Brass Band Conducting

three people playing brass instruments Designed for recent graduates and suitably qualified mature students, our taught Master of Music (MMus) and Postgraduate Diploma (PgDip) Brass Band Conducting courses provide the technical training, collaborative opportunities and podium time necessary to help you prepare for a career as a professional conductor.

As a Principal Study Brass Band Conductor, you'll be offered individual tuition from expert staff conductors, and will spend considerable time developing your directing techniques in rehearsal and in performance. In addition to attending and participating in scheduled brass band activities, you will be encouraged to explore other opportunities to engage with ensembles, as director or observer, both within the Conservatoire and with professional organisations such as Services for Education and Tredegar Brass Band. Brass Band Conducting students should also expect to attend classes/workshops of their peers studying other conducting pathways.

It's normal for conducting students to be proactive in presenting performances of projects that they've generated themselves. You'll receive support and professional advice in pursuing such projects, which should be viewed as an essential element of your studies. Both PgDip and MMus courses provide excellent opportunities to develop other skills relevant to a future career in the music profession.

You'll have full access to our superb £57 million facilities, including our Concert Hall, 150-seat Recital Hall, our black box performance space known as The Lab, and more than 70 practice rooms, ensemble rooms and workshops; all acoustically designed to provide a music-making environment that is world class.

Studying conducting at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire has proven to be an invaluable experience for me. Through the opportunities the course provided, I have been able to take my conducting career to higher levels, and the skills that I developed throughout my studies have meant that I am well equipped for anything that's thrown at me. I would not be working at my current level if it were not for the support of the conservatoire staff, as well as that of fellow students.

Tom Stoneman, Brass Band Conducting, 2019-2021