Royal College of Music

Graduate School

GRADUATE DIPLOMA IN VOCAL

PERFORMANCE

COURSE HANDBOOK
20102011

1.

Introduction

2.

Aims and Objectives

3.

Course Content

4.

Description of Tuition

5.

Scheme of Assessment

6.

Description of Assessment

7.

Programme Management Arrangements

8.

Appendices

10

I. General Information

11

II. Whos Who

16

If you would like any material

from this Handbook in larger print,
please contact Registry:
registryprogrammes@rcm.ac.uk

Royal College of Music

Graduate School
Graduate Diploma in Vocal Performance 201011
1. Introduction
The Graduate Diploma in Vocal Performance is primarily intended for graduates from three-year degree
programmes, and has been designed to provide experience equivalent to the fourth or final year of a
conservatoire undergraduate performance degree. The framework for this arrangement is set out in the
Colleges Regulations and Overall Credit Framework for Taught Postgraduate Programmes. The following
sections describe the content and organisation of this one-year course, which is normally intended to be
taken on a full-time basis in order to reinforce its equivalence to fourth year study.
Students will be accepted on to this course with the opportunity to progress to one of the two Masters
degrees in Vocal Performance (MPerf or MMus) subject to achieving a result of 65% or more in the first year
of study. This allows for any intensive technical work that may need to be undertaken to proceed without
interruption for audition preparation. Students achieving 40-64% will be placed on a reserve list, with
progression at the discretion of the Admissions Board.
This document also sets down arrangements for the management of the programme and how these relate
to the management of Vocal and Opera programmes for singers as a whole. It should be read in conjunction
with the Regulations and Overall Credit Framework for Taught Postgraduate Programmes referred to above.
Students are directed to the RCM Web Portal MUSE, which provides detailed information about dates and
events, College regulations, student support, course handbooks, Library and e-learning resources. Students
should consult this resource on a regular basis, as its contents will be constantly updated.

2. Aims and Objectives

Course Aims

To provide non-conservatoire graduate singers with the additional specialist vocal and ancillary
training necessary for them fully to match the range of skills and experience of conservatoire graduates. This
experience may either equip them to operate more effectively in a professional environment or enable them
to embark successfully upon a dedicated postgraduate course in singing at postgraduate diploma level;

To develop the vocal, linguistic and dramatic skills and to build the repertoire knowledge
necessary for singers who demonstrate potential for significant vocal achievement but who presently lack
the appropriate formal grounding in these areas;

To build a solid vocal technique, or reinforce that already possessed by the student, so as to
provide the foundation for further development;

To offer an experience of vocal work within a fully-fledged dramatic situation to determine a

student singers operatic potential.

Course Objectives/Learning Outcomes

By the end of their year of full-time study, successful students will have achieved the following:

Basic solidity of vocal technique, capable of sustaining the increased demands of more advanced
study and assisting the voice to mature satisfactorily;

A broad familiarity with the nature of the vocal repertoire, coupled with a core of works known
in some detail;

Facility in the principal European languages of the vocal repertoire and an informed awareness of
the main national types;

Movement skills, knowledge of stagecraft and the beginnings of the ability to combine these
with vocal accomplishment in operatic performance;

A realistic perception of their suitability for further study and/or future professional career
prospects, based upon critical self-evaluation and an awareness of the demands and opportunities of the
profession.

3. Course Content
This programme conforms closely to the pattern of provision for BMus(Hons) vocal students. This is in
keeping with its function as a conversion course for students who have not had the benefit of a four-year
undergraduate Conservatoire training. Principal Study provision consists 42 hours per year, i.e. 90 minutes a
week across 28 weeks. Other tuition is broadly as follows:
Type of class

Number of weeks

Repertoire coaching

24

Opera coaching

20

Movement

15

Acting

15

Speech

20

French language

20

Italian language

20

German language

20

German Lieder*

19
+ 1 assessment

French song*

19
+ 1 assessment


Song classes in the German and French repertoires are core for students in this year, and
provision of these is shared with BMus students taking the Level 3 Song Class option. Graduate Diploma
students who additionally wish to gain experience of the Italian and English repertoires that BMus students
will have covered by the end of their studies may request to attend the appropriate additional BMus classes
as observers. Those who progress to the Integrated masters in Vocal Performance will undertake classes in
these languages as part of that programme.

