BMus (Hons) Traditional Music
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Overview
This is the only Bachelor of Music degree dedicated to traditional and folk music in the UK. Aspiring performers on this course explore Scotland’s unique and dynamic musical traditions as a conceptual, critical and creative framework within which to achieve a distinctively personal voice as an artist. This is interwoven with a solid basis in contemporary and eclectic performance practice.
Our curriculum recognises that the innovative nature of Scottish traditional music today must be embraced, and that the creative development of the individual is the most important way to ensure traditional music flourishes from one generation to another.
You can expect to learn in a busy department where your musical roots and creative artistry will be nurtured and developed through one-to-one tuition, academic context, performance opportunities, masterclasses and lots of ensemble work, all aimed at helping you fulfil your potential.
The programme offers the following Principal Studies:
- Accordion
- Cello
- Fiddle
- Flute/Whistle
- Gaelic song
- Guitar
- Percussion (pipe band snare drum, bodhran)
- Piano
- Scots song
- Scottish Harp (normally gut-strung)
You will work closely with some of the world’s top solo and collaborative teachers and performers to consolidate your performance technique, repertoire and personal style as a traditional musician, interwoven with development as a critical, creative, entrepreneurial and/or teaching artist. This includes exploring both the distinctive parameters of folk and traditional music and the shared technical vocabulary that links folk to other genres. External learning opportunities include an Isle of Skye residency, teaching placements and work placements in Scotland and overseas, as well as appearances at high-profile events, including Glasgow’s renowned Celtic Connections and Piping Live! Festivals.
The BMus with Honours (Traditional Music) places emphasis on the creative development of the individual and allows the curriculum to be relevant to aspiring musicians from anywhere in the world. We have welcomed students from England, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, and from as far afield as Spain, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Australia, USA, Canada, Japan, and Hong Kong.
The important details
UK Applicant Deadline:
2 October 2024
International (including EU) Applicant Deadline:
1 December 2024
Institution Code:
R58
Programme Code:
250F
Audition Fee:
£65
Application Fee:
£28.50
Why Study BMus Traditional Music at RCS?
We are uniquely placed in the UK to deliver the BMus (Hons) Traditional Music programme. We work alongside professional partners such as the National Piping Centre to ensure our students get the very best from their education.
In addition to our position as educators and our reputation for having expert staff renowned in the field of Scottish traditional music, this programme offers additional benefits you won’t get studying anywhere else. Here are some examples:
One-to-One Tuition
During your studies, you will receive an unparalleled 40.5 hours of principal study tuition and supporting studies classes each academic year.
Technique & Healthy Practice Workshops
You will have opportunities to participate in Technique and Healthy Practice workshops throughout your studies. These workshops allow for surveying your technical, postural, and anatomical aspects of idiomatic performance practices. You will learn how these aspects link explicitly to your physical and mental well-being, informing your artistic development.
Folk Ensemble
You’ll develop your performance and collaboration skills through taking part in Folk Ensemble sessions, which are the primary place for developing contemporary folk and traditional repertoire and musicianship in a group context.
Sang Scuil | Sgoil nan Oran
Through Sang Scuil | Sgoil nan Oran, students will develop vocal musicianship and collaborative music-making, build a common canon of traditional Scottish song repertoire and develop language skills through performance. ‘Song School’ culminates in a major public performance in a city centre venue.
Performance Classes
You will take part in weekly Performance Class sessions, which focus on discipline-specific performance skills in a tutor- and peer-led context and are divided according to specific instrument.
The Groove Studio
In the Groove Studio, we take a very practical approach to issues of rhythmic fluency: locking in between melody players or singers and accompanists, exploring different rhythmic styles and experiences of the musicians in the class and the wider traditional music community.
