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Explore our Music facilities with Guildhall students

Guildhall has a unique buzz and vibe to it…a great sense of community and friendliness

Rebecca Carson
BMus Flute

Guildhall has prepared me for a career in music therapy from searching for jobs to having brilliant work experience from the placements they chose for me

Emma Barber
MA Music Therapy

Guildhall had a crucial role in my success. The very high quality orchestral projects and masterclasses prepared me for professional life

Joao Seara
BMus Double Bass

Studying at the Guildhall School has been a life-changing and unforgettable adventure

Rebekah Carpio
MMus Clarinet (Orchestral Artistry)

The strong collaboration between departments has created a very special and supportive atmosphere

Meili Li
MMus Opera Studies

The teaching staff encourage the diversity that Guildhall is known for…there is something for everyone, regardless of style and influence

Oliver Leith
MMus Composition

Such incredible musicians and inspiring teachers and the opportunity to hear from world-class visiting artists has been invaluable

Vijay Prakash
MMus Jazz Trombone

During my time here, I organised an international conference based around my subject involving delegates from 4 continents

Emily Baines
DMus, ‘Mechanical Musical Instruments as a Source for Historical Performance’

In my first year, I was given the opportunity to play with the Britten-Pears Orchestra. We performed a number of concerts and our CD, recorded at one of those concerts, went on to win the BBC Music Magazine Award for Best Opera Recording.

Andrew McCoy
BMus Tenor Trombone

Working in pairs during the MA has helped me developer a deeper understanding of how opera composers work and how to spark their imaginations with a libretto.

Zoe Palmer (writer)
MA Opera Making and Writing

The relationship between the Barbican, BBC, and Guildhall is absolutely invaluable as it provides opportunities for students that cannot be found elsewhere.

Emiko Edwards
MPerf Piano

I feel that the people here really make the institution. I found Guildhall to be a really supportive environment that gave me room to explore, take risks, and mature as a mucisian, and as a human being.

Francesca Chiejina
MPerf Vocal Studies

Writing music for theatre has been a highlight of my time at Guildhall, as it has allowed me to explore an art form in which I have a great amount of interest and to work towards a professional finished product.

Alexander Hall
BMus Composition

Barbican is a key partner of Guildhall, and we can often get artists who perform there to do a masterclass or project with us, and we often do performances at Barbican events.

Ieva Vaitiekunaite
BMus Electronic Music

Whether it is in sit-in rehearsals, side-by-side projects or chamber orchestra sessions, the LSO players offer invaluable guidance and provide a glimpse of the exceptional standards we aspire towards.

Rees Webster
MPerf Oboe (Orchestral Artistry)

I was excited to cover a role in the UK premiere of Andrew Norman's 'A Trip to the Moon' in the Barbican, have a solo recital at LSO St Luke's and also to sing on the stage of Wigmore Hall.

Mirjam Mesak
MPerf Vocal Studies

I knew about the fantastic tutoring and resources, but the friendly and stimulating environment clinched it for me.

Eden Lonsdale
BMus Composition

I had the opportunity to play percussion with the Guildhall Studio Orchestra which gave me the chance to learn from, and play alongside, amazing senior players, as well as to perform with the incredible Liane Carroll.

Dave Adsett
BMus Jazz Drums

Guildhall is an institution that knows it has to be connected to the outside world - that's the key thing. It's not a bubble. It has roots in the city and in the world.

Jonathan Ferrucci
Artist Diploma Piano

One minute you could be playing in the Guildhall Studio Orchestra with jazz musicians, the next you could be playing in the opera pit, then the next minute you'll b e with actors doing the musical and then playing a symphony in the orchestra.

Millie Ashton
BMus Violin

The departmental philosophy of returning opera back to something that is essentially produced as part of a company is a really great thing.

Klara Kofen (writer)
MA Opera Making and Writing

The quality of teaching is amazingly high. With the guidance and help that I've been given, I feel my work has got dramatically better over a short space of time.

Lucy Armstrong (composer)
MA Opera Making and Writing

I set up a piano trio when I arrived, and we have weekly coaching with members of the Endellion Quartet and the faculty. It has been very rewarding.

Leo Popplewell
MMus Cello

It seemed like this was a place to go and experience a complete world of art and performance and see what happened - a place that really encouraged you to make things that you want to make.

Vittorio Angelone
BMus Percussion

Home > Music > Courses > Postgraduate > Guildhall Artist Programme > Performance
Masters in Performance

Guildhall Artist Masters in Performance

MMus/MPerf in Performance

Also Graduate Certificate (except Opera)

Strings | Wind | Brass | Percussion | Keyboard | Vocal Studies | Opera Studies* | Repetiteur | Piano Accompaniment | Chamber Music | Jazz | Historical Performance Practice | Orchestral Artistry

 

Introduction to the programme

  • Part One (MMus):
    One year full-time/two years part-time
  • Part Two (MPerf):
    One year full-time
    NB. Progression to Part Two is conditional on results from Part One
  • *Opera Studies is full-time only, and Part One takes two academic years.
  • 474 applications/105 places**

**2015/16 data for indicative purposes only

About the programme

Studying for a Guildhall Artist Masters in music performance prepares you for entry to the profession at the highest level. It gives you technical facility and musical flexibility, allowing you to explore and refine your individual artistic voice.

