About IASPM

The International Association for the Study of Popular Music, or IASPM, is the world’s largest (non-profit) organisation dedicated to the study of popular music, understood in its broadest meaning, from novelty and vaudeville to Christian Rock and K-pop to EDM and grime, and much more in between and beyond. IASPM has an interprofessional and interdisciplinary scope, and intends to act as a global network of popular music scholars from various disciplines (cultural studies, musicology, sociology, cultural anthropology, communication sciences, performance studies, economy, psychology, law,…), performing musicians (professional and amateur), and representatives from the popular music industries and media. For a more detailed mission statement, see the IASPM website.

IASPM currently counts fifteen local branches (please find a list with appropriate links here) and membership numbers run well into the hundreds. IASPM Benelux is the IASPM branch that represents the Netherlands and Flanders (the Dutch-speaking part of Belgium, the French-speaking part of Belgium is represented by IASPM Francophone d’Europe). In Flanders and the Netherlands, IASPM Benelux is the only academic organisation that unites local popular music scholars, from BA students to established professors. The Benelux branch is headed by a five-piece board comprising scholars from various institutions (Universiteit van Amsterdam, Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, Erasmus Universiteit Rotterdam, Universiteit Antwerpen) and from various disciplines (e.g. cultural and historical musicology, performance studies, cultural studies).

 The Executive Board

Our history

In issue 2 of volume 9 of the IASPM Journal (2019), our board member Melanie Schiller wrote a status quo (vadis) report on our branch, covering not only much of our history, but also the “current state of popular music studies and research in the Netherlands and Flanders as well as outlines some of its future challenges” (Schiller 2019). The entire essay can be read via this link, but we quote some of its sections below. When quoting or paraphrasing any of the content under ‘Our history’ and ‘Our activities,’ please reference the original work: Schiller, M. 2019. Popular Music Studies in the Low Countries: Status Quo Vadis IASPM Benelux. IASPM Journal 9 (2): 75–82. https://iaspmjournal.net/index.php/IASPM_Journal/article/view/965/pdf

Considering that the First International Conference on Popular Music Research (organized by Gerard Kempers) was held in Amsterdam in June 1981, and as a result of which IASPM was founded, it can be said that the Benelux have been fundamental to the association’s establishment and subsequent international growth from the very beginning (Tagg 2005). The local Benelux branch was established three years later (and officially registered at the chamber of commerce in 1987), which makes it one of the oldest local branches of the association. Since its early days, the branch and its members have always been active in international contexts and discourses, with a deep understanding of the transnational and transcultural character of popular music as cultural practice and as an object of academic study. Since the beginning, the aim has been to connect people involved in the study of popular music from different countries, disciplines, and professions – goals the IASPM Benelux branch is still committed to. This international orientation and transdisciplinary character of the branch is ideologically grounded but also pragmatically motivated; considering the size of the region, its geographic location, and the small scope of academics involved in popular music research in the Low Countries, exchanges beyond national, institutional and professional boundaries are essential for the field of popular music studies in the Benelux (Schiller 2019: 75).

Our activities

Since the turn of the century the branch has organized several international branch conferences in Amsterdam (2001), Haarlem (2010), Rotterdam (2014), in collaboration with the francophone branch in Luik (2015), and it is currently preparing the upcoming conference in Antwerp on the topic of “RE-peat, please” scheduled to take place in 2021. Besides these larger events and involvement in other IASPM activities like the 2017 international conference in Kassel and reviewing articles for IASPM Journal, the branch regularly organizes smaller workshops, study days and one-day symposia on specific topics like: “Dance Music and the Creative City” (Groningen 2011), “Sound, Gods and the Nation” (Amsterdam 2012), “Sonic Territories: POP and THE CITY” (Amsterdam 2013), “the local and the global in cultures of popular music” (Groningen 2014), or “Festival Cultures” (Groningen 2015) to name but a few. An important milestone for the Benelux branch was certainly also the publication of the volume Made in the Low Countries in the Routledge Studies in Popular Music series, edited by Lutgard Mutsaers and Gert Keunen (2017)

