20 June 1945
Roelof Vermeulen, head of the Acoustics Department at Philips Research Laboratories: “The fact that we consider radio receivers, phonograph players and sound film projectors as musical instruments is essential for our vision on the future of music […]”.
December 1952 – September 1958
Incidental productions of (radiophonic) works with electronics at Nederlandse Radio Unie (NRU).
April 1956
Temporary studio for electronic music at Philips Research Laboratories (in Room 306).
July 1956
Walter Maas establishes the Contactorgaan Elektronische Muziek (CEM).
August 1957
Temporary studio for electronic music at Philips Research Laboratories (in the demonstration hall).
September 1957
Studio for electronic music education at Technische Hogeschool (TH) Delft.
September 1957 – April 1958
Edgard Varèse works on Le poème électronique in a temporary studio for electronic music at Philips’ Electroacoustics Division (ELA).
October 1957 – October 1960
Studio for electronic music at Philips Research Laboratories (in Room 306).
May 1958 – October 1958
Le poème électronique performed in the Philips Pavilion at the Brussels World’s Fair.
November 1960
The studio for electronic music at Philips Research Laboratories is transferred to Rijks Universiteit Utrecht (RUU) and is now called Studio voor Elektronische Muziek (STEM).
January 1961
Studio at TH Delft closes.
June 1961
Studio fot electronic music education at CEM in Bilthoven.
December 1961
Dick Raaijmakers leaves STEM.
October 1962
First edition of the course for electronic music taught by Gottfried Michael Koenig and Jaap Vink starts at CEM in Bilthoven.
Roelof Vermeulen hands over STEM’s leadership to Henk Badings.
April 1963
Jan Boerman and Dick Raaijmakers establish their first private studio for electronic music in The Hague’s Daendelsstraat.
June 1963
First reconstruction of the studio at STEM in Utrecht completed.
August 1963
Jan Boerman and Dick Raaijmakers establish their second private studio for electronic music in The Hague’s Zuilingstraat.
September 1964
Gottfried Michael Koenig installed as Artistic Director at STEM in Utrecht.
April 1967
Official opening of the studio for electronic music at the Royal Conservatoire in The Hague.
October 1967
STEM in Utrecht is renamed “Institute of Sonology”, start of the first one-year course in Sonology, second reconstruction of the studios completed.
May 1971
DEC PDP-15 computer operational at the Institute of Sonology.
1980–1982
The Royal Conservatoire and the Institute of Sonology receive funding from the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science for a collaborative project, as a result of which the conservatoire’s educational programme “Muziekregistratie” was developed and a conservatoire studio for computer music was installed.
March–July 1986
The Institute of Sonology moves to the Royal Conservatoire in The Hague. Gottfried Michale Koenig retires, Stan Tempelaars becomes the new head.
October 1986
The Royal Conservatoire hosts the 12th International Computer Music Conference (ICMC).
September 1988
A four-year bachelor’s degree programme in Sonology starts.
January 1993
Opening of the new Sonology studios at the Royal Conservatoire.
September 1994
Konrad Boehmer becomes the new head of Sonology.
September 1998
Beginning of the Master of Music in Sonology degree programme.
May 2006
Konrad Boehmer retires, Kees Tazelaar becomes the new head of Sonology.
October 2008
Henk van der Meulen appointed director of the Royal Conservatoire.
December 2009
Partnership agreement between the Institute of Sonology and the Groupe de Recherches Musicales (GRM) in Paris.
September 2011
Beginning of the Instruments & Interfaces master’s programme with STEIM.
April 2012
Sonology organises the symposium Géométrie spatiale around the electroacoustic works of Iannis Xenakis.
April 2013
Sonology organises the symposium Composing Spaces: Spatial Music from Gabrieli to the 21st Century.
September 2014
Beginning of the Audio Communication & Sonology double degree master’s programme with Technische Universität Berlin.
November 2014
Sonology organises the symposium 50 Years of Electroacoustic and Computer Music Education.
March 2016
Trevor Wishart is the first Konrad Boehmer Visiting Professor at Sonology.
December 2016
Sonology organises the symposium Historically Informed Performance Practice of Electroacoustic Music.
May 2019
Sonology and ACPA organise the symposium Transformations of the Audible.
June 2021
End of the Instruments & Interfaces master’s programme with STEIM.
July 2021
The Institute of Sonology moves to the new Amare building in The Hague’s city centre.
January 2022
The Royal Conservatoire moves to the new Amare building in The Hague’s city centre.
April 2022
Sonology organises the Sounding the Spui open-air festival.
December 2022
Sonology organises the Contemporary Music Heritage Symposium in collaboration with the Konrad Boehmer Foundation and the Stichting Nederlands Muziek Instituut.
April 2023
Sonology organises the festival Composing Spaces 2: Space as Music’s Medium of transformation.
