Music – (B.A.)

In addition to performance and composition, this music degree involves studying texts, practices, cultures and institutions, and is a rich and intellectually stimulating course. You will explore issues in history, sociology, ethnology, and philosophy, as well as the more specific areas of music history and theory.

The Music Department's academic staff cover the very widest range of approaches to the study of music. Some of the main areas of teaching include Western music history (wide-ranging but with many special courses in early music and music from the nineteenth century onwards), ethnomusicology, music theory and analysis of tonal, post-tonal, and pre-tonal music, performance, and composition of various kinds.

Throughout your course you will have access to Royal Holloway's well-equipped studios and recording facilities and have the opportunity to make invaluable industry contacts. Furthermore, the Music Department received the highest rating for research in the UK in the 2008 Research Assessment Exercise.

The Department of Music offers rigorous degree courses which will prepare you for a broad range of careers. Our graduates are highly employable and, in recent years, have entered many different careers including roles as musicians, music, dance and drama teachers, technicians, managers and policy makers. Many graduates have also progressed to advanced postgraduate study in a variety of fields.