One of the priorities of the Benelux branch has been supporting and inspiring the young generation of popular music researchers. To that end, the branch has started a new conference series in 2016: the annual IASPM Benelux student conference (Groningen 2016, Amsterdam 2017, Rotterdam 2018, Utrecht 2019), which is organized in close collaboration with students to offer the next generation of popular music scholars valuable experiences in conference organization and participation, in presenting their work, receiving feedback and engaging in academic networking and exchange. Another cornerstone in promoting the study of popular music in the region has been the annual Popular Music Thesis Prize for the best Bachelor and Master thesis about popular music written in the Netherlands, awarded by a jury of music professionals, journalists, and academics from different disciplines; until 2016 awarded in collaboration with the Royal Society for Music History (KVNM), and since 2017 with the Association of Dutch Music Venues and Festival (VNPF) (Schiller 2019: 76). 

Branch Guidelines

As an official branch of IASPM, we follow the general statutes and rules (see https://www.iaspm.net/statutes-rules/). However, during our Annual General Meeting in 2021, we adopted some additional guidelines that provide a framework under which the Benelux branch can operate and which offer a sense of coherence and continuity for the future. These guidelines are non-binding and can be revised (and removed or added to).

Board organization

General information

Name: International Association for the Study of Popular Music

Kamer Van Koophandel (KvK) number: 40535489

Type of organisation: Rechtsvorm Vereniging met volledige rechtsbevoegdheid (in English: Association with full legal capacity)

Legally made up of (minimal) two ultimate beneficial owners (UBO) based on control registered in the KvK and with ING.

Signing authority per legal form: Gezamenlijk (in English: Joint)

Elections

• Every board member (except the student member) is elected for a three-year period (renewed candidacies are possible)

• The election takes place during the AGM

• Every registered IASPM Benelux member may vote in the election process

• Provided a board member resigns or their term comes to an end, then, prior to the AGM, a call (expression of interest) can  be launched for (a) new board member(s).

Function

• There are six distinct roles to be divided among the board members (note that these roles may overlap):

1. chair

2. general secretary

3. treasurer / membership secretary

4. (social) media manager

5. member-at-large

6. student member

• we strive to have a board member that can act as a representative of Belgium (and, if possible, the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg)

• every outgoing board (member) should ensure the smooth transition for the new board (member), for example by informing the new member of their responsibilities in running projects

• two board members (with a BSN, Dutch bank account and preferably Dutch phone number) will need to register as “bestuurders” on the branch’s registration with the Kamer van Koophandel (KVK). These same two members, one of which preferably is the treasurer / membership secretary), will jointly become responsible for administering the branch’s bank account (with ING Zakelijk). This is mandatory and the only legally binding element in these guidelines

Continued practices

As a branch, we strive to hold a minimum of continued practices:

• the annual Popular Music Thesis Prize (for students at Dutch, Belgian, or Luxembourgish institutions of higher education)

• the annual student conference (for BA or MA students, and PhD candidates studying at a Dutch, Belgian, or Luxembourgish institution of higher education)

• an Annual General (membership) Meeting

• regular popular music studies related activities such as research events or talks

• a recurring international conference held in the Netherlands, Belgium or Luxembourg

• an annual (digital) newsletter

• an online presence (e.g., website, social media)

• recurring (live or digital) board meetings

Student member

From the academic year 2021–22 on, we propose to add a student member to the board (thus raising the number of board members from five to six). This student member acts as a representative for all higher education students in the Benelux region devoted to popular music. Some specifics:

• the student membership is limited to one (academic) year

• the student member participates as a full member of the board with all respective rights and responsibilities, including voting rights, tasks like assisting with the organization of (live or digital) events and (social media) communication, as well as, specifically, the organization of the student conference. A formal call is to be launched each autumn, and expressions of interest should include as a minimum a motivation and (limited) cv

• based on the entries, the existing board will select the student member