Meet the Staff
Heather Downie
Lecturer in Scottish Harp
Teaching Staff
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Accordion
-
Bagpipes*
John Mulhearn
Willie McCallum
Ross Ainslie
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Folk Ensemble
-
Fiddle
-
Flutes and Whistles
David Foley
-
Gaelic Song
-
Guitar
-
Percussion
-
Scots Song
Siobhan Miller
-
Piano
-
Scottish Harp
Heather Downie
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Cello
Bespoke arrangements available
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Creative and Contextual Studies
*Frequent visiting tutors for piping include Barnaby Brown, Iain MacInnes, Fred Morrison, Hugh Cheape, Mike Katz and many more.
Masterclasses
The Traditional Music department offers masterclasses led by world-famous tradition-bearers, teachers and professional musicians from a broad range of traditional music.
Fiddle
- Chris Stout
- Allan Henderson
- Aidan O’Rourke
- Douglas Lawrence
- Aaron Lewis
- Jamie Laval
- Aonghas Grant Sr
- Adam Sutherland
- Liz Carroll
- Nordic Fiddlers Bloc
Accordion
- Angus Lyon
- Sandy Brechin
- Iain MacPhail
- John Somerville
- Kathleen Boyle
- Luke Daniels
Clarsach
- Mary MacMaster
- Simon Chadwick
- Corrina Hewat
- Lily Neill
- Maeve Gilchrist
- Siobhán Armstrong
- Bill Taylor
- The Duplets (Freya Thompson and Gillian Fleetwood)
- Lucie Hendry Trio
- Keziah Thomas
- Diego Laverde
Gaelic Song
- Anne Lorne Gillies
- Griogor Labhraidh
- Margaret Stewart
- Rona Lightfoot
- Mary Ann Kennedy
Piping
- Roddy J MacLeod
- Fraser Fifield
- John Wilson
- Rona Lightfoot
- Fred Morrison
- Erwan Keravec (Sonneurs)
Scots Song
- Sheila Stewart
- Elizabeth Stewart
- Alison McMorland
- Sara Grey
- Tom Spiers
- Mick West
- Tom McCarthy
- Alistair Roberts
Other
- Brendan Taaffe (American folksong
- Rannock (Danish fiddle and keyboard duet)
- Fraser Fifield (whistles)
- Findlay Napier (songwriting)
- Violet Tulloch (Shetland piano accompaniment)
- Nic Gareiss (traditional and extemporised dance)
- Tigerstyle (Sikh dubstep)
- Skip Gorman (American folksong and fiddling)
- Pete Coe (Repertoire development, performance and presentation)
- Dave Francis (Musical innovation)
- Simon Thoumire
- Dave Milligan
- Anna Massie
- Mairearad Green
- Brian McAlpine
- Ian Carr
- Steph Geremia (flute, whistle)
Facilities
Traditional Music is at the heart of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, occupying its centrally-located Studio C recording, rehearsal and teaching area. Studio C is a large yet intimate space at the heart of the Renfrew Street campus, functioning as the living hub of Traditional Music activity at RCS (including band studies, group projects, masterclasses and informal sessions) and providing rehearsal, recording, PA and storage facilities.
Practice accommodation in the Renfrew Street campus has increased in recent years, accommodating all types of musical activity, from solo to band, singing to piping. The National Piping Centre offers further purpose-designed practice space for Highland piping students.
IT provision in the Whittaker Library has also increased with the total open-access student PC provision totalling 52 machines with Sibelius 7. Students also have access to the Digital Training Unit and Language Lab facilities.
Students can review over 70 relevant e-journals and 14 electronic databases and online archives, including Tobar and Dualchais / Kist o Riches, HOTBED, Oxford Music Online, IPA Source, JStor and Naxos. The Whittaker Library continues to support Traditional Music students via a dedicated full-time Music Librarian and a full-time Performance Librarian.
With RCS being situated in the centre of Glasgow, a UNESCO City of Music, students can take advantage of our proximity to the National Piping Centre, the Scottish Music Centre at City Halls, the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall and a teeming network of folk music sessions at pubs throughout the city.
