Bachelor of Music with Honours

Principal Study 1 (40 credits)

Weekly one‑to‑one lessons developing core instrumental, vocal, or composition skills.

Ensembles 1 (20 credits)

Designed to foster creative musical collaborations and develop initiative, teamwork, and commitment. 

Chamber groups are formed in collaboration with the Head of Piano Chamber Music and the Head of Strings Chamber Music (for instrumentalists), and with the Deputy Head of Opera (for singers). Composers develop their collaborative skills through working with creative artists in art forms such as dance and film.

Regular tuition is delivered by a designated tutor and masterclasses with visiting artists, and students are additionally expected to rehearse together weekly. All ensembles are given frequent opportunities to perform and, where appropriate, compete in the RNCM’s chamber music prizes.

Artist Development 1 (20 credits)

Introduction to reflective practice, creative identity, and professional skill‑building. Through a series of lectures, seminars, and workshops, you’ll engage with relevant themes for your development as a musician, artist, and global citizen, with a view to supporting a sustainable and rewarding career. You’ll also examine the different situations facing today’s musicians and the role of skills such as creativity within a holistic outlook, encompassing reflection on all areas of your RNCM activity.

Areas to be explored may include creativity and its social, cultural, and financial values; how to reflect on personal skillsets and imagine future career options; the practicalities of being a professional musician, such as personal budgeting and generating an income; and the role of health and wellbeing in a rewarding professional life. You’ll also develop practical skills useful to a career in music, such as self-recording techniques and the production of audition/social media videos.

Music in Context 1 (20 credits)

Students are inspired to contextualise, review, and diversify their knowledge of Western art music and related music traditions through weekly lectures on a range of works, narratives, and moments of historical and cultural significance.

The module balances the contemporary conservatoire’s need to embed students’ pre‑existing knowledge of Western art music within a broader exploration of diverse repertoires and traditions, while also embracing opportunities to engage with key developments in diversity, inclusivity, purpose, and cultural meaning that shape the work of musicians today.

Additionally, online components in study strategies and academic integrity will support your preparation for assessment and careers. These include referencing and avoiding plagiarism, source types in music studies, and a library introduction to searching and sourcing knowledge.

Theory and Musicianship 1 (20 credits)

Through taught seminars (streamed according to both aural ability and principal study), you’ll develop your aural training, improvisation skills, and the theoretical knowledge that underpins them, along with analytical techniques that will inform and enhance interpretation. At the same time, a range of practical skills in notation, composition, music analysis, and arrangement will be deployed in a free-choice theory project in the second term.

Principal Study 2 (40 credits)

Continued one‑to‑one lessons advancing personal technical and artistic development. 

Ensembles 2 (20 credits)

Further ensemble work and coaching, including masterclasses and group performance. 

Artist Development 2 (20 credits)

Enhanced reflection, communication, and preparation for professional engagement. 

Music in Context 2 (20 credits)

Deeper exploration of musicological perspectives and repertoire.

Theory and Musicianship 2 (20 credits)

More advanced harmonic, analytical, aural, and improvisational skills.

Principal Study 3 (40 credits)

Advanced specialist training through one‑to‑one study. 

Performance Studies (20 credits)

Join cohort lectures which introduce key aspects of performance studies informed by practice and research at the forefront of the discipline. These comprise materials relevant to a variety of repertoire and performance practices, providing context for discussions and directions pursued in mixed-school, smaller seminar groups.

You’ll be encouraged to consider a spectrum of approaches relevant to your own practices while engaging with ideas and topics outside your immediate area(s) of specialism. Additionally, diversity and inclusion, cross-cultural awareness, and intersectionality will be discussed, including their implications for programming, audience engagement, and artistic creation. You’ll also take part in more focused seminar groups, led by specialist staff who’ll encourage you to apply concepts, methods, and techniques to the advancement of different areas of musical practice. Following this, you’ll have the chance to extend and apply your knowledge and understanding within a diversity of bespoke performance studies projects.

Professional Placement (20 credits)

All BMus (Hons) students undertake a professional placement during their studies. The RNCM has exceptional links to professional orchestras and institutions across the music industry, including the Hallé, BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, BBC Radio 3, Opera North, The Bridgewater Hall, One Education Music, and The Untold Orchestra, as well as specialist music for health organisations such as Jessie’s Fund and Songbirds Music and music education charities including the Olympias Music Foundation. 

Principal Study Elective (20 credits)

This optional module develops your artistry, technique, and professionalism in aspects of principal study. It will enable you to execute to a high standard a range of applied performance, composition, or pedagogy skills in professional and proto-professional contexts.

You’ll demonstrate independence, motivation, self-discipline, resilience, collaboration, and time-management through individual or group activities, and you’ll build the confidence to perform, compose, or teach to the standards demanded by the music and pedagogical professions in various settings.

Practical and Performance Electives (20 credits)

Choose practical and performance electives relating to and complementing your principal study work. These include conducting, chamber music, jazz improvisation, opera, and historical performance. Once you’re in your final year, you’ll also have the option to take an additional elective in an area of emerging specialism.

Principal Study 4 (40 or 60 credits)

Major final‑year study culminating in a high‑level performance or composition portfolio.

Creative Project (20 credits)

You’ll have the opportunity to design and lead a substantial creative project during your final year, allowing you to concentrate on personal interests and consolidate specific strands of the programme. Supported by a professional mentor, this unique opportunity enhances your initiative and employability, while building a portfolio of career-focused experiences. You’ll also benefit from parallel workshops on topics such as project management, curating an online presence, marketing and PR, and business skills including record-keeping and accounting.

Electives (40 or 60 credits)

Further specialist modules supporting career goals, artistic interests, and professional skill‑building.