Something to listen to over the summer...

Duke Ellington’s Nutcracker Suite! Studying classical music which has been “jazzed” has been a personal favourite topic of mine this year. It has been something I’ve never studied in detail before and I hear something new in Duke Ellington’s Nutcracker Suite every time I hear it! It is definitely and intriguing listen which will excite you and give you an idea of what the modules cover. 

Something to read over the summer...

I loved reading “Gareth Malone’s Guide to Classical Music” the summer I joined Royal Holloway. It got me thinking about new ways of studying classical music and analysing different viewpoints. A lot of his TV programmes are also really interesting if reading isn’t your thing... I would also recommend watching Gareth Malone’s “The Choir”, which was filmed at Royal Holloway!

One thing to bring with you to university is...

A doorstop! When your bedroom door is propped open, it’s definitely more inviting and allows people to pop by and say hello!

The best part of my first year was...

Getting involved in so many clubs and societies. It is definitely the best way to make friends and find people who share similar interests to you. Get involved and you won’t regret it!

Something to listen to over the summer...

Stravinsky's "The Rite of Spring". Covered in the short history module and is mentioned and linked in a couple of other first year modules.

One thing to bring with you to university is...

Headphones! Listen to music while you're studying, walking to lectures, walking home etc. – you'll get lots of use out of them!

The best part of my first year was...

Doing digital composition in term 2 of the composition portfolio module.

Something(s) to listen to over the summer...

'Chameleon' by Herbie Hancock

'Mississippi Goddam' by Nina Simone

Something(s) to read over the summer...

Mykaell Riley, 'Bass culture: an alternative sound track to Britishness'

Michaela Baranello, ‘Welcoming a Black Female Composer into the Canon. Finally.’ The New York Times, 9 February 2018.

One thing to bring with you to university is...

A folding music stand (for possible Musical Theatre productions and gigs, but could also be used to practice in your room if your instrument is quiet enough!)

The best parts of my first year were...

Using 'Stan' by Eminem as part of my formative assignment for Contemporary Debates (I never thought Eminem and academics could inhabit the same space).

Being part of the Gamelan Ensemble. 

Watching the Royal Holloway Symphony Orchestra play Dvorak’s 'New World' Symphony.

Something(s) to listen to over the summer...

I’d have to say John Adams ‘Short Ride in a Fast Machine.’ It is already a fairly well-known piece (on the BBC Ten Pieces I believe) and it is one of my favourite modern orchestral pieces. Considering it’s only 4 minutes long, it packs quite a punch! I chose this in particular as it showcases several aspects of contemporary composition practice (e.g. approaches to harmony and rhythm) and with influences from jazz, it highlights minimalism’s position between the classical and popular music spheres.

Something(s) to read over the summer...

Pick any chapter (perhaps one based on what you consider your specialism; performance, composition, music history) from the book ‘An Introduction to Music Studies’ by J.P.E. Harper-Scott. The book was written by staff at RHUL as an introduction to university-level music studies, so it should get you thinking of how the areas you know already are developed at university.

One thing to bring with you to university is...

(Without meaning to sound corny and because I couldn’t think of an actual object) an open mind. University music studies introduce you to many new types of music and many new concepts of what music actually is. You’ll be investigating different traditions from around the world as well as different historical practices, all of which can inform your own approaches to making music. (Actually, an obvious object not to forget would be your instrument if you play one!)

The best part of my first year was...

The Andean Band end-of-year concert in the Boilerhouse auditorium. I still think it’s the most fun I’ve had on stage! It was really interesting playing a genre of music that was initially unfamiliar to me, but learning about the different instruments and tunes associated with them was fun. And for one song we all danced around in a massive circle, singing in Quecha!

Something to listen to over the summer...

Shostakovich's String Quartet No 7, Kapustin's Cello Concerto No 2, Splendour & Misery by Clipping (a concept album which is really compositionally interesting).

Something to read over the summer...

Allan Moore's ‘Authenticity as Authentication’ article about how we judge authenticity in music. Read it here.

One thing to bring with you to university is...

Manuscript paper!

The best part of my first year was...

Performing in the Andean band/Balkan ensemble concert at the end of the year.

Something to listen to over the summer...

Something outside your typical playlist. Also, very useful, get Spotify Premium Family! It's easy on your student loan and will come in super handy for listening...

Something to read over the summer...

Composer biographies, music histories! (I wish I did them earlier.)

One thing to bring with you to university is...