Graduate Destinations
The Traditional Music programme has an excellent track record of graduate employment or self-employment within six months of graduation — upward of 90%. The programme prepares students for a wide and varied range of careers in traditional music; not all related to performance.
Our graduates have gone on to establish their own recording labels, agencies or other entrepreneurial ventures; to tour extensively around the world; to become noted composers, producers and broadcasters; to earn teaching qualifications to become classroom teachers; even to go on to further study in psychology and law.
Alumni include:
- Finlay MacDonald (Director of the National Piping Centre; The Finlay MacDonald Band)
- Findlay Napier (Back of the Moon; Findlay Napier and the Bar-Room Mountaineers)
- Emily Smith
- Paul McKenna
- Ruairidh MacMillan
- Daniel Thorpe (The Daniel Thorpe Trio)
- Cameron Drummond (Highland Society of London Double Silver Medallist)
- Calum MacCrimmon (Man’s Ruin; Seudan; Breabach)
- Siobhan Miller
- Gillian Frame (Back of the Moon, Glasgow Fiddle Workshop)
- Simon McKerrell (Professor of Media and Music, Glasgow Caledonian University)
- Angus MacPhail (Skippinish)
- Jenna Reid
- Stuart Cassells (Red Hot Chilli Pipers)
- Kathleen MacInnes
- Deirdre Graham
- James Graham
- Jack Smedley, David Foley and Steven Blake (Rura)
- Robyn Stapleton (BBC Scotland Young Traditional Musician of the Year 2014)
- Ainsley Hamill (Barluath)
- Gordon Bruce (Highland Society of London Double Silver Medallist)
- Grant McFarlane (CherryGrove)
- Iona Fyfe, Scots traditional singer
- Connor Sinclair, Gold medallist piper and whistle player (Gnoss)
- The Canny Band: Sam Mabbett, Calum Convoy, Michael Biggins (Trad Awards 2021)
Programme Structure
In your first year, you will combine and enhance your technique and your grounding in traditional repertoire in your principal study instrument or voice. You will develop as a critical and creative artist, able to connect and engage critically with your own experience as a traditional or folk musician.
You will receive an introduction to music theory and website design, as you not only begin to construct your identity as a musician but curate it for the world around you. This year also features a grounding for all students in Scots and Gaelic songs, sources and folklore, to instil a shared foundation in the roots of Scottish music and its relationship to language and culture.
Year 1 has a total of 120 credits across the modules below.
Performance 1: 60 Credits
- Principal Study lessons
- Supporting Classes
- Performance Classes
- Technique & Healthy Practice Workshops
- Folk Ensemble Level 1
- Sang Scuil | Sgoil nan Oran
- Rhythmic Awareness
- Critical Programme Notes
Concepts in Traditional Music: 10 Credits
- ePortfolio of Research Tasks
- Pecha Kucha Presentation
Creative Skills in Traditional Music 1: 10 Credits
- Traditional Music Theory Exam
- Composition Folio of Tunes
Scottish Traditional Repertoire 1: 10 Credits
- Performance
- Programme Notes
Introduction to Professional Skills for Musicians: 10 Credits
- ePortfolio
Music Leadership: 10 Credits
- Group Delivery of Activity and Supporting Reflection
Creative Citizenship: 10 Credits
- Collaborative Creative Presentation
In your second year, you will continue to nurture and extend your knowledge and skills as a solo and collaborative traditional musician. There will be a broad exploration of technique, repertoire and style relative to your (and others) instrument or vocal tradition.
You will extend your skills in group Scots and Gaelic singing and programming, performing and calling a ceilidh. You will expand outwards as a musician-researcher, exploring historical and social contexts and drawing relationships between practice, perception and context.
You will further nurture your composition and arrangement skills, expand your entrepreneurial skillset concerning multiple audiences and community engagement, and begin to develop skills in performance preparedness and efficacy.
You will do this whilst developing your pedagogical knowledge and practical skills in teaching traditional music in a range of environments.
