Tomas Serrien
Tomas Serrien writes about music, society, and philosophy . In 2015, he won the Geert Grote Pen, a thesis prize awarded to the best Dutch-language master’s thesis in philosophy. His thesis inspired his debut book Klank, which was published by Houtekiet in December 2017 and was very well received by the press.
In October 2019, the book Verdwaald in Verlichting ( Lost in Enlightenment) was published , which he wrote for Borgerhoff & Lamberigts in collaboration with imam Khalid Benhaddou and political philosopher Patrick Loobuyck.
In January 2020, he created the five-part podcast series De magie van het Luister (The Magic of Listening) , in collaboration with Klara and Concertgebouw Brugge. In September 2020, he created the podcast series Orentroost (Ear-comfort), in collaboration with Consouling Sounds. This series received a second season in 2021 .
In 2021 he provided the dramaturgy for the music theater ZELLE: Wenn es dunkel wird by the British-Chinese composer Jamie Man and the Swiss writer Peter Stamm.
In April 2022 the book Hoor was published by Houtekiet/VBK publishers . In this book Tomas tries to find out why we prefer to listen to sounds that sound familiar to us. He selected more than 130 hours of music for this purpose. Together with 10 other Dutch-language authors, he wrote the book Muziek zit tussen je oren (Music sits between your ears), which was published in June 2023 by Damon publishers . Tomas regularly gives lectures , works on various interdisciplinary projects around music experience, is the drummer for a number of music groups and helps a number of bands find performances in Belgium. Tomas has been working for the music collective BL!NDMAN since 2024 and works on commissions for various organizations in the music sector including Anima Eterna Brugge , Muziekcentrum De Bijloke and Ensemble Klang . Meanwhile, ideas for a new book on music philosophy are developing.
Tomas works on a freelance basis on commissions for various organisations in the music sector, including Anima Eterna Brugge, Muziekcentrum De Bijloke and Ensemble Klang. In between, ideas are maturing for a new book on the philosophy of music.
Since spring 2025, Tomas has been appointed as the new Artistic Director of BL!NDMAN. With his dramaturgical and philosophical profile, he continues to develop the collective’s almost 40-year-old sonic idiom by combining it with contemporary reflections on music and society.
His music-philosophical writings on sound perception actively feed into the future narrative he is developing for BL!NDMAN.
He connects BL!NDMAN’s unique sound to a coherent dramaturgical audience perspective, critical textual research, intensive and eclectic collaborations with new composers, and a contemporary approach to the identity of the musical quartet.
Tomas is responsible for translating BL!NDMAN’s DNA to a broader audience and is shaping a distinctive artistic vision that permeates all productions.
More information at www.tomasserrien.com
