PhD position "Is the audience for classical music concerts fading out?"

The Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute (NIDI) invites applications for a  PhD position “Is the audience for classical music concerts fading out?”

The Project
For decades, concerns have been raised about the declining, ageing audience for classical music, with both scholars and policy makers suggesting it could lead to the art form’s decline. This project aims to explain the driving forces behind the ageing audience by developing an age-period-cohort perspective. The project harmonizes survey data collected over long time periods, collects new survey data about attendance, and analyzes longitudinal data on participation. Examples of questions that will be answered are: How can we disentangle age and cohort effects in order to predict the future course of the classical music audience? How can we understand cohort effects in terms of socialization in the parental home, ‘active ageing’, and historical changes in employment, family formation, and retirement? What is the role of life course transitions in different life domains (family, work), the effect of changing time restrictions and opportunities, and how do status-seeking concerns play a role? What is the role of inequality, and especially cultural capital and education, in the ageing of the classical music audience? The project pays explicit attention to what the findings mean for the classical music sector. The project communicates with the sector through presentations, reports, and publications intended for practitioner audiences. The project is funded by a grant from the National Science Foundation (NWO).

What will you be doing?
In this four-year project, you will:

• Carry out cutting-edge academic research within an international team of engaged researchers.

• Publish national and international journal articles, resulting in a PhD thesis.

• Participate in, and present at (inter-)national scientific meetings.

• Contribute to project dissemination activities and communications with the classical music sector.

• Collect new survey data on the (non)participation in various forms of classical music consumption.
  
  

What do we offer?
NIDI is a scientific research institute that employs PhD students, postdocs, and professors at all levels. NIDI is located in The Hague, a 10' walk from The Hague Central Station, situated in an historical building in the city center. NIDI employees work at least half of their work time on-site, a practice that fosters cohesion, creativity, and productivity. The work climate is based on mutual respect, openness, and direct contact. Many employees collaborate both across and within levels of seniority. Training the next generation by supervising PhD projects and guiding postdocs is one of the institute's key tasks, and NIDI prides itself on a tradition of close and successful supervision. NIDI participates in giving courses at universities, supervises national and international internships, and supervises master theses.

More information
The project teams consists of prof. Dr. Matthijs Kalmijn, prof. Dr. Kène Henkens, and Dr. Becky Arnold. For additional information, you may contact Matthijs Kalmijn (kalmijn@nidi.nl).

Application procedure
Candidates are invited to submit their application in English in a single PDF file. Applicants should include:

• Letter of motivation (max 1 page)

• Curriculum vitae 

• Copy of university BA and MA grades (transcript) 

• One sample of written work (master thesis, published article, or course paper)

• Names and contact details of one referee

The deadline for submitting your application is November 2, 2025. Interviews will be held in November. The starting date of the project is February 1, 2026. Alternative starting dates can be discussed.

About NIDI
The Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute (NIDI) is a leading European demographic research institute. NIDI is part of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW) and affiliated with the University of Groningen. It is located in the center of The Hague providing a unique and stimulating research environment in the broad field of population studies. Currently the staff of the institute consists of about 65 employees of different levels of seniority and organized in a rather horizontal structure within five thematic research groups. The working environment is highly international and NIDI provides ample opportunities for training and development.

Terms of employment
Depending on education and experience the minimum salary is 3.059 and the maximum salary is 3.881 gross per month for a full-time appointment (scale P cao Nederlandse Universiteiten/KNAW). This is exclusive of 8% vacation allowance, 8.3% year-end bonus, travel allowance, internet allowance, home working allowance and pension accrual with ABP.

The KNAW offers its staff an excellent package of secondary benefits. A package that meets the different needs of employees depending on their stage of life, lifestyle or career ambitions. For example, by working an extra two hours a week, it is possible to increase the number of days off from 29 to 41 days a year (with full-time employment). 

For a complete overview of the terms of employment, please refer to the web page: werken bij de KNAW.

Applying for a Certificate of Good Conduct can be part of the employment procedure.

Diversity & Inclusion
The KNAW considers a working environment in which everyone feels welcome and appreciated of great importance. A working environment in which attention is paid to individual quality and where development opportunities are paramount. Together we strive for an inclusive culture in which we embrace differences. We would therefore like to invite candidates who want to contribute to this through their background and experience. In the event of equal suitability, preference will be given to the candidate who thus enhances diversity within the Academy.

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