Historical Performance Cello Fellowship

The fellowship is offered to an experienced postgraduate musician who wishes to enhance their career as a performer, educator and in other areas of the profession.

Fellows play an active role and contribute to the educational and musical life of the department and wider Academy community. The recipient will have opportunities to develop their skills working closely with the Becket Chair of Historical Performance Professor Margaret Faultless and HP Administrator Dr Oliver Doyle.

The Historical Performance department engenders a lively atmosphere and collaborative approach. All students work alongside leading professors and performers on repertoire from the Middle Ages to the present day. They participate in dance, continuo, vocal and education workshops alongside seminars on performance practice, and have access to the Academy’s extensive collection of instruments.

The department has a high profile within the Academy, with performance opportunities including opera, orchestral projects, chamber music, consort playing and collaborations with some of the most eminent professional ensembles active today. Having completed a 15-year Bach Cantata series of concerts, a new Resounding Shores series explores English masterpieces from the late Elizabethan era to the end of the seventeenth century. Recent projects have been directed by Rachel Podger, Elizabeth Kenny, John Butt, Bjarte Eike, Laurence Cummings, Christoph Coin, and collaborations with The Juilliard School and the Paris Conservatoire.

The role will include:

• Playing for projects, chamber music, classes (performance, HIP, continuo, vocal elective) and examinations.
• Contributing to administrative tasks within HP or in a wider Academy context.
• Assisting elective/second study students (repertoire, chamber music, performance practice).
• Other activities depending on the areas of specialisation.

Candidates should demonstrate:

• A high level of performance.
• A strong HP background with knowledge of the literature and performance practice traditions.
• Experience in administration and teaching

Opportunities:

• To be part of the Academy community and contribute to one of the world’s leading conservatoires.
• Access to a range of Academy facilities, Library and resources (which may include the loan of an instrument)
• Informal advice and mentoring on early career development from senior staff at the Academy
• Working alongside Academy professors and external directors
• Creating projects and classes within the department
• Experience in coaching

Applications should be submitted by email to Dr Oliver Doyle at odoyle@ram.ac.uk

Applications should include:

• Your CV including experience relevant to the role
• A statement (c. 300 words) outlining what benefits you would bring to HP and the Academy and the ways in which you see the Fellowship contributing to your development as a musician.
• Contact details (email and telephone)
• Confirmation of your right to work in the UK (see below for more details)

Permission to work in the UK

All Academy appointments are subject to permission to work in the UK. You must hold a valid UK visa by the start date of the Fellowship (September 2026) in order to take up the position. If the relevant visa requirements are not in place by this date the Fellowship offer may be withdrawn.

Evidence of permission to work in the UK will need to be provided to Human Resources in advance of the start date of the Fellowship. Further information on the right to work in the UK is available from the Human Resources Department at hr@ram.ac.uk

Pay

The Fellow will receive a stipend of £6,000. As a Fellow, you will be an employee of the Academy and paid through the Academy payroll. Payments are made into a UK bank account and are subject to deductions of income tax and National Insurance where applicable. These payments can only be made once all necessary paperwork has been completed and may be delayed if the relevant forms are not submitted.

Fellows whose total gross earnings are less than the personal allowance reclaim their tax contributions at the end of the tax year by contacting HM Revenue and Customs.