The pianist, musicologist and doctor of philosophy Alexandra van Gastel-Jud is to become the new Head of the Institute of Classical Music at the Basel University of Music FHNW. She will take up her post on November 1, 2024.
The University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland FHNW has appointed Dr. Alexandra van Gastel-Jud as the new head of the Institute of Classical Music at the Basel University of Music FHNW/Basel Academy of Music. She succeeds Prof. Thomas Thüring, who has headed the institute ad interim since summer 2022.
Alexandra van Gastel-Jud completed her first piano studies at the Basel University of Music in the class of Adrian Oetiker (teaching diploma 2004) and continued with Brigitte Meyer at the Haute École de Musique de Lausanne (concert diploma 2007). She then completed her studies in philosophy and musicology at the University of Zurich with a doctorate in philosophy.
The new head of the institute worked for several years as a music theater dramaturge at the Theater St. Gallen and has extensive university experience. She has headed the Institute for Classical and Sacred Music in the Department of Music at Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts since 2015. With her versatile knowledge in the artistic-practical environment as well as in the educational and research context, she is ideally equipped to lead the Institute of Classical Music - the largest and most heterogeneous at the Basel FHNW School of Music - into a sustainable future.
Stephan Schmidt, Director of the Basel University of Music FHNW/Musik-Akademie Basel, is delighted with the choice of Alexandra van Gastel-Jud: "We have succeeded in recruiting a well-connected leader in the music context with an artistic, educational and research profile to head the Institute of Classical Music. We are looking forward to our new colleague."
Alexandra van Gastel-Jud associates Basel not least with her very personal entry into the world of music: "Being able to return to this place is a great honor for me and means a lot to me personally. I want to work hard in Basel to ensure that music remains a place where people and their shared experiences take center stage. I consider it an important and very fulfilling task to work with a team to focus more on the human element through music in all its facets. I’m really looking forward to encouraging young people in their enthusiasm for music, opening up paths to the future for them and at the same time helping to shape Basel’s artistic environment."
