Karel Stulens (*1997) is a Ghent-based composer of new arts and music. His works range from orchestral and chamber works, mainly with performative and multi-media components, to interactive video's.
Research and questions on stereotypes, traditionalism and institutional mechanisms are his foundations of creating new work. Stulens sees the concept of composing as working with components. By this, his work is often communicative with the global archive, phenomenons from our contemporary society as well as found footage (mainly from the internet).
In 2018, Karel Stulens was the first selected composer of the SOV Composer's Academy of Symfonieorkest Vlaanderen. With this selection came the creation of his first orchestra piece EXPIRED.
In 2019, this orchestra piece was selected to represent the Flemish Region at the World New Music Days 2020 in New Zealand. Due to the current global COVID-19 crisis, the festival is postponed to 2022.
In 2019, he was one of the selected composer's to write a new piece for The Interstring Project at the Crossroads International festival of Contemporary Music, Salzburg.
This piece became iPhone Ensemble. A performance-lecture in which the performing ensemble, guided by a Steve Jobs-like moderator, create endless new Neue Musik by using their iPhone's filled with stereotypical samples. iPhone Ensemble is a project Stulens is currently developing further in different formats.
Karel Stulens took part in many different courses e.a. the Darmstädter Ferienkurse, Champd'Action.LaBO, Bijloke Summer Academy, Musiques et Recherches etc...
Masterclasses given by Lisa Streich, Johannes Kreidler, Raphael Cendo, Lucia Ronchetti, Marco Ciciliani, Oscar Bettinson etc...
He is finishing his master degree in Composition at KASK & Conservatorium in 2020 under guidance of Dr. Daan Janssens.