A piece (or many pieces!) of home that remind you that you are loved and valued by family and friends, and privileged to go to one of the best universities in the country to do a degree in music. In a new environment, you might feel isolated and lonely etc... You are not alone! Also, these items will hopefully encourage you to push yourself and do your best, even when the going gets tough, as they did for me. These could be photographs, cards, uplifting quotes to decorate your room with!

The best part of my first year was...

The freedom to try many new things for the first time. One thing I'll never forget is performing a piano trio piece for the first time during a festival in summer term, celebrating female composers in music.

Something to listen to over the summer…

"The night of the purple moon" by Sun Ra, and Steve Reich's Early Works.

Something to read over the summer…

Oval: A Novel by Elvia Wilk.

One thing to bring with you to university is…

Pyjamas that you don't mind strangers seeing you in... yes, 3am fire alarms do happen!

The best part of my first year was…

Enjoying a drink and bonding with friends on a sunny day at Crosslands.

One of my favourite modules to teach is... 

Introduction to Historical Musicology

We get to go back to basics, to ask 'what is it that we talk about when we talk about history'? From there, we unpack concepts and assumptions that have a bearing on just about every other module on the Music programme. 

To enjoy over summer:

Listening: Primal Scream, 'Screamadelica'

Viewing: anything by Jan Švankmajer

Reading: Italo Calvino's 'If on a Winter's night a traveller' 

If I were to recommend one concept to think about prior to starting Year 1, it would be...

The view that 'genius' and 'masterpiece' are ideas that require interrogation and reflection (read: Roland Barthes' essay 'The Death of the Author'). 

One of my favourite modules to teach is... 

Introduction to Jazz

We talk (and sometimes play!) through musical issues that are deeply connected with current and evolving debates on racism, gender, protest and politics. It's a course that also teaches you what you can do to take action as a musician, thinker and listener. Plus, optional dancing and improv involved!

To enjoy over summer:

You've heard of K-pop, but how about J-pop? Polysics: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N0q0W9uJzIA

If I were to recommend one concept to think about prior to starting Year 1, it would be...

Decolonising Music

One of my favourite modules to teach is... 

Composition Portfolio

Students taking this module learn about writing for voice, which is one of my main interests as a composer and vocalist. We listen to music by a range of artists in lectures and independent study time, thinking about how the voice is used and how text is set in rap, punk, experimental, classical and other genres. Students collaborate on a playlist to share ideas and interests. 

To enjoy over summer:

Nina Simone's live album 'In Concert' (1964). I've been returning to this in recent times as it features really powerful protest music performed by one of the twentieth century's most distinctive vocalists!

If I were to recommend one concept to think about prior to starting Year 1, it would be...

Texture. What exactly do we mean by texture in music composition? How can we manipulate it to make really exciting and inventive sound combinations? This musical parameter has endless creative possibilities. Try making a list of textures you would like to explore in your own music!  

One of my favourite modules to teach is... 

Sibelius and the Music of Northern Europe

Sibelius wrote some works that had strong social effects. For example, Finlandia was crucial in expressing independence and the violin concerto contributed to thinking about gender equality in solo performance. 

To enjoy over summer:

Listen to Ida Haendel performing the Sibelius violin concerto. You might enjoy my new book to go along with it, Jean Sibelius's Violin Concerto.

If I were to recommend one concept to think about prior to starting Year 1, it would be...

'Decolonising music' as a way of thinking about equality issues in music

One of my favourite modules to teach is... 

Composing with Technology

This module combines all the technical skills accumulated throughout the course, allowing students to showcase their creativity across a range of briefs.

To listen over summer…

'Excuse the Mess' composer interview podcast. 

If I were to recommend one concept to think about prior to starting Year 1, it would be...

Everything we can hear happens within what is called the 'audible frequency spectrum'. When listening to music and other sounds, try to identify what is happening at different ranges: sub-bass, Bass, Low mid, high mid, high and ultra-high. 

One of my favourite modules to teach is... 

Creative Composition Techniques in the First Year

I enjoy hearing the new musical ideas students create come to life and I love to see students who might not necessarily think of themselves as composers trying out new techniques and shifting their perception of what is possible in new music. And, perhaps, beginning to think of themselves as composers, too!

To listen over summer…

I'm reading Hilary Mantel's The Mirror and the Light at the moment - I heartily recommend it for a summer read; it is wonderful! Sibelius's symphonies are on my favourites listening list at the moment (particularly No. 7!) alongside Ravel's Trois Poèmes de Stéphane Mallarmé.

If I were to recommend one piece to think about prior to starting Year 1, it would be...

Listen to Schoenberg's unearthly String Quartet No. 2 a few times, particularly the last movement, and have a read of this article about the work by composer Christopher Fox. I'd love to know what you think about the piece when you arrive in September!

