moves to listen closely to particular practices. The results of her research are expressed through written texts, exhibitions, drawings, and developing études that are contextually appropriate. Veerle works at Maastricht University 10% of her time and is affiliated with HKU (University of the Arts Utrecht) as an associate professor focused on 'Valuable Entrepreneurship in the Arts', conducting research on the social value and impact of the arts, and coordinating the interdisciplinary minor 'Creative Research for Change'.

Research Interests