Oxford University Choral Singing Summer School 2019
Overview
This is an intensive residential course for select singers who are looking to develop choral musicianship skills within a small choir typical of those found in many of Oxford University’s colleges and chapels. Up to seven successful applicants per voices part (soprano, alto, tenor, bass) combine to form the course’s 26-voice ensemble. Studying and living in Oxford’s former Anglican monastery, now a Hall of the University of Oxford, students are immersed in the riches of the English choral tradition, especially music associated with Oxford - a city and university famed throughout the world for its excellence and history in choral music. The beautiful buildings of St Stephen’s House include some of the university’s finest acoustics for music and provide an atmosphere of serious study whilst being set in a vibrant quarter of the city. Applications are especially welcomed from students, educators and other able singers who already possess good musical skills.
Programme details
Details of the study repertoire for 2019 will be announced in the Spring of 2019. It will be drawn from the English choral tradition and will include a number of works that fall outside the standard canon, together with those that appear more frequently on Oxford college chapel music lists. Repertoire in past years has included Sarum chant and anonymous medieval pieces together with polyphonic works by Sheppard, Parsons, Gibbons, Taverner, Crotch, Handel, Ouseley, Stainer, Walton, Rubbra and Part.
Seminar rehearsals are held each weekday morning from 10.15am to 12 noon and each weekday afternoon from 2pm to 3.30pm, each following a set theme. The remainder of the afternoon is for individual study or for exploring the many beautiful places in and around the city. There is an evening session daily after dinner, from 8.30pm - 9.30pm, on a variety of themes. An introductory session on the first Sunday evening opens the course which concludes with a performance event on the Saturday before the final dinner. Students depart after breakfast on the final Sunday. This course runs in parallel with the Composing for Choirs course whose students are included in the vocal ensemble.
Session Themes:
Monday
Plainchant and medieval music
Tuesday
Music of the Sixteenth century
Wednesday
Sessions with Stephen Darlington
Thursday
Music of the Seventeenth to Nineteenth centuries
Friday
Music of the Twentieth and Twenty-first centuries
Recommended reading
Students will receive scores of some of the set works in advance and will be expected to have prepared them thoroughly in advance of the course.
Certification
On successful completion of the Summer School, all participants will receive a University of Oxford Certificate of Participation.
Please note that this course does not offer any form of official credit to participants.
Fees
Programme Fee 1: Tuition, Full Board, Ensuite Accommodation: £1555.00
Programme Fee 2: Tuition, Full Board, Standard Accommodation: £1450.00
Programme Fee 3: Tuition, Full Board, No Accommodation: £1245.00
Funding
Up to six scholarships may be awarded to the value of up to 50% of the fee. Applicants should complete all the mandatory elements of the application as shown below and should additionally submit the following:
1. A personal statement that outlines the value which the course might be expected to have to the candidate, especially as to why it presents opportunities that may not otherwise be available. This should also state how the candidate’s experience or abilities would enhance the group.
2. A statement written by a teacher, colleague or associate that outlines the suitability of the candidate for a scholarship.
Application
Prospective students must supply:
A completed application form
Personal statement of all musical experience, including (but not exclusively) choral or other singing experience
Unedited audio or audio-visual (preferred) recording of up to 5 minutes.
Your recording does not need to be a professional recording: a recording made on any standard device (eg iPhone, iPad or other tablet) is all that is necessary. This should be uploaded onto YouTube or similar and a link supplied. The purpose of this information is to achieve a well-balanced choral ensemble.
For more information click "LINK TO ORIGINAL" below.
This opportunity has expired. It was originally published here:
https://www.conted.ox.ac.uk/courses/oxford-university-choral-singing-summer-school?code=O18I528CSR