Year 2 has a total of 120 credits across the modules below.
Performance 2: 60 Credits
- Principal Study Lessons
- Supporting Classes
- Performance Class
- Technique & Healthy Practice
- Folk Ensemble Level 2
- Sang Scuil | Sgoil nan Oran
- Ceilidh Skills
- Critical Commentary
Traditional Music Research Portfolio: 10 Credits
- ePortfolio of Research Tasks
- Presentation
Creative Skills in Traditional Music 2: 10 Credits
- Portfolio of Multi-Instrumental Compositions
- Continuous Observation
Scottish Traditional Repertoire 2: 10 credits
- Performance
- Programme Notes
Peak Performance Training: 10 credits
- Continuous Observation
- Portfolio of class tasks, rationale and development plan
The Teaching Musician: 10 Credits
- Video Documentation and Supporting Materials
Option module: 10 credits
Year three will see you develop a solid musical persona through fluent knowledge and expertise informed by your principal study and a consolidation of your critical artistry in research and reflection.
There will be a continuing exploration of technique, repertoire and style relative to your (and others) instrument or vocal tradition.
You will address essential vocational issues in greater detail, such as self-assessed taxation, contract negotiation, creative arts funding and administration and the option of a formal work placement.
There will continue to be elective opportunities within the department, the Royal Conservatoire and beyond, thereby continuing to nurture your distinct artistic specialisms in traditional, folk, or broader arts contexts.
Year 3 has a total of 120 credits across the modules below.
Performance 3: 60 Credits
- Principal Study Lessons
- Supporting Classes
- Performance Class
- Technique & Healthy Practice
- Folk Ensemble Level 3
- Critical Commentary
Minor Research Project: 10 Credits
- ePortfolio of Project
- Presentation
Scottish Traditional Repertoire 3: 10 credits
- Performance
- Programme notes
The Freelance Musician: 10 Credits
- Portfolio
Contextual elective: 10 credits
Musicianship elective: 10 credits
Option module: 10 Credits
Year four – the Honours year – includes occasions to synthesise your critical, technical and creative development as a traditional musician or piper. In addition to engaging in your substantial project work, deeply rooted in tradition and innovation, you will continue to take advantage of the array of elective opportunities in the department, the Royal Conservatoire and beyond.
The Honours year is student-centred: working to achieve a distinct identity and musical voice within your established parameters, culminating in a themed final public recital.
Year 4 has a total of 120 credits across the modules below.
Performance 4: 60 Credits
- Principal Study Lessons
- Supporting Classes
- Performance Class
- Technique & Healthy Practice
- Viva Examination
Major Research Project: 20 credits
- EPortfolio of project
- Presentation
Professional Development Options: 20 credits
IXP and Electives: 20 credits
Year 1 Principal Study Exam Requirements
Recital: Internal recital, consisting of a varied programme of traditional (e.g. non-copyright or no later than the 1960s) repertoire developed over the academic year and drawn from key collections/sources fundamental to your Principal Study discipline.
Recital Auditions: Two in-lesson recitals (Last lesson of Term 1 and Term 2) in which you should prepare a programme of 10-15 minutes duration, demonstrating evidence of progress in performing traditional repertoire from collections/sources fundamental to your Principal Study discipline. In your programme, you should articulate how they are informing your stylistic approach.
Material demonstrated in these lessons may be performed formally on the occasion of the end-of-year Recital.
Year 2 Principal Study Exam Requirements
Recital: Internal recital, consisting of a varied programme of repertoire drawn from different regional, national, period or other styles/repertoire, drawn from appropriate sources (both traditional and contemporary), developed over the academic year and open to observation by other students and staff.
Recital Auditions: Two in-lesson recitals (Last lesson of Term 1 and Term 2) in which you should prepare a programme of 10-15 minutes duration, demonstrating evidence of progress in performing different regional, national, period or other styles/repertoires fundamental to your Principal Study discipline, drawn from appropriate sources (both traditional and contemporary). In your programme, you should articulate how they inform your stylistic approach.
