BA Music Degree

Overview & facilities

Students on our degree become part of a vibrant and supportive learning and research community, with enthusiastic and friendly staff who are active performers and composers as well as academics and musicologists.

The course will provide you with a firm foundation in music theory, performance, and cultural and historical context for the subject. The teaching groups tend to be small and interactive and the ethos of the course is practical where possible, with students choosing to specialise in either performance or composition from the second year.

The Allegri Quartet and Marmara Piano Trio are in residence to work with composition and performance students as well as a Visiting Professor of Piano (Martino Tirimo) and various Artists in Residence.

Content & modules

Modules

• Year 1

  Composition and Musicianship (30 Credits) - Compulsory

  This module aims to lay a firm foundation for further study of music through a range of specific musical skills, beginning with a focus on common-practice harmony from Renaissance to early Romanticism and moving to the study of salient techniques and aesthetics of early twentieth-century music in the second half of the module. It enables the student to develop: 1 A thorough knowledge of common- practice harmony and the styles and techniques of early twentieth-century music, an awareness of the fundamental musical elements and their inter-relationships, through processes of analysis and pastiche composition 2 Musicianship and aural skills 3 Aesthetic knowledge and understanding, especially of eighteenth-century Western repertoire and early twentieth-century styles. 4 Analytical skills

  Introduction to Ethnomusicology (30 Credits) - Compulsory

  The module aims to give students an introduction to ethnomusicology, surveying its history, methods, and methodologies; illustrating how ethnomusicology deals with world musics, classical , popular and traditional. Students are also introduced to a range of skills required for the study and practice of non-Western musics through a series of mini-courses on specific musical cultures. Exploring ethnomusicology and the music of non-Western cultures will allow the student to develop their understanding not only of the systems and traditions of these musics, but also of the context of Western music in the world.

  Performance Analysis (30 Credits) - Compulsory

  This module aims to develop the students performing abilities and their understanding of music through analysis, and introduce them to the ways analysis can inform and enrich performance. Study across various periods, genres and media aims to lay a foundation upon which students will explore how music analysis uncovers issues of direct relevance to performance concerns, and how musical performance in turn can shape analytical thought.

  Perspectives in Music History 1 (30 Credits) - Compulsory

  This module aims to lay a firm foundation for further study of music through the study of a range of specific musical concepts, examined through 18th and 19th century repertoire and then moving to 20th century music in the second half of the module. It enables the student to develop: 1 Aesthetic knowledge and understanding, especially of 18th 19th century Western repertoire and early 20th century musical styles. 2 A knowledge of music history from these periods 3 An understanding of ideas of canon formation and related cultural concepts 4 An understanding of aesthetic and stylistic concepts of non-European and popular music.

• Year 2

  Applied Music Technologies (30 Credits) - Optional

  This module aims i to develop a understanding of, and technical facility with electronic technology for generating, developing, altering and enhancing electronic music in composition/songwriting, production and performance in original ways and ii to impart a practical understanding of issues relating to the development, place and function of technology as it affects the marketing, distribution and consumption of music in contemporary society through web technologies.

  Composition 1 (30 Credits) - Optional

  As the first of a two-part course, this module aims to enable the student to begin to specialise in composition by instilling in them a working knowledge of: 1 musical instrumentation and the idiosyncrasies of different families of acoustic instrument range, appropriate writing, special effects, clefs etc. ; 2 how to develop the musical elements of rhythm, melody, harmony, texture, improvisation and form in a composition. A guided forum will be provided to develop practically how students work with musical materials via detailed studies of orchestration, the structure of notable pieces in the repertoire how musical material is developed and integrated and how styles are formed through composition. At occasional seminars, students are asked to present their work in progress to peers and constructively to discuss their findings. This module is predominantly a theoretical prelude to the modules which follow it on the composition course.

  Music Theory and Analysis (30 Credits) - Optional

  This module aims to enable students to: acquire a more advanced understanding of the theory and analysis of popular music; acquire detailed knowledge of musical elements, relevant extramusical issues and theories of interpretation; receive training in relevant analytical skills.

