Overview
The Academy’s postgraduate conducting course is internationally recognised as one of the foremost programmes for training conductors. The MMus follows the same programme as the MA but with the addition of a Master's project.
Our students have many opportunities to work with talented players and singers in a variety of settings, from two-piano workshops and intimate chamber ensembles to full symphony orchestra. Academy conductors work in a friendly, collaborative and focused environment which prepares them for professional conducting careers. The programme path (MA or MMus) can be discussed at the entrance interview and adjusted as appropriate, you are not tied to the option you choose when you submit your application in UCAS Conservatoires.
Classes and Activities
In addition to weekly individual lessons, as a conducting student at the Academy you will participate in:
Conducting and Baton Technique
You will learn and practise beating patterns, and the means to communicate your musical intentions through gesture.
Concerts and Collaborations
The Conducting Faculty regularly collaborates with departments across the Academy. You will work with singers from Royal Academy Opera and from the Vocal Faculty. You will work on twentieth-century and twenty-first-century repertoire, and on premieres of new works by Composition students. You will conduct a variety of ensembles in rehearsals, workshops and concerts within the Academy and have opportunities to organise your own projects.
Rehearsal Observation
The Academy regularly invites highly celebrated and famous conductors from all over the world to conduct orchestral and operatic performances with our students. You will have many opportunities to observe their rehearsals and often the Head of Conducting will organise lessons or discussions with visiting artists, which allows you to meet and interact with leading professionals.
Repertoire classes and Masterclasses
These take place throughout the year and students analyse, discuss and practise core repertoire under the guidance and expertise of Academy professors, Visiting Professors, composers and guest artists. You will study a broad range of styles including contemporary music, early music, concerto and mainstream repertoire.
Aural, Keyboard Skills and Score-reading
In these classes, you will be able to hone some practical skills necessary for good rehearsal technique, such as fluency in instrument transposition and baton technique, as well as studying important sources such as original manuscripts or personal scores belonging to conductors such as Sir Georg Solti, Sir Charles Mackerras and Sir Colin Davis. Keyboard skills are not an essential requirement for entry onto the programme but there are opportunities to develop these should you wish to do so.
Seminars
In addition to these regular classes and tutorials, a series of ‘professional development’ seminars are arranged, in which Academy professors and outside experts are invited to work with our conductors for example, in history and performance style, for analysis and for programme building and planning. There are also sessions with Nicholas Chalmers (Fernside Head of Choral Conducting) where you have a chance to gain experience in choral repertoire and conducting.
Entry Requirements
Academic Qualifications
You will usually hold a Bachelor's degree at lower second-class honours (2:2) or higher, or an international qualification of an equivalent standard. This degree is normally, but not necessarily, in music.
Written Requirements
Unlike the Master of Arts (MA) track, the Master of Music (MMus) requires you to submit an academic project proposal. This must be uploaded to your Acceptd application profile to demonstrate your readiness for academic research alongside performance.
See Entry Requirements for more information.
Auditions
We want you to view your audition as an opportunity to display your physical communication, leadership, and interpretive vision rather than a rigid test. Our panel is looking for your individual musical personality, your technical clarity, your potential for growth, and your deep connection to orchestral textures. Try to stay calm, rely on your inner ear, and show us how you inspire musicians.
The Master of Music (MMus) selection process for Orchestral Conducting is integrated into our postgraduate assessment framework. This allows candidates to demonstrate their artistic authority, analytical score mastery, ensemble communication, and capacity for postgraduate research through a intensive multi-stage audition and an academic evaluation.
Your Audition Repertoire & Process
The Orchestral Conducting selection procedure is demanding and requires careful navigation across multiple digital and live components.
Round 1: Digital Video Screening
All candidates must upload their first-round digital videos to the Acceptd portal under the "Conducting (Orchestral)" programme option. Your video submission must contain two distinct elements:
- Rehearsal or Performance Video: An original, recent video recording lasting between 10 and 20 minutes showing you conducting an ensemble or orchestra in the last 18 months. The footage should be filmed strictly from the players' view of the conductor and should ideally start from the beginning of pieces with no edits or cuts. Including some rehearsal footage alongside actual performance is highly encouraged. (If you cannot secure an orchestral ensemble, a piano arrangement is acceptable).
- The Silent Conducting Exercise: A separate video clip showing yourself conducting the first movement of Ravel's Suite: Ma Mère l'Oye (Mother Goose Suite) in complete silence. You must imagine the sound internally while demonstrating how you communicate your structural and musical intentions physically. You must not conduct along to a background recording, though you are welcome to sing or hum if it helps guide your gestures.
Round 2: Live Recall Assessments (London)
Candidates who successfully pass the pre-screening round will be invited to the Academy in London for a intensive two-day live assessment process:
- Day 1 - Wind Orchestra & Aural Tests: You will attend your allocated slot on the first day to undergo basic aural skills tests and conduct a live, small wind orchestra. The definitive repertoire list will be sent to selected candidates in advance; you must prepare all items, and the panel will choose the specific sections they want to see you conduct in the room. You will also sit an interview with the panel on this day.
- Day 2 - Two-Piano Session: Candidates who are shortlisted to proceed from Day 1 will be contacted that evening. On the morning of Day 2, you will complete a conducting session with two pianos mimicking orchestral textures, followed by a potential short follow-up interview. (Please note: You do not need to personally play the piano or any other instrument for your audition).
Postgraduate Academic & Application Profile
Because the Master of Music (MMus) is a research-led track that includes compulsory written components, critical portfolios, or a dissertation alongside your principal conducting studies, your application profile must satisfy both practical and academic benchmarks.
Your digital application profile on the Acceptd portal must contain:
- Concert Biography: A professional biography formatted precisely as you would provide for a formal concert programme (please note that this is a separate document from your standard CV).
- Curriculum Vitae (CV): A current copy of your CV detailing your formal musical background, degrees, conducting teachers, and past ensemble or masterclass experiences.
- Spoken English Introduction: A separate recorded video introduction between 3 and 5 minutes long. Presented in English, you must state your name, then talk about your musical background, training, professional ambitions, and your specific reasons for choosing to study conducting at the Academy.
- Written Material / Research Proposal: MMus candidates must submit examples of written work or a research proposal to demonstrate that they possess the critical writing and analytical skills required to undertake postgraduate academic research.
Please note: Your ultimate course placement remains flexible. Because the practical audition is identical for both pathways, all MMus candidates are automatically considered for the Master of Arts (MA) track. If the panel feels your conducting standard is excellent but your academic profile is better suited to a purely practical pathway, you may be offered an MA place instead. The programme pathway and choices can be discussed and adjusted with the panel during your assessment.
For more information see auditions.