Talent Tuner

Maik is a composer for film and TV and Executive Creative Director at Ambassadors. He approaches music for brands through the lens of a performing artist. His foundation lies in a decade of classical percussion followed by a degree in composition at the Pop Academy. Between 2000 and 2020 he built an extensive career as a producer and DJ for labels such as Universal and Spinnin’ performing on 1500 stages across the globe. This experience forms the bedrock of his current work for brands including Uber, Samsung and KPN where he blends technical discipline with a natural instinct for what resonates with a wide audience.

Melanie Esther is an Artist Branding and Social Media Coach: she coaches artists in finding and telling their unique story to accomplish a strong branding and social media strategy. She created her own method called ‘Find and Tell’ which she uses with artists to work on their Artist Branding, Fanbase, Visual Identity, Social Media Strategy and Release Content. With a lot of enthusiasm Melanie Esther works with all kinds of artists (famous and upcoming) and she has taken part in talks at events like ESNS, ADE, Popronde and No Man’s Land. Next to that she’s also an elective teacher at the Conservatory of Amsterdam Pop and AEMA.

Einar Ihle grew up in a musical family of educators and went on to build a career in composition, sound design, and sonic branding for radio, advertising, games, and installations. He has worked with clients and artists including BBC Radio 1, Audi, BMW, NASA, Google, Burger King, Post Malone, Wu-Tang Clan’s RZA, and Childish Gambino.

Steve Johnsen (1978) is a music producer, composer, musician, sound facilitator, DJ and creative entrepreneur with over 25 years of experience in music, sound and storytelling. As the founder of Never Square Music, he specializes in music and record production, songwriting and sonic branding. He has collaborated with clients including BBC, ASICS, Basic-Fit, Aidsfonds, KPN and ZDF across music, film and advertising. He also runs his own label, Never Square Records, supporting emerging artists and independent releases. Earlier in his career, Steve held production and executive roles at studios including MassiveMusic and Antfood. Alongside his commercial work, he is the co-founder of The Listening Space, where he explores the intersection of sound and wellbeing through immersive listening experiences and sound meditation journeys.

Ella founded Heron Music in 2020 with composer Guido Maat. Together they craft original soundtracks for fashion, advertising – working with clients like Rituals, Vinted and various feature film projects. They are closely connected to composers, artists and labels across the globe and deeply value those relationships. Their mission is to clear the grey area surrounding custom composition, creating more trust and freedom to benefit the creative process. As a result, they’ve built successful, lasting partnerships with a range of brands and advertising agencies. With a deep passion for the craft of original composition, Ella is always exploring new ways to support its makers in the years to come.

Darius Timmer is a keyboard player, composer, producer, mixing and mastering engineer. Together with Tessa Rose Jackson, he runs Tiny Tiger Studios in Amsterdam. As a composer, Darius has worked with many artists as well as filmmakers, among which are: Milou Gevers, Sara de Monchy, Pascal Lamche, Jonathan Elbers, Thomas Vroege, Laura Stek, Anais Lopez, Amazon Prime, David Spearing, HALAL, Witfilm, NTR, DOXY, VPRO, EO and many more. He has won several MIMA’s for his compositions. Recently he and Tessa have been working on a few feature films, though he has in the past worked on podcasts, tv shows, documentaries and theatre plays.

Tom Tukker is a producer, composer and music director from the Netherlands, specialized in music for media. He has over 10 years of experience as a music professional. He has provided music for commercials for, among others, UEFA, Nike, Adidas and Toyota, and developed the complete sonic branding for Odido, Jumbo and Picnic. Tom believes that music is the most intuitive art to take in and therefore the most powerful way to touch people’s heart.

Mees van der Velde is a Music Producer and A&R at the award-winning music agency Sizzer in Amsterdam. After studying Music for Media at the HKU University of the Arts Utrecht, he started his career composing for films and commercials. At Sizzer, he works across music production, creative direction, and talent development for international brands and campaigns. He collaborates closely with artists, producers, and composers to develop music-driven projects from concept to final delivery.