Roel Meelkop
Roel Meelkop (1963) studied visual arts and art theory at the Willem de Kooning Academy in Rotterdam, The Netherlands. During a post-graduate course at the same academy he decided to dedicate his work to sound and music. His musical activities date back to the early eighties when he started post-industrial project THU20, together with Jac van Bussel, Peter Duimelinks, Jos Smolders and Guido Doesborg. Their working method included many discussions about how to compose and why. This period was crucial in forming his ideas and concepts about sound and how to organise it, but it was not until the mid nineties that he was able to fully realise these ideas. The purchase of a sampler and later a computer radically changed his possibilities of working with sound, offering infinitely more control and freedom.
Since then he has worked steadily on a body of sound work, most of which was recieved enthusiastically in the small but dedicated world of sound art. His other activities include working with Kapotte Muziek and GOEM, together with Frans de Waard and Peter Duimelinks, and organising sound events, mostly in Rotterdam.
Aside from releases, Meelkop creates site-specific sound installations and performance pieces in collaboration with other artists. He also creates sound tracks and environments for video, film and theatre.
His work is often described as nuanced, dynamic and sculptural, which seems to be a reflection of his training. Meelkop has never received any formal musical education and is mainly interested in structure, dynamics and timbre, more than tonality and rhythm.