Material demonstrated in these lessons may be performed formally on the occasion of the end-of-year Recital.
Year 3 Principal Study Exam Requirements
Recital: Public recital, 45 minutes in duration, that articulates a specific theme developed over the academic year. Your theme may be soloist in nature or may involve collaboration with other singers or instrumentalists, accompaniment and (if appropriate) improvisation. Your programme may include, or indeed emphasise, your compositions and arrangements so long as this is in alignment with your recital’s theme and your tutor’s approval.
You may involve a maximum of two accompanists in your public recital.
Recital Auditions: Two in-lesson recitals (Last lesson of Term 1 and Term 2) in which you should prepare a programme of 15 minutes duration, demonstrating evidence of progress in performing project material being developed to date that contributes to the theme of the final public recital.
Material demonstrated in these lessons may be performed formally on the occasion of the end-of-year Recital.
Year 4 Principal Study Exam Requirements
Recital: Public recital, 45 minutes in duration, that articulates your distinct idiomatic voice through a specific theme or project developed over the academic year in collaboration with your tutor(s) and, if appropriate, your peers, making explicit your depth of learning in one or more specialisms. Your programme may focus on, for example, composition, arrangement, improvisation, historical period styles, contemporary cross-genre, exploration of particular canons of repertoire, innovative collaborations, etc (you are free to choose).
You may involve a maximum of two accompanists in your public recital.
Recital Auditions: Two in-lesson recitals (Last lesson of Term 1 and Term 2) in which you should prepare a programme of 15 minutes duration, demonstrating evidence of progress in performing project material being developed to date that contributes to the theme of the final public recital.
Material demonstrated in these lessons may be performed formally on the occasion of the end-of-year Recital.
Viva examination (10%): A 20-minute viva examination to discuss your learning and forward planning.
How to Apply
Apply via UCAS Conservatoires
Applications are made through the UCAS Conservatoires website. The UCAS Conservatoires application system is separate from the main UCAS undergraduate application system. You can read our guidance about using UCAS Conservatoires on our dedicated How to Apply page.
Applicants will also be required to create an Acceptd account when they apply, which will be used for scheduling auditions.
We do not offer deferred entry. If you wish to commence in 2026, you must apply next year.
The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland institution code is R58. You will also require the following programme code to apply: 250F
The closing date for on-time BMus Traditional Music applications for UK students is 2 October 2024 and for International students is 1 December 2024 If you submit your application after this date, we cannot guarantee that your application will be reviewed by the audition panel. If you do want to submit a late application, you must contact admissions@rcs.ac.uk in the first instance to check we are accepting late applications
Application/Audition fees
There is a UCAS Conservatoires application fee of £28.50. In addition to the application fee, each conservatoire charges an audition assessment administration fee. The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland charges an audition assessment administration fee of £65 for this programme.
We recognise that auditioning and interviewing for conservatoires, drama and ballet schools can be costly. The audition assessment administration fee charge allows us to offer a thorough and positive experience to all applicants and we encourage you to get in touch to ask the panel questions and find out more about the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland to see if it is the best place for you.
We are committed to ensuring fair access to a conservatoire education for students who have the talent and potential to benefit from it, regardless of their background. In support of this, audition fee waivers are offered to applicants whose financial hardship may be a barrier to auditioning. Please note you can only apply for a fee waiver request once you have completed and submitted your UCAS application. Please see the audition fee waiver form for more information.
Selection Process
Applicants are selected first and foremost based on merit and potential. However, due attention is also paid to the range of Principal Studies accepted to ensure the optimum experience for each student and to sustain the critical mass required for curricular activities, such as the symphony orchestra and choral activities.
Please note that the Conservatoire is obliged to offer one audition date per application. If you are unable to submit your application/audition recording by the deadline date above, you must email us immediately stating the reason. We have a specific period allocation to audition and all on-time applications will receive a decision before Christmas. If your audition recording is delayed, there is a risk that places will already have been taken and your application may not be considered in the first round of scholarship allocation.