ATTENDANCE
Students should note the following policy on attendance:
Students are advised that full attendance is required for all lessons, coaching and classes for which they are
scheduled. The practical nature of this course means that absence without permission can have an adverse
effect on the work and progress of fellow students. Any Graduate Diploma student whose attendance is not
considered satisfactory will have their progress reviewed through a formal interview with the Head of Vocal
Studies and the Director of Programmes and Research, and if no improvement is seen, this could have a
bearing on whether any reserve place to proceed to a Masters Degree in Vocal Performance is converted
into a confirmed place.
It is usual for RCM students to be offered a range of singing opportunities outside the College, and a
constructive attitude is taken to requests for Leave of Absence (N/As) where these can be accommodated
without detriment to the work of the course. However, if such a request cannot be so accommodated, then
the student will be expected to abide by that decision as a condition of their studentship at the College.

4. Description of Tuition
1-to-1 Principal Study practical lesson
Postgraduate students generally receive the equivalent of 90 minutes 1-to-1 practical tuition per week. For
vocal students, this is one event in a busy schedule of weekly work but it still remains the core element of the
course, crucially determining the students overall vocal development and underpinning his or her other
activities. For Graduate Diploma singers, whose vocal development may be at a relatively early stage, the 1to-1 lesson is of crucial importance. Because singers receive separate vocal repertoire coaching (see below)
there is scope, where necessary, for the Principal Study lesson to be almost entirely technically based.
Nevertheless, it is inevitable - and desirable - that specific repertoire is also addressed in this session, often
from the perspective of detailed interpretative considerations.
In the Summer Term, Graduate Diploma students are examined in a Recital lasting 3035 minutes. The
requirements for this examination correspond to those for the BMus Year 4 Final Recital taken by students
who have opted for Minor Principal Study, although it is located later in the year in order to take account of
the frequent need for an element of vocal remedial work in this first year of conservatoire study. In the
weeks before the examination, the 1-to-1 lesson naturally becomes less focussed upon technique and more
upon detailed preparation for this examination.
1-to-1 repertoire coaching
This element of provision complements and augments the Principal Study practical lesson. The professors
taking these sessions are generally pianists specialised in vocal accompaniment with a wide knowledge of the
vocal repertoire and an acknowledged specialism in a particular genre or area. As well as assisting the
student to cover a range of material, these sessions therefore also offer a complementary perspective to that
provided by the singing professor in the Principal Study lesson.
5

Opera coaching
These sessions address the skills needed by all singers in relation to the operatic repertoire. In some ways,
they function in a similar manner to the repertoire coaching sessions, enabling students to cover a wide
range of material relating to the operatic genre. However, because of the nature of that material and the
particular expertise of the opera coaches, they may address issues of style/technique which offer further
complementary support to the tuition given by principal study singing professors.
Movement class
These classes enhance awareness and develop control over the body as an extension of the vocal
communication. A broad range of physiological issues is covered, as well as those relating specifically to
movement in terms of the operatic stage.
Acting class
These classes develop knowledge and use of practical dramatic skills and of the conventions and terms that
are used by directors in production.
Language Coaching
Language Coaching is offered by specialist staff in French, German, Italian.
Speech Coaching
Speech Coaching in this area is offered by specialist speech coaches.
Song classes
Two song classes, German and French, are compulsory for Graduate Diploma students. Under specialist
guidance, song classes work on repertoire, provide an historical and stylistic conspectus of the genre in
question and offer a forum for mutual criticism and feedback.
Opera/language coaching associated with Opera Scenes and Productions
Students will be expected to perform with their year group - ie, in the case of Graduate Diploma students, in
conjunction with BMus students taking Level 3 Opera, Acting and Movement - in the presentation of Opera
Scenes (staged but usually with piano accompaniment). Almost by definition, the precise nature of the
coaching sessions supporting Opera Scenes or productions varies from case to case. Timetabling is flexible
and highly responsive to evolving needs within a given preparation schedule. This element of coaching
ceases when the Opera Scene or production has taken place.
Although the expectation is that it is the specialist opera students who are more likely to secure roles in the
full opera productions, auditions are held on an open basis and parts are cast on merit. Any Graduate
Diploma student who is cast in an opera production will then join the opera and language coaching sessions
associated specifically with the preparation of their role in the production.

