Choral conducting

Choral Conducting Minor – Course content:

• Evaluating and honing one’s own conducting practice and methods
• Development of an individual and expressive conducting idiom based on the technical knowledge and skills acquired to date
• Expanding one’s conducting repertoire in preparation for a future career (repertoire for equal or mixed voices; a cappella and instrument repertoire; sacred and secular works; works of varying degrees of difficulty)
• Practical work with university choirs, student ensembles and an external orchestra
• Extensive exposure to and examination of historical performance practice, relevant source material and academic literature, writing a term paper
• Conducting a concert of one’s own devising (Master’s qualification)

The FHNW Master of Arts in Specialised Music Performance Choral Conducting is aimed at musicians who wish to specialise in choral conducting.

Holders of a FHNW Master of Arts in Specialised Music Performance Choral Conducting are qualified to lead choirs and other vocal ensembles, whether amateur, semi-professional or professional, and different line-ups.

Core curriculum

Major module (81 CP):

Choral conducting
Conducting studio
Courses/projects
Choir/chamber choir

Complementary courses

Practical module (27 CP):
Conducting practice and rehearsal techniques
Practical training with university choirs
Practical training with external choirs
Score reading

Theory/context module (3 CP):
Interpretationsforum, Colloquium 48
Contextual events

Elective courses

Personalised module (12 CP):
Minor or courses/activities chosen from the electives on offer
Singing

Detailed module description

Structure

As a general rule, the FHNW Master of Arts in Specialised Music Performance Choral Conducting follows directly on from a Master’s programme in Music Performance or Music Pedagogy with an Instrumental Major. In exceptional cases, students holding a Bachelor degree or equivalent qualification may be admitted on the programme. Prospective students must also pass the entrance exam and win a place on the programme (numbers are limited).

Only applicants who have submitted the required registration documentation duly completed and on time will be invited to take the entrance examination. Applicants must also be sufficiently proficient in the German language from the outset (e.g. German B1 certificate). 

Admission criteria

• Experience of reading choral scores of different musical styles and eras
• Basic conducting skills
• Ear training qualification (minimum mark of 4.8, or Grade C)
• Excellent piano proficiency and basic score-playing/reading skills
• Basic knowledge of early musical notation/clefs and transposing vocals
• Choral and/or solo singing experience
• Pedagogical abilities, leadership qualities

Entrance exam

The entrance exam comprises two parts:

Individual exam (approx. 45 minutes):

• Piano: Sight-reading of a chorale by Johann Sebastian Bach (with a min. of two systems and using modern clefs)
• Piano: Playing a technically challenging solo piece
• Piano: Playing an instrumental part in early clefs (soprano, alto, tenor clefs) or for voice transposition (clarinet, trumpet, horn)
• Singing of a lied either a cappella or accompanied
• Conducting two pre-prepared choral scores from different eras of the applicant’s choosing, e.g. madrigal, simple motet from the Baroque era or a Romantic choral Lied, playing these on the piano, and singing the different parts thereof (literature reference: Chor aktuell, Bosse 1983)
• Interview with examiners

Choir rehearsal (approx. 20 minute):

• Conducting a vocal ensemble (provided by the university) based on one or both scores presented during the technical exam.

The following information can be found on the Valuable information about your studies page:

• Study Regulationn
• Scholarships and Living Costs
• Studying in Switzerland
• Tuition fees
• Study guide
• Semester dates