When Students Turn Music into Meaning

This article was written for Uncover magazine – From Global to Ground (10th edition). You can read the full magazine here. 

Authors: Fereshteh Adi Saatlo Anzures, Anastasiya Vaganova, and Merel Rietveld are lecturers at Live Music and Dance Events at Breda University of Applied Sciences.

Starting with purpose
At the core of this project was a clear and shared motivation. Students organised benefit events for Music Saves Ukraine, a non-profit organisation founded after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, run by concert promoters and cultural managers committed to keeping music alive in wartime.

Their work spans international partnerships with festivals like Lowlands and Sziget, collaborations with artists including Ed Sheeran, and a grant programme supporting music schools in war-affected regions. In 2025, that programme reached 100 schools, helping them repair bomb-damaged facilities, replace lost instruments, and install power stations to keep lessons running through blackouts. The funds gathered in this project contributed to purchasing instruments and materials, helping children maintain access to music education at a time when enrolment in Ukrainian music schools is rising sharply.

The connection between the course and this organisation was intentional. The aim was not only to teach students how to produce a live music event, but also to understand why it matters and how tangible impact can be when there is a real cause behind it. Working with Music Saves Ukraine made that visible in a way no classroom exercise could.

The need turned out to be much greater than expected. More schools applied than the programme could support, showing that only part of the demand was visible. At that moment, while searching for partners to help more schools, Music Saves Ukraine and the BUas specialisation Live Music & Dance Events found each other.

The students themselves were part of the decision from the start. Presented with a shortlist of five schools in need, they collectively chose where to direct their efforts. They chose Shpaniv School of Arts, a small village school whose enrolment had grown from 50 to nearly 300 as displaced families arrived from harder-hit regions of the country. That number stayed with them throughout the project.

When there is a real cause behind an event. Decisions feel different, budgets and partnerships matter more. And the final result carries weight beyond the night itself. The intention was for students to see themselves not only as event managers, but as people capable of creating tangible impact in difficult circumstances.

Learning by doing, and sometimes by fixing
The course is built around one central idea: you learn event production by actually producing a show. Students went through the full process, from concept development and planning to execution and evaluation. They worked in teams, collaborated with venues and stakeholders, and took responsibility for their own events.

Every decision in event production matters. It matters to someone and it has a real impact on people's experiences. For future event professionals, this also means finding purpose beyond profit and recognising the role events can play in creating meaning.

No production ever goes entirely according to plan. Timelines shift, expectations change, and unexpected challenges appear at the least convenient moments. That is not a flaw in the process; it is the process.

In this course, learning how to deal with uncertainty, refine and materialise ideas, and approach the right stakeholders was just as important as producing the Excel workbooks that keep everything on track. Meaningful education in this context is not always smooth. It can be messy, time-pressured and unforgiving, and that is precisely why it works.

“Café Cypher was a hip hop event that we organised as a team by trial and error. Because of our limited experience, the preparation was sometimes chaotic, but we learned a lot from it. During the event itself, unexpected situations came up, including delayed artists and missing equipment. By communicating well and staying solution-oriented, we managed to handle everything. In the end, we delivered a professional and successful event. The project was a valuable and practical preparation for our work placement.” (Maybel Meijer, second-year student).

Eight events, one collective impact
With the support of supervisors and the inspiration of guest lectures from professionals in the music industry, each student team developed and delivered its own event over an eight-week period. The teams staged eight distinct productions, each with its own identity, audience, and creative direction. Jazz, hip hop, rock, punk, techno, and carnival music took the stage across four cities. Together, they formed a diverse programme, all connected by a shared purpose.

The combined result was €10,000 raised for Music Saves Ukraine, funds that are already being used to support music schools, including the provision of new instruments. The value of this project is not in what was produced, but in what students had to become to make it happen.

What makes this structure particularly valuable is the balance between independence and collaboration. Each group operated autonomously yet contributed to a larger collective outcome. It reflects how the industry often works, where multiple stakeholders and teams align around a shared goal.

“It was great to see how such a diverse group, from complete beginners to students with event experience, came together to create something we were all proud of. Everyone brought their own strengths, and that is what made it work. For me, this really shows how powerful good collaboration can be.” (Renske Bloemers, second-year student).

What you do not see in the final result
The final number is clear and measurable. What is less visible is everything behind it. Designing a course like this requires long meetings where ideas slowly take shape, reaching out to partners, industry experts, and other stakeholders to ensure that the learning experience is as real as possible, while keeping it feasible within the allocated timeframe.

There are the discussions about budgets that never seem to stretch far enough. The last-minute adjustments that somehow always happen close to showtime. And then there is the moment when everything comes together, when the doors open, the audience arrives, and the event works. That is where the learning becomes tangible. Students do not just understand production. They experience it.

From student to producer
Projects like this reflect a broader shift in education, moving away from purely theoretical learning towards real-world application. Students develop both professional skills and a sense of responsibility. They learn that events are not just about logistics or entertainment, but about creating experiences that can have real impact. They begin to see themselves differently. Not just as students completing an assignment, but as people capable of turning an idea into something real.

“During production, we were given the opportunity to organise our own event. Because it was actually going to happen, it did not feel like a school assignment, but like something real that had to succeed. That made everyone extra motivated to create something meaningful. We arranged almost everything ourselves, and because of that, I learned so much about organising a real live music event. The day of the event was the highlight for me. Everything came together, and it was amazing to see something we had worked so hard on become reality.” (Maud van Turnhout, second-year student).

Perhaps this is the most important outcome. Not just the €10,000, but a group of students who now see themselves as part of an industry where ideas can become reality, and where events can contribute to something bigger than the event itself.

Photography
Jayden Rolling