5. Scheme of Assessment
Diagrammatic view of assessment

Autumn
Term

Spring Term

Summer Term

Principal Study

Recital

Opera, Acting and

Movement
Song Class

Opera
Scenes

Opera
Scenes

One assessed performance in a College Concert or prize

Competition

Credit-rating of assessment
Principal Study
70 Credits at Level 3
(internally rated as Graduation Level to distinguish it from Year 3, Level 3 Principal Study)
Opera, Acting and Movement

40 Credits at Level 3

Song Class

20 Credits at Level 3

Total

120 Credits at Level 3

6. Description of Assessment
Principal Study - Recital
See Learning Outcomes 1-3:

Basic solidity of vocal technique, capable of sustaining the increased demands of more advanced
study and assisting the voice to mature satisfactorily;

A broad familiarity with the nature of the vocal repertoire, coupled with a core of works known
in some detail;

Facility in the principal European languages of the vocal repertoire and an informed awareness
of the main national types.
During the Summer Term examination period, Graduate Diploma singers deliver a Recital of 3035 minutes
duration, including brief spoken introductions. The choice of programme is free and the requirements
essentially conform to the specification for BMus Minor Principal Study at Graduation Level in the syllabus
booklet apart from the examinations location within the academic year. The entire programme is to be
sung from memory.
A good standard is expected from this short examination, with no obvious technical shortcomings, adequate
stamina for the entire programme and the ability put across a well-chosen programme in a professional
manner, if not yet fully to professional standard.
Proposed programmes, signed as being approved for content and length by the students Principal Study
professor, must be submitted to the Registry Programmes Team by the last day of Term 2. On the basis of
these submissions, particularly in relation to timings, students may be recommended to make certain
changes to their programme.
Students are required to bring to their Recital the following, for the use of the examiners:

a copy of each work in the edition used to prepare the performance (all permission to use
photocopies should be sought and agreed in advance);

a well-presented, word processed programme that sets down the works in order of their
performance, and acknowledges the participation of any other performers.
Students should hand this material to the steward to be given to the examiners. In the absence of a steward,
it should be handed directly to the examiners. Students are responsible for preparing programmes for the
use of their audience. In addition to the programmes prepared for use of examiners and audience, each
student should hand to the Registry Programmes Team 4 copies for archival purposes. Students should
note that mark penalties will be imposed if this material is not provided.
As part of the Principal Study, all Graduate Diploma candidates are required to undertake a minimum of
TWO officially recognised concert performances and/or roles in Opera Scenes/Productions during the
academic year. These concert performances are not assessed qualitatively on an individual basis; they must
simply be of a kind generically where a high standard of performance could reliably be assumed. As a result,
this element is not given a separate credit rating but it is nonetheless an essential element of the students
achievement if the Principal Study unit is to be passed and award of Grad Dip is to be conferred.

Opera, Acting and Movement - Opera Scenes

Basic solidity of vocal technique, capable of sustaining the increased demands of more advanced
study and assisting the voice to mature satisfactorily;

Movement skills, knowledge of stagecraft and the beginnings of the ability to combine these with
vocal accomplishment in opera performance.
Assessed Opera Scenes (i.e. scenes from the operatic repertoire, staged usually with piano accompaniment)
generally take place in the Spring and Summer Terms