Guildhall Artist Programme in Leadership

Contact: professionaldevelopment@gsmd.ac.uk

The Leadership Programme is designed to help professional arts practitioners meet the challenges of the future. It provides a unique opportunity for professional artists to extend the boundaries of performance practice and to explore different creative processes and ways of learning in a practical research environment.

The Programme, offered only on a part-time basis for Part One, provides a forum for skill-sharing, enabling students to develop further the fundamental skills for sustained personal, artistic and professional development in the areas of creative collaboration, flexible performance and communication. Students are encouraged to identify a personal pathway of professional development in artistic leadership, composition, performance and/or as a practising artist in a variety of artistic, cultural, community and educational settings.

Natasha Zielazinski

"The leadership programme at the Guildhall is unique amongst traditional conservatoire course offerings. The tutors and mentors have been inspiring, and I have found the faculty to be wonderfully supporting and integral to creating the feeling of community."
Natasha Zielazinski, Leadership

The Leadership Programme primarily provides a foundation for fundamental skills in creative collaboration, flexible performance and also communication/leadership skills. This includes a focus on improvisation; voice; body and percussion skills; exploration of non-European and folk-based approaches to arts practice; introduction to cross-arts collaboration; group composition; creative and repertoire-linked projects; performance and workshop-leading for different contexts.

Building on this experience, students will devise, direct and perform their own material in a variety of ensemble and community settings. Students are then given the opportunity to work on Inter-Disciplinary and Inter-Cultural Collaborations with artists and practitioners from a range of disciplines and backgrounds, culminating in performances of newly created work.

In the final semester, students will work on an Independent Practice Enquiry, where they are encouraged to develop and discuss in detail one aspect of their individual artistic identity. Supported by a mentoring framework, this individually structured, practice-based enquiry culminates in a final public presentation.

As a part of the course, students are entitled to two other electives, encouraging them to develop specific skills, attitudes and understanding in relation to their areas of specialism. These electives are taught in small groups and involve a combination of academic and experiential learning approaches.

In addition, placement opportunities are available in educational, community, healthcare and performing arts settings locally, nationally and internationally. There will also be opportunities for cross-disciplinary collaborations with the Royal College of Art, London Contemporary Dance School and the drama department at the Guildhall School as well as exchanges with students and professional practitioners from Europe, Africa, Asia and South America.

For more information regarding these partnerships, see Programmes of Collaboration.

Exceptional students on Part One of the Leadership Programme will also be given the opportunity to continue their studies into Part Two (Leadership Portfolio). Students undertake a portfolio of three substantial performance events as a Leader, Performer and Creator/Collaborator that are meant to strengthen their own artistic development in these three areas.

Department of Professional Development teaching staff

Auditions
Auditions for this course are held in February/March of the year of entry and include:

  • Instrumental or vocal performance and/or submission of a portfolio of compositions
  • Improvisation
  • Group activities (practical workshop; group discussion)
  • Individual interview