MA Musicology

Program Overview

The MA Musicology program at Royal Birmingham Conservatoire is designed for aspiring researchers, preparing them with advanced research skills and a comprehensive understanding of the field. It emphasizes professional and transferable skill development, allowing graduates to pursue diverse careers in teaching, management, administration, or performance within the music industry. The program's flexible structure enables customization and culminates in a dissertation showcasing the student's in-depth research project.

Program Outline

Degree Overview:

The MA Musicology program at Royal Birmingham Conservatoire offers a unique opportunity to pursue a research project within a lively and exciting Conservatoire environment. The flexible course allows students to tailor their program of study to their own needs and aspirations, and can be approached as preparation for a research degree in music. The program emphasizes the development of complementary skills and knowledge outside of a student's specialization, preparing them for a future career in teaching, managing, administering, or even maintaining a parallel career as a professional performer or composer.

Objectives:

• To develop advanced research skills and a broad knowledge of the field of musicology.
• To provide students with the knowledge and skills to engage critically with relevant scholarship, construct effective and well-supported arguments, and develop transferable skills.
• To prepare students for a career as a musician in the 21st century.
• To equip students with the skills and knowledge to successfully write and deliver their own conference paper on their chosen area of research.
• To enable students to undertake a sustained, in-depth, and theoretically-informed research project by exploring an area that is of personal interest to them.

Outline:

The MA Musicology program is structured around a student's own research interests and ensures they have the skills and knowledge needed to successfully negotiate and complete their research project. The program culminates in the submission of a dissertation or musicological equivalent, where students present their research project.

Core Modules:

• Career Development (20 credits): This module focuses on various aspects of a musician's professional development, including self-promotion, self-management, funding, and wellbeing.
It encourages students to reflect on their professional aspirations and formulate a plan to achieve their goals.
• Concepts in Musicology (20 credits): This module introduces students to key concepts and theoretical foundations of musicology, providing a broad knowledge of the field and enabling them to contextualize their own research or practice.
• Conference Paper (20 credits): This module equips students with the skills and knowledge to successfully write and deliver their own conference paper on their chosen area of research.
• Preparation for Research (20 credits): This module works in conjunction with Concepts in Musicology to assist in the formation, contextualization, and preliminary stages of work on the Dissertation.
• Dissertation (60 credits): The Dissertation is the culmination of the MA Musicology course.
Students demonstrate command of their chosen field of study by critically engaging with existing scholarship and developing an extended research project.

Optional Modules:

Students must successfully complete at least 40 credits from the following indicative list of optional modules:

• The Emerging Researcher:
• Research Project
• Critical Edition
• Lecture-Recital
• The Reflective Practioner
• Professional Development:
• Concepts in Musicology
• Contemporary Music Concepts and Practice
• Creative Interactive Music Technology Performance
• Critical Editing Techniques
• Documentation
• Experimental Performance in Context(s)
• Historical Instrument Performance
• Historical Performance Practice
• Independent Scholarship in Music
• Music and Ideas
• Music Technology Contexts
• Orchestration
• Performing and Producing in the Studio
• Professional Music Criticism
• Self-Promotion Project
• Teaching Matters: Principles and Practice
• Work Placement
• Writing Music for Media
• Music, Community and Wellbeing (BMus module)
• School of Art based:
• Art and Ecologies
• Contemporary Philosophy and Aesthetics
• Discourses in Art and Design
• Models and Methods of Curatorial Practice
• Queer Strategies in Practice
• Small Arts Business Set Up
• Social Practice in the Visual
• School of Media based:
• Live Events and Festival Management
• Social Media as Culture and Practice

Assessment:

The program is assessed through a variety of methods, including essays, presentations, portfolios, live performance, and sound recording.

Teaching:

Students learn through a variety of methods, ranging from one-to-one and small-group tutorials to workshops, seminars, lectures, and independent study. Support for research projects is provided by a supervisor/s who guide students as they develop their skills as independent researchers.

Careers:

The MA Musicology program prepares students for employment in various branches of the music profession, including teaching, managing, administering, and performing. The program also provides guidance in making strategic choices to enhance professional development and future employability.

Other:

• The Conservatoire team, which comprises a large number of research-active staff, has a vast array of expertise, allowing them to supervise a wide range of projects.
• Royal Birmingham Conservatoire also hosts a significant collection of historical instruments and welcomes studies with a focus on performance practice and/or critical editing.
• The Conservatoire has excellent library resources and opportunities to get involved with performance departments and the wider research community of students and staff through seminars, study days, social activities, and other events.
• Students who cannot meet the direct entry requirements can enter Birmingham City University International College (BCUIC) and begin their degree studies.

Annual and modular tuition fees shown are applicable to the first year of study. The University reserves the right to increase fees for subsequent years of study in line with increases in inflation (capped at 5%) or to reflect changes in Government funding policies or changes agreed by Parliament. View fees for continuing students. Award: MA Starting: Sep 2024 Mode Duration Fees Full Time 1 year £8,925 in 2024/25 Apply via UCAS Part Time 2 years Show fees Apply via UCAS £992 per 20 credits Year 1 - 80 credits Year 2 - 100 credits Fees for Part-time students This course can be studied on a Part-time study basis. The cost per year of study is based on credit requirements for that year. International students Annual and modular tuition fees shown are applicable to the first year of study. The University reserves the right to increase fees for subsequent years of study in line with increases in inflation (capped at 5%) or to reflect changes in Government funding policies or changes agreed by Parliament. View fees for continuing students. Award: MA Starting: Sep 2024 Mode Duration Fees Full Time 1 year £17,710 in 2024/25 Apply via UCAS