BMus Joint Principal Study (JPS)
The Joint Principal Study pathway is intended to cater for the needs of individuals who are equally accomplished in two Principal Study disciplines (e.g. Flute and Composition, or Trumpet and Conducting, etc.) and who wish to maintain this intense level of dedication in their musical studies. Please note that Conducting is only available as a Joint Principal Study and Jazz Performance is only available in conjunction with Conducting or Composition.
The selection process for applicants applying for Joint Principal Study is the same as that for other applicants; please prepare for two separate in-person auditions, or, for International applicants, please submit your audition recordings via Acceptd for each principal study. Applicants to the Joint Principal Study pathway who are successful in only one of their Principal Studies may be offered a place on the relevant ‘single-study’ pathway (i.e. Performance, Composition or Jazz).
Audition Information
In-person auditions are planned to take place in our Renfrew Street campus, Glasgow w/b 4 November 2024. Should you apply on time, an invitation to book an audition time slot will be sent to you via Acceptd, you must create an Acceptd account regardless of your audition location to be able to select your audition time. An interview will form part of your audition, this is a chance for the panel to find out more about you, as well having an opportunity for you to ask questions about the programme.
The RCS audition panel will consist of a relevant departmental staff member and the Head of Department.
All in-person auditions will be given a twenty-minute warm up slot prior to their audition.
International applicants are welcome to submit a recorded submission via Acceptd if these dates are not suitable. A live online interview, if held, will assess the candidate’s suitability for the programme in terms of knowledge, experience and commitment.
Recording Guidelines
- When setting up for your video recording, your body (typically, from about the waist up) and instrument should be the focal point of the frame. The committee wants to be able to see not just your face but how well you navigate your instrument.
- The video recording should be provided in ONE continuous shot without separate tracks for different musical pieces.
- Please begin the recording by introducing yourself to the camera and stating what you will be performing. You can take a little time between pieces so long as your body must remain in the frame.
- For any pieces that were written for your instrument and piano accompaniment, you are encouraged to perform with piano accompaniment (whether live or pre-recorded) if practical for you. Be assured, however, that if this is not possible for you, then you will not be disadvantaged in any way.
For more information on recording a video audition, Guitar Lecturer Matthew McCallister reveals his top tips on recording your music audition online.
Audition Performance Details
Performance of a programme of approximately 15 minutes on the principal study.
The programme should demonstrate your present level of achievement and your musical potential, and must normally be performed from memory and unaccompanied, except guitar, piano or percussion instruments (see below), or in cases of self-accompanying for one or two items (e.g. clarsach player accompanying own singing, or singers accompanying themselves on another instrument).
If in doubt, please contact us ahead of time. Applicants are asked to give brief spoken introductions to each item performed.
Details of the repertoire requested for your in-person audition/recorded submission can be found below:
- Highland Bagpipe
- Pipe Band Snare Drum
- Scots Song
- Gaelic Song
- Bodhran
- Accordion
- Cello
- Fiddle
- Flute
- Guitar
- Mandolin
- Piano
- Scottish Harp
- Whistle
Three contrasting sets:
- March, Strathspey and Reel
- One Piobaireachd (ground and 1st variation only)
- A final set of the applicant’s choosing
A varied programme of contrasting work featuring the applicant’s own choice of traditional Scottish (or other) tunes:
- Air
- March
- Strathspey
- Reel
- Jig
- Hornpipe
- Self-accompaniment to singing if appropriate
A Varied programme of contrasting moods and tempi featuring a broad range of traditional Scots songs:
- Classic ballad, bothy ballad
- Burns or other ‘art’ song
- Lullaby
- Contemporary Scots song
- Nonsense
- Bawdy
- Children’s song
- Dance song or diddling.