The programme is about developing as an intelligent musician and practitioner; challenging yourself and taking risks within your field of expertise. We respect your creativity and your desire to learn and will provide you with a learning environment that enables you to recognise, nurture, and increase your musical strengths.

As part of the Guildhall Artist Masters, there are great opportunities for professional exposure. You will study with at least one of our world-class professors. Your final recitals will be assessed by leading experts. You will work with internationally-renowned conductors and artists. And you will perform in some of the country’s finest venues.

Many specialisms within this programme work closely with our partner organisations, particularly the Orchestral Artistry specialism delivered in association with the London Symphony Orchestra. As part of this development process, you will receive feedback from a variety of sources. To ensure you gain self-reliance and the confidence to further your career, we prioritise individual study alongside enhancing your ability to independently evaluating of your own musical identity and growth, and guiding your gradual, independent engagement with the outside musical scene.

See our Principal Study pages for further information on instrument-specific tuition and performance opportunities.

Professional specialisms

Within the Performance pathway, students study one of our professional specialisms according to instrument and area of interest:

Advanced Instrumental Studies

(Strings, Wind, Brass, Percussion, Keyboard)

Intensive study for soloists and ensemble players

Chamber Music

(Strings, Wind, Brass, Percussion, Keyboard)

For pre-existing groups and individuals who wish to hone their skills in chamber music

Historical Performance Practice

Embracing music from the middle ages to the early romantic period

Jazz

Intensive specialism for instrumentalists and singers

Opera Studies

Our award-winning specialism offering advanced operatic training

Orchestral Artistry in association with the LSO

(Strings, Wind, Brass, Percussion)

Ground-breaking specialism placing students seeking a career in orchestral playing alongside LSO players and international artists.

Piano Accompaniment

Intensive study in collaborative pianism

Repetiteur

Specific repetiteur study for pianists within the Opera Department

Vocal Studies

Advanced study for singers who can specialise in areas of particular interest

Further information on our professional specialisms can be found in the Principal Study pages.

In Part One, in addition to your Principal Study work, you will explore fundamental learning areas that will contribute to your independent musical growth: Reflective Practice, which we believe is intrinsic to your artistic and professional development, and a choice of  electives, including further specialised work in Principal Study and other practical and academic courses.

Reflective Practice

This core module supports Masters students in making the transition from student to professional, providing resources and the space for students to develop goals and strategies as they progress through the programme. It encourages reflective thinking, helping students become independent and creative musicians. The module includes:

  • Lectures exploring topics such as: musical identities and contemporary professional pathways; effective strategies for coping with intensive demands on mind and body in performance; tools and processes of reflective practice; contemporary research interests of performers, composers and leaders
  • A short course on musical innovation and promotion
  • Discussion groups to complement these activities and offer the students peer support

Electives

Students choose two or three electives from the following:

  • Body matters
  • Chamber music
  • Classical studies
  • Collaborative practice: cross-arts contexts
  • Collaborative practice: education contexts
  • Composition for Media
  • Conducting
  • Contextual Studies: The Forbidden Saxophone
  • Electro-acoustic music
  • Historical performance: principles and research
  • Interpretation through improvisation
  • Jazz composition and arranging (for jazz students)
  • Jazz improvisation (for jazz students)
  • Music, Philosophy and the Arts
  • Opera and Theatre (for singers)
  • PianoWorks (for pianists)
  • Research Project
  • Song accompaniment (for pianists)
  • Techniques in Composition
  • Vocal Repertoire (for singers)
  • Voiceworks (for singers)
  • Wind, Brass & Percussion Additional Solo Recital

Read more about the electives.

Progressing to Part Two is conditional on successfully completing Part One and on meeting progression requirements in Principal Study.

In Part Two even more of your time is focused on your Principal Study in a way that increasingly reflects your personal artistic and professional ambitions.

Reflective practice continues to be an important facet of your learning and is developed through the Critique of Personal Development. To support the writing of a significant reflective document due towards the end of the year, Peer Presentations take on increased importance, allowing students to share practice, challenges, and strategies. Inspiration for these is offered through seminars run by the Music Department and the Research Department’s ResearchWorks series.

Find out more

Further information on audition requirements, open days, fees and funding, and how to apply.

Read more on Guildhall Artist Masters pathways: Orchestral Artistry, Composition, and range of electives.