The Global Conservatoire: a new 'global classroom’ launches to Royal College of Music students and international partners
Wednesday 21 April 2021
The Royal College of Music has joined with the Manhattan School of Music (MSM), the Royal Danish Academy of Music (RDAM), and the mdw – University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna (MDW) to launch the Global Conservatoire, an ambitious digital learning environment that will expand each institutional partner’s course offerings, offering a new and flexible range of courses set against a rich cultural backdrop.
This innovative partnership, which launches as a pilot programme in 2021–22 with one course in the autumn term and additional offerings in spring, will bring faculty and students from each of the four institutional partners into an online classroom, cultivating an international exchange of ideas. The programme’s asynchronous design will allow students from four conservatories in three different time zones to work at their own pace, completing courses around busy rehearsal and practice schedules.
Students in the Global Conservatoire will gain new perspectives on a range of music studies, learning in a ‘global classroom’ while never having to leave their home institution. Drawing from the expertise of faculty from each of the program partners, the Global Conservatoire’s online curriculum will provide access to subjects unique to each partner school. The resulting courses will provide students with a diverse choice, with offerings equally apportioned among the four partner schools.
Available to both undergraduate and postgraduate students, the Global Conservatoire seeks to draw on its partners’ extensive experience in distance learning prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, combined with lessons learned from this academic year. By consolidating its partners’ collective experience in the digital realm and unique subject expertise, the Global Conservatoire is a groundbreaking initiative that transcends borders, connecting students from four prominent international conservatories into what will eventually become a virtual, transnational academic hub or ‘global college town.’
Professor Colin Lawson, Director of the RCM, comments: ‘I am delighted that the Royal College of Music is collaborating on this virtual inter-university and international environment which will enhance the global dimension of our students’ learning experience. The RCM is a truly global community and – along with our partners – I am proud to welcome our students to a new digital age of global learning.
The Royal College of Music has a long-established tradition of seeking industry-leading partnerships with international institutions, artists and organisations, contributing to its global reputation as a leading training and research centre for the performing arts. RCM students benefit from partnerships with leading orchestras, venues and world-renowned artists, while wide-reaching knowledge exchange puts the institution at the forefront of music teaching and research with a gold rating from the Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF).
Find out more about studying at the Royal College of Music.