Good source material for the repertoire appropriate to this programme can be found and studied in depth at www.tobarandualchais.co.uk
A varied programme of traditional songs contrasting in character and rhythm:
- Puirt a beul
- Òrain luaidh
- Òrain bàsaidh
- Òran mór
- Contemporary Gaelic song
- Lullaby
- Lament
Good source material for the repertoire appropriate to this programme can be found and studied in depth at www.tobarandualchais.co.uk.
A varied programme demonstrating accompaniment to a variety of standard Scottish traditional/folk dance-based melodic rhythms:
- Quicksteps
- Strathspeys
- Reels,
- Jigs
- Hornpipes (etc)
- and the applicant’s facility with transitions between rhythms/tempi.
A varied programme of contrasting work featuring the applicant’s own choice of traditional Scottish (or other) tunes:
- Air
- March
- Strathspey
- Reel
- Jig
- Hornpipe
- Self-accompaniment to singing if appropriate
A varied programme of contrasting work featuring the applicant’s own choice of traditional Scottish (or other) tunes:
- Air
- March
- Strathspey
- Reel
- Jig
- Hornpipe
- Self-accompaniment to singing if appropriate
A varied programme of contrasting work featuring the applicant’s own choice of traditional Scottish (or other) tunes:
- Air
- March
- Strathspey
- Reel
- Jig
- Hornpipe
- Self-accompaniment to singing if appropriate
A varied programme of contrasting work featuring the applicant’s own choice of traditional Scottish (or other) tunes:
- Air
- March
- Strathspey
- Reel
- Jig
- Hornpipe
- Self-accompaniment to singing if appropriate
The programme should include both solo work and rhythmic accompaniment to traditional/contemporary tunes (it is the applicant’s responsibility to provide an accompanist or backing track).
A varied programme of contrasting work featuring the applicant’s own choice of traditional Scottish (or other) tunes:
- Air
- March
- Strathspey
- Reel
- Jig
- Hornpipe
- Self-accompaniment to singing if appropriate
A varied programme of contrasting work featuring the applicant’s own choice of traditional Scottish (or other) tunes:
- Air
- March
- Strathspey
- Reel
- Jig
- Hornpipe
- Self-accompaniment to singing if appropriate
A varied programme of contrasting work featuring the applicant’s own choice of traditional Scottish (or other) tunes:
- Air
- March
- Strathspey
- Reel
- Jig
- Hornpipe
- Self-accompaniment to singing if appropriate
A varied programme of contrasting work featuring the applicant’s own choice of traditional Scottish (or other) tunes:
- Air
- March
- Strathspey
- Reel
- Jig
- Hornpipe
- Self-accompaniment to singing if appropriate
A varied programme of contrasting work featuring the applicant’s own choice of traditional Scottish (or other) tunes:
- Air
- March
- Strathspey
- Reel
- Jig
- Hornpipe
- Self-accompaniment to singing if appropriate
References
It is your responsibility to ask two separate referees to write references and ensure that these are sent to RCS.
The references must be written by two different people and we will not accept references from family, other relatives or close friends. You can submit your UCAS Conservatoires application form and send your references at a later date, but they must be received prior to your audition date.
UCAS Conservatoires provides reference forms for you to download and send to your referees for completion.
Policy
We have a number of policies and pages which you should read when applying to study at the Royal Conservatoire:
Entry Requirements
Academic Requirements
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Scottish Highers — 3 passes (grade C or above)
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A Levels — 2 passes
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International Baccalaureate — minimum score of 24 with 3 subjects at Higher Level
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Recognised equivalences (EU and International Entry Requirements)
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We welcome the Scottish Baccalaureate and will accept Highers and Advanced Highers combinations.
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We offer a flexible approach to students taking Higher over more than one academic year and/or who achieve their qualifications in more than one sitting
Within the minimum academic entrance requirements listed above, the subjects recommended are:
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Music at Higher, Advanced Higher or Advanced level or equivalent
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English at Higher, Advanced Higher or Advanced level or equivalent
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History at Higher, Advanced Higher or Advanced level or equivalent
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Gaelic and/or another European language at least to National 4/5 or Standard Grade/GCSE
English language requirements
The language of study at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland (RCS) is English. All applicants whose first language is not English will be required to provide evidence that their English language level meets the entrance requirements.