  Performance 1 (30 Credits) - Optional

  This module is designed as the first in a two-part course in performance that requires the student to specialise in the study of their instrument or voice, with the aim of achieving a high standard of technical security and confidence in their ability to engage with an audience in performance. This module aims to enable the student to generate interpretative ideas through the analysis of a wide range of performance styles.

  Perspectives in Music History 2 (30 Credits) - Compulsory

  This module develops a specialised aesthetic and historical knowledge of music from the late eighteenth century up to the Second World War, and introduces students to trends in musicological research used in analysing such repertoire. This knowledge will be contextualised to equip students with the necessary conceptual and analytical tools to understand music as an art form conditioned by society and culture, both in its production and reception. Students will develop an awareness of issues related to ownership and authorship in music with implications for copyright, the role of technological innovations in shaping musical thought, and economic factors that have contributed to musical developments during the period.

  Stylistic Studies and Techniques (30 Credits) - Compulsory

  This course aims to develop a specialised aesthetic knowledge and technical expertise through two principal focuses: classical music c.1740-1810 and then early-20th century music, particularly French centred on the mature work of Claude Debussy c.1900-1915 , and German centred on the free-atonal works of Schoenberg and others from the Second Viennese School c.1900-1920 . The module aims to enable a student to build upon first year work on common practice harmony and early 20th century music, with much more style-specific harmony and pastiche composition work and also to demonstrate that understanding practically in related musicianship skills.

• Year 3

  Composition 2 (30 Credits) - Optional

  This module aims, as the second of a two-part course in Composition, to provide a forum for students actively to pursue the development of their compositional style and to begin to experiment with their compositional technique while they are treated as individuals. Some topics are revisited in the context of new works and new instruments. Students are encouraged further to develop their own, original compositional sound by developing their own compositional methods building on those they will have practiced in second year. Student seminars continue at which they are asked to present their work in progress to the other students, to share findings constructively and to see how these can relate to and combine with other art forms and media. Building on the second year Composition course, this module also allows some time for more specialist aspects of composition to be engaged with and to enable students to gain a clearer insight into and to achieve their individual potential as composers. Lecture sessions later in the course focus on professional and graduate skills relevant to the students specialism to give students a greater understanding of what will be demanded of them as professional composers

  Composition for Film and Television (30 Credits) - Optional

  This module aims to develop the following to a high level: 1. an understanding of the history of film music, particularly in the West; 2. an understanding of the aesthetic concerns which can be brought to bear in composing music for screen; 3. the ability to compose appropriate music for film and television productions with effectiveness and relative speed; 4. an understanding of and ability to apply contractual aspects of film and television music composition to students work as appropriate. As a pre-requisite to this module, students ability to compose will be assumed to be well-developed.

  Independent Project (30 Credits) - Optional

  This module develops further knowledge, understanding and skills in an area of study that particularly interests the student, whether arising from previous learning or enabling the student to pursue an interest not other otherwise catered for in taught modules. Because of the diversity of Independent Projects, their specific aims will vary according to the nature of the project and will be defined by the student in their proposal, subject to the approval of the Module Leader.

  Music in the Nineteenth Century (30 Credits) - Optional

  This module enables students to acquire: specialised knowledge of representative works of Beethoven s middle and late periods as a foundation for understanding of nineteenth-century music; specialised knowledge of the central repertoire of nineteenth-century European music, e.g. Schubert, Schumann, Chopin, Brahms, Liszt, Wagner, Mahler; understanding of the cultural and social trends which shaped musical developments and of the ways in which music was performed and listened to throughout the long nineteenth century; and detailed understanding of the styles, genres, forms and compositional techniques of nineteenth-century music.

  Music Post-1950 (30 Credits) - Optional

  This module aims to provide a specialist study of contemporary western art-music musical styles through a selective overview of works and genres. Movements related to modernism and post-modernism in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries are examined in their relevant musical, cultural and philosophical contexts.

  Performance 2 (30 Credits) - Optional

  This module is designed as the second of a two-part course in performance in which students who have successfully completed MUS2051 will be required to utilize their specialised instrumental skills to create and develop their own individual voice as performers. This module aims to support students in achieving the levels of attainment necessary for the further study of performance at postgraduate level either at a conservatoire or university.

