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‘The short’
The staggeringly versatile skill-set of NYC-based Dutch Singer, Educator, Psychologist and Artist-preneur Vivienne Aerts busts myths around the ‘Jill of all trades’ paradigm with a nonchalance that leaves even the most skeptical purist taking a bow. A Fulbright scholar and Suma Cum Laude Berklee alumna, her collaborators since have included some of the most iconic names in the world of jazz like Lee Konitz, Kenny Werner, Dave Liebman, Chris Potter, Peter Erskine, and Florian Weber. Since 2015, Vivienne has been residing in New York City where she has performed at venues including the Blue Note Jazz Club, Jazz Standard, Dizzy’s Club, Metropolitan Room, and Mezzrow. Her third award-winning album, Typuhthâng (2023), features 100 female musicians and comes with a bar of chocolate supporting Congolese female cacao farmers through a partnership with Original Beans. Known for her eclectic “Vervool” experience events with her husband, renowned pastry chef Ted Steinebach, Aerts’ interdisciplinary approach bridges music, psychology, and social impact. Since 2014, she has worked at Berklee College of Music, where she teaches a new wave of artists focused on mental well-being, addressing core issues that affect the arts ecosystem. Her innovative work spans mental health, education, and entrepreneurial artistry, challenging the status quo for creators and audiences alike. Up next is a new album ‘Current’ that she produced on a tiny sailboat, blending jazz, electronics, and vocal loops with water-inspired soundscapes.
Across all of this work, what defines Vivienne is a sustained interest in how sound, story, atmosphere, and human connection can create experiences with depth and resonance. Whether through an album, a multi-sensory dinner, a commissioned concept, a workshop, a podcast, or a public talk, her work is guided by curiosity, attentiveness, and a desire to create something people do not merely observe but genuinely feel.
Albums & Releases
Vivienne released her first album ‘Roofgarden’ in 2009, and her second album ‘Polaroid’ – a Jazz a cappella EP – followed in 2012. In 2018, Aerts spoke at the National Fulbright Conference in Mexico, two TEDx events, and sang on Kenny Werner’s 2019 Vinyl release “Church On Mars” with Dave Liebman, Terri Lyne Carrington, and James Genus for NewVelle records.
Her eclectic ‘experience’ events in collaboration with her husband, renowned pastry chef Ted Steinebach were the root of her multi-disciplinary approach to the making of her third album in March 2023, ‘Typuhthâng’, [type-of-thing] which features a 100 female musicians from around the globe, and also comes with a bar of bean-to-bar chocolate from Original Beans Chocolate, a company that pro-actively empowers female cacao farmers of Virunga State Park in Congo and contributes to reforesting the rainforest. The project received multiple awards and distinctions, including the Intercontinental Music Award and was covered in press like Jazzwise, BBC Radio, and Jazz Weekly.
Up next is her new album Current (Summer 2026), produced and recorded on a tiny sailboat. Blending jazz, electronics and vocals with water-inspired soundscapes, exploring themes of connection, and deep listening. An accompanying documentary offers an intimate glimpse into the making of this floating-studio project.
Compositions
Vivienne’s writing has been featured in diverse contexts ranging from music for the Netherland-America Foundation podcast to an original score for a theatrical production in Slovakia. She is also an accomplished vocal writer, contributing to projects by artists such as guitarist composer Noshir Mody and, most recently, Grammy Award winner Nicole Zuraitis.
Because of the experimental nature of her work, she was asked to compose and produce a library of 100 sounds for the augmented reality artwork Impulse, presented at the 404 International Festival of Art and Technology at CENART, Mexico.
Experience Design & Creative Strategist
Vivienne Aerts also works as an experience designer and creative strategist, developing concept-driven projects that translate story, identity, and atmosphere into something people can feel. Working across sound, performance, food, storytelling, and public space, she creates immersive experiences for brands, museums, cultural institutions, hospitality, and live audiences. Her work ranges from multisensory collaborations and large-scale edible performance pieces for Moooi, Original Beans Chocolate, Koppert Cress, and Museum De Lakenhal to cultural programming in unconventional spaces for the Dutch National Railroad and Leiden University. Across these projects, her role often lies in shaping the bigger picture: concept, mood, sensory language, and audience experience.
Multi-Sensory Edible Performance
Her performing life has also been closely tied to a multidisciplinary practice. Together with her husband, pastry chef Eleven Madison Park*** alumn Ted Steinebach, Aerts developed the multisensory performance project Vervool. Vervool is a non-existent Dutch word, a combination of ‘Feeling’ and ‘Fulfillment’; while Ted creates an edible painting using haute cuisine molecular techniques, he gets inspired by the soundscapes created by Vivienne using her voice, loops, iPad apps, and synthesizers, resulting in an ever-changing and newly improvised piece. The artwork is only temporary: it’s made to be eaten, giving the audience an essential role in the performance. The project has included the world’s largest musical pastry painting in Düsseldorf for an audience of 1,500 people, a feature on Japanese television’s NHK, a performance for Museum De Lakenhal centered around the 350th anniversary of Rembrandt’s passing. In 2020, Aerts was invited to speak at the National Fulbright Conference in Mexico about creating musical soundscapes and edible interdisciplinary improvisation.