One of my favourite modules to teach is...  

Contemporary Debates in Music 

I like opening up topics that the students may not previously have reflected upon, and encouraging them to think around those topics. Because of the enormous issues around 'fake news' and 'media/information bubbles' that social media has significantly exacerbated, I'm proud that we have such a course in our first year curriculum, one that places an immediate emphasis on debate and critical reflection.

To listen over summer…

I'd encourage exploratory listening. Listen to music that you wouldn't normally!           

If I were to recommend one concept to think about prior to starting Year 1, it would be...

The concept of Rhetoric. 

One of my favourite modules to teach is... 

Claude Debussy and French Musical Aesthetics

I get to talk about some of the most amazing music but also to think about it in relation to the poetry and paintings of Debussy's contemporaries working in Paris around 1900.

To enjoy over summer…

To watch: Joe Wright's The Soloist (2009) – it's on Netlix. It's about a cellist, performance, mental health, and Beethoven's music. It's particularly thought-provoking at the moment.

To listen: if you don't know them, try the Etudes for piano by the ever-inventive Gyorgy Ligeti. If you don't like the first one you come across, try the next: they're wonderfully different!

If I were to recommend one concept to think about prior to starting Year 1, it would be...

How and why do we value music? All our debates, all our histories, all our different approaches to music, assume that what we're studying somehow matters. Why? What is it that music does which makes us value it so much?

One of my favourite modules to teach is... 

Orchestra

I love challenging the musicians to achieve more than they thought possible. I love leading the interaction between musicians, opening their eyes to new repertoire, and developing their leadership and communication skills through orchestral playing and leading opportunities.

To enjoy over summer…

Women composers! Louise Farrenc, Emilie Mayer, Dorothy Howell, Amy Beach, Grace Williams, Ethel Smyth - there's so much wonderful music out there by women composers that hasn't made it into the mainstream classical repertoire. Louise Farrenc's symphonies are extraordinary - lots of ideas and invention. Emilie Mayer's Symphony no. 5 is a particular favourite of mine, and I also love Ethel Smyth's Serenade. Check some of them out, and read about their lives as well!

If I were to recommend one concept to think about prior to starting Year 1, it would be...

Interpretation - what is our job as musicians? Is it our job to interpret the music, or just to realise it off the page? Is it our job to get as close as possible to the composer's intentions, or to adapt the markings in the score to what techniques/equipment is available to us today? Is the score the music, or is it only music when it's performed? 

Check out our Staff Recommendations playlist on Spotify!

Meet one of our Composers, Tonia Ko.

Tonia says: "Part of my creative practice uses bubble wrap as a musical instrument and art canvas. To that end I created a quintet in 2015 with live electronics!"

Watch the video here:

Meet Dan, President of Royal Holloway's Musical Theatre Society:

Meet DK, President of Royal Holloway's Undergraduated Big Band:

In this video, the renowned Choir of Royal Holloway sings The Spheres by Norwegian composer Ola Gjeilo (1978–):

Analysing music is all about using techniques and tools to gain insight into a piece of music or a musical practice.

Click here for a taster.

When you start composing at university, as well as refining your technical craft and skills, we challenge you to find new ways to express yourself through music.

Click here for a taster.

In courses like ‘Contemporary Debates in Music’, we develop our understanding of music by discussing some provocative statements or ideas.

Click here for a taster.

In historical courses, we approach music from the Medieval era to the present day through its social and political contexts, its compositional styles and notations, its aesthetic and philosophical ideas, and through editing early sources.

Click here for a taster.

If you’re going to be joining us for the Integrated Foundation Year for Music or Music and Sound Design,  we look forward to meeting you as part of the Foundation cohorts! Your Foundation year will be a combination of general studies and music-specific courses.

To help you prepare for the music courses, there are some fantastic introductions to music studies which you might find helpful. In particular, you might want to ask your local or school library for:

An Introduction to Music Studies, edited by Jim Samson and J.P.E. Harper-Scott. This book was produced by our Department, and provides a neat overview to all aspects of studying music.

Very Short Introductions to Music, including:

• Music by Nicholas Cook
• Early Music by Thomas Forrest Kelly
• Ethnomusicology by Timothy Rice
• Film Music by Kathryn Kalinak

You might like to brush up on your music reading skills, too. Here are some links from the technology company Soundbrenner, who are one of our partner on our Cyborg Soloists research project.

https://www.soundbrenner.com/blog/best-online-resource-for-music-theory/

You can also take a look here for even more foundation year content and activities!