  Performance Practice (30 Credits) - Optional

  This module is designed to support students who are taking Performance 2 MUS3051 . The module aims to help students identify and achieve an advanced understanding of and sensitivity to, both notated and un-notated conventions of performance practice in Western music repertoire from 1600 to the present day and to recognize the influence of recording on performance styles.

Year 1
Provides a firm foundation for further studies with Performance and Analysis; Composition and Musicianship; Perspectives in Music History 1 (focusing on music in the early 18th and 20th centuries); Collaborative Music. All students also receive some individual tuition on their chosen instrument and perform in an ensemble.

Modules:

• Performance and Analysis
• Perspectives in Music History
• Harmony and Musicianship
• Introduction to Ethnomusicology

Year 2
You begin to specialise more in performance activities, underpinned by relevant musicological studies Performance 1; Stylistic Studies and Techniques; Perspectives in Music History 2 (focusing on late 18th century 'classical' and then early 20th century French and German music); e-Music and performance (especially recording).

Modules:

• Perspectives in Music History 2
• Stylistic Studies and Techniques
• Performance
• Choose one from - Applied Music Technologies or Music Theory and Analysis

Year 3
Provides advance performance studies in Performance 2 and Performance Practice, with a choice of two modules from Contemporary and Popular Music studies; Beethoven and the 19th Century; Independent project (on a topic proposed by the student).

Option Modules:

• Composition 2
• Composition for Film and TV
• Performance Practice
• Music in the 19th Century
• Music post-1950
• Independent Project

Entry & applying

Apply now

Qualifications accepted

For a comprehensive list of qualifications accepted by Middlesex, see further information under entry requirements

English language requirements

You must have competence in English language and we normally require Grade C GCSE or an equivalent qualification. The most common English Language requirements for international students are IELTS 6.0 (with minimum 5.5 in all four components) or TOEFL internet based 72 (with at least 17 in listening & writing, 20 in speaking and 18 in reading).

Middlesex also offers an Intensive Academic English course (Pre-Sessional) that ranges from 5-17 weeks depending on your level of English. Successful completion of this course would meet English language entry requirements. For more information on applying for the pre-sessional please email english@mdx.ac.uk. 

Entry into year two or three (transfer students)

If you have achieved a qualification such as a foundation degree or HND, or have gained credit at another university, you may be able to enter a Middlesex course in year two or three. For full details of how this works see transfer students

UK/EU applicants with existing higher education qualifications

If you have already been awarded a qualification at the same level as the course you are applying for, you may not be eligible for a tuition fee loan, see fees and funding for more information.

Applying

Applications for UK and EU students should be made to UCAS – the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service. The institution code for Middlesex is M80, and the code name is MIDDX. You also need the code for the course you wish to apply for – this is found in the 'at a glance' box above.

International students from outside the EU can make a direct application.  We have a network of regional offices across the world to assist you with your application.  They have worked with people from your region coming to Middlesex before and can help. Read more on international applications

Fees & funding

The tuition fee for the 2012/2013 academic year for UK/EU students is £9,000.
The tuition fee for the 2012/2013 academic year for International students is £10,400.

Click here to find out more about fees, funding and our scholarships in 2012.

Careers & placements

Work placements are supported across the University by a network of School placement offices who work closely with your academic staff.  Together with the Careers Service, they will offer workshops and one-to-one advice on writing CVs, cover letters and application forms; offer password protected access to the placement website; help arrange interviews and where possible create links with employers.

Work experience is one of the most valuable assets you can have in planning a successful career. Employers want graduates who have developed the ability to be flexible and adaptable, work in teams, communicate with fellow employees and customers, take initiatives and responsibility and, when necessary, take the lead. Many of these qualities can be learned and developed through placements.

Equally important is the fact that these experiences help you develop your own ideas about the career you want, what will suit you best, and perhaps the kind of work or employers you wish to focus on. It is much easier to identify the positive and negative aspects of a particular career if you have experienced it first hand.