Educator and Psychologist
After earning her Master’s in Clinical Psychology from Leiden University in 2010, she worked as a therapist in private practice and as a music therapist leading choirs for individuals with mental health conditions. She later created and taught Mindful Improvisation at Leiden University, combining mindfulness and creative expression. Through her coaching practice and masterclasses worldwide, Vivienne guides musicians to overcome mental blocks, unlock their authentic expression, and align artistic excellence with personal well-being.
Her background in psychology led, during her final Berklee semester in 2014, to her involvement with Berklee College of Music’s Effortless Mastery Institute, where she played a significant role in the development of its program. Within her faculty position, she has developed and teaches her own courses, such as Mindfulness-Related Techniques for the Performer, leads the Experimental Improvisation Ensemble, and has contributed to the development of a new generation of performers who are not only highly skilled but also mentally and physically healthy.
Vivienne has developed an expansive teaching and speaking practice that extends across improvisation, artistry, leadership, songwriting, recording, music business, emotion regulation, and mindful performance. Drawing on her background in clinical psychology, she coaches artists through workshops, masterclasses, and her Musician’s Equilibrium program, with a focus on resilience, balance, and creativity.
Conducting and arranging
Vivienne also earned her second Bachelor’s degree in Choir Conducting from the Haarlem Conservatory in the Netherlands, where she studied under Tijs Krammer. Following her studies, she spent over a decade directing a wide range of ensembles, from choirs to big bands, developing a reputation for her dynamic leadership and creative arrangements. Today, Vivienne works selectively as a consultant, arranger, and guest director for special projects.
Selected Venues
Vivienne has performed on stages like: Blue Note, Lincoln Center Dizzys Jazzclub, Jazz Standard, Birdland, Rockwood, Triad Theater, Arlene’s Grocery (NY), North Sea Jazz Festival (NL), Umbria Jazz Festival Italy, Kennedy Center DC, Cotton Club (Seoul South Korea), Castle of Chimay (Belgium), Tivoli Vredenburg (Utrecht NL), Goethe Institute Boston.
Selected Collaborators
Ambrose Akinmusire, Anat Cohen, Antonio Sanchez, Ari Hoenig, Billy Drewes, Bob Mover, Bob Moses, Bobby McFerrin, Chandrika Tandon, Chico Pinheiro, Chris Potter, Dan Block, Dan Weiss, Danilo Perez, Danny Walsh, Dave Gilmore, Dave Liebman, Florian Weber, George Garzone, Gregoire Maret, Hermine Deurloo, Jason Lindner, Jeen Rabs, Jernej Bervar, Joey Blake, Joe Cohn, Johannes Weidenmueller, John Patitucci, Jon Davis, Kenny Werner, Marcus Gilmore, Martijn van Iterson, Mike del Ferro, Nadje Noordhuis, Nicole Zuraitis, Nitai Hershkovitz, Noshir Mody, Or Bareket, Peter Erskine, Rachel Therrien, Rachel Z, Ratzo Harris, Rhiannon, Robin Koerts, Sara Caswell, Scott Colley, Terri Lynn Carrington, Vadim Neselovskyi, Zahili Zamorra and many more.
Awards
🏆 ICON award Intercontinental Music Awards (2025)🏆 Global Music Awards (2024) – two silver medals for best alternative jazz & best female vocal jazz – for album ‘Typuhthâng’ / 🏆 ChileMonos (2023) – First Price Best Animated Music Video at for ‘You’re my morning music video’ / 🏆 SMOF stop motion our fest (2023) – Jury mention, category short film for ‘You’re my morning music video’ / 🏆 World illustration awards (2023) – long-listed for best Artwork Typuhthâng / 🏆 Premios Quirino (2024) mejor video clip nomination / 🏆 International Songwriting Competition (2024) – Semi finalist in two categories: jazz & music video for the album ‘Typuhthâng’ / 🏆 Netherland America Foundation Cultural Grant (2021) / 🏆 SENA music producers grant (2020) / 🏆 Fulbright Scholar (2012) / 🏆 Prins Bernhard Cultuurfonds (2014) / 🏆 VSB fonds – Dutch study grant (2012) / 🏆 Co Verhoog Prize (2011) / 🏆 Zoetermeer Jazz Award (2010) / 🏆 Umbria jazz scholarship award (2007) / 🏆 Book History Jazz Leiden, NL (2008) / 🏆 Book Pictures Culture-makers (2012) / 🏆 Picture Book Musicians Leiden (2017)
Memberships & Advisory Roles
Beyond her performances, Vivienne consistently gives back through advisory board memberships and consulting roles, including as a voting member of the Recording Academy (NARAS) where she participates in the Grammy Awards voting process and serves as a mentor in the GrammyU mentorship program. She also serves on the Netherland-America Foundation’s Education Committee contributing to the awarding of NAF-Fulbright Fellowships and supporting initiatives in the arts, business, public policy, and historic preservation. Furthermore, she is a member of the Foundation’s Board of Advisors. She is the VP of the Dutch Association for Voice Teachers board (NVZ). Previously, Vivienne served on the board of BIMpro, the Dutch professional association for improvising musicians, and was Vice President of the Fulbright Greater New York Alumni board for eight years. She is currently affiliated with several organizations including Women in Music (WIM), the International Society of Jazz Arrangers & Composers (ISJAC), the Society of Composers & Lyricists (SCL) BUMA/STEMRA and SENA Netherlands
Selected collaborators, clients, and institutions