The required IELTS level for this programme is 6.0 overall with a minimum score of 5.5 in each component.
Full details of the English language tests and equivalencies we accept can be found on our English Language Requirements page.
Music Requirements
A strong indication of potential is sought at the entrance audition for this programme. Successful applicants will normally be of a standard at least equivalent to Grade 8 with Distinction of the Associated Board of the Royal School of Music in their Principal Study. You can apply and audition without having obtained Grade 8 with distinction; however, as an indication only, applicants are normally expected to have reached this standard in their performance.
Direct entry
Applications for direct entry beyond Year 1 will be considered on a case-by-case basis and following the Royal Conservatoire’s Recognition of Prior (Experiential) Learning policy. If you wish to apply for direct entry, please mark the point of entry on the UCAS Conservatoires application as 2 or 3.
Fees & Funding
Tuition fees
For academic year 2025/26:
- Scottish full-time: £1,820 (for most full-time, Scottish-domiciled undergraduate students, this will be paid by SAAS)
- RUK (including ROI*) full-time: £9,535
- International (including EU) full-time: £28,919
Please note these fees are subject to change.
Funding & Scholarships
You can find out about the funding and scholarships available for studying at RCS by visiting our dedicated page:
Cost of Living & Programme Costs
In addition to tuition fees, it is estimated that you will need between £11,200 and £15,300 per year to live in Glasgow, plus programme costs. Much will depend on your lifestyle and whether your course runs for three or four terms.
Programmes within the School of Music have a range of associated costs related to the specific activities required and advised by the programme team. You can find an indication of these costs below:
More from the Traditional Music Department
The Wayfarers
Working together, RCS, the National Centre of Excellence in Traditional Music (Plockton), and the University of Glasgow showcase teaching packs being piloted in a Scottish secondary school to teach pupils about the musical migration of Scots to Appalachia and the challenging historical factors (such as forced migration, slavery, and segregation) that they encountered.
BMus Trad at Celtic Connections 2024
Join our BMus Traditional Music students behind the scenes at their rehearsals for Glasgow’s renowned Celtic Connections festival and hear about their experience studying on the course so far.
Book a Music Advice Lesson
One-to-one Principal-Study lessons are at the heart of any conservatoire course. An advice lesson here at RCS gives you the chance to experience the RCS working environment and assess your suitability for conservatoire education. It can also be used as a mock/advice audition.
BMus Traditional Music Photo Gallery
Why RCS?
We are the only place in Europe where you can study all of the performing arts on the one campus. There is a distinctive creative energy at RCS and you’ll be made to feel part of our inclusive and diverse environment from the very beginning of your studies.
Our graduates are resourceful, highly employable and members of a dynamic community of artists who make a significant impact across the globe.
At RCS, students develop not just their art but their power to use it.
World Top Ten
We were voted one of the world’s Top Ten destinations to study the performing arts (QS Rankings) in 2025, the ninth time we have been placed in the top ten since the ranking was established in 2016.
Perform & Collaborate
Our curriculum is built around performance and collaboration and we hold professional partnerships with all of Scotland’s National Companies. Join forces across artforms and be part of the 500+ performances we give each year.
Outstanding Alumni
Our graduates are employed across the world and we take pride in the impact they have on their art forms. We’ll equip you with the skills to thrive as a professional and join their ranks.
Learn from the Best
More than 1,000 lecturers, tutors, artists, technicians, co-ordinators and support staff work at RCS across all our art forms. Study with some of the finest educators and performing and production artists in the UK.
A Campus Built for You
Our facilities are world-class. From rehearsal rooms and recording studios to our five professional performance venues, we have a campus to showcase and develop emerging artists to the highest standards.