WMC Kerkrade Appoints New Supervisory Board Members

December 27, 2024 – The World Music Contest (WMC) in Kerkrade has appointed two new members to its Supervisory Board: Ms. Godelieve Stratermans and Mr. Lars Schmitz. With their arrival, the Supervisory Board, established as part of the governance model renewal initiated in 2023, is now complete.

The appointment of the new Supervisory Board members follows a thorough recruitment and selection process. They join at a pivotal time as WMC prepares for the next edition of the world-renowned wind music festival in 2026.

New Members Bring Valuable Expertise
The addition of these members completes the Supervisory Board and enhances its expertise:

Godelieve Stratermans is an accountant with extensive experience at international accountancy firms and through her own firm, ZIJ-SPAN. She has held Supervisory Board positions at Opera Zuid, Huis voor de Kunsten Limburg, and Blazen aan het Spui. Additionally, she has been an active amateur musician in the hafabra community for over 25 years.

Lars Schmitz is the owner and CEO of Etesian IT Consulting. With a wealth of experience managing business processes and IT projects, he has also held leadership roles in various organizations in and around Kerkrade and served as a board advisor for TopVintage.

WMC is delighted with the appointment of these new Supervisory Board members and is confident their contributions will be invaluable to the further development of the festival and the foundation. Maurice Sijben has decided to step down from the Supervisory Board for personal reasons. The WMC board and organization thank Maurice for his dedication and commitment. Leonie Heezemans has taken over the chairmanship on an interim basis.

WMC 2026: Preparations in Full Swing
With the Supervisory Board now complete and strengthened by its diverse expertise, support for and oversight of the managing director and organization is well-established. This enables WMC to look forward to a successful future for the festival, which attracts thousands of music enthusiasts from the Netherlands and abroad and serves as an unparalleled meeting place for musical culture.