Overview

Music brings together tradition and innovation, and studying it seriously means engaging with genres from the past and present while developing genuinely new ways of thinking about sound and performance. The BA (Hons) Music at Durham University spans musicology, composition in both acoustic and electroacoustic forms, analysis, ethnomusicology, the psychology of music and performance, giving students a wide creative and critical toolkit. The department sits at the heart of a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Durham City, and it is this blend of historic surroundings and cutting-edge technology that shapes fresh musical interpretations within the department's old buildings. Teaching is genuinely research-led, drawing on staff specialisms spanning nineteenth- and twentieth-century Western music, Indian and Korean music, popular music, conducting, opera and contemporary composition. Students also benefit from a wide variety of musical ensembles across Durham, including orchestras, choirs, theatrical productions and contemporary music groups. The course suits musicians who want genuine creative freedom, moving from a broad introduction to musical disciplines in the first year toward a much greater choice of modules and an independent capstone project by the final year.

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What You'll Learn

• The formative practices, discourses and repertoires of Western music history

• Musical language and style through hands-on composition of historical techniques

• Ethnomusicology, exploring music within its cultural context through ethnographic research

• Composition fundamentals grounded in twentieth-century modernist repertoire

• Music theory and analysis, focused on harmonic and formal structures in common-practice music

• Performance, examining how musicians have trained throughout history alongside practical skill-building

• Specialist areas such as orchestration, advanced composition techniques or the history of opera

• An independent capstone project, taking the form of a dissertation, composition portfolio or 40-minute solo recital

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Learning Outcomes

By the end of the course, students will be able to critically analyse music across historical periods and cultural contexts, drawing on musicology, ethnomusicology and music theory built from the first year onward. They will be equipped to compose and perform with genuine technical skill, having developed this through composition workshops, historical technique exercises and one-to-one instrumental or vocal tuition. Through an independent capstone project, students will demonstrate specialist expertise in their chosen area, whether through a dissertation, composition portfolio or solo recital, supported by close staff supervision. Graduates will leave with strong musical, analytical and creative skills, well prepared for further study or a wide range of careers across performance, composition, music technology and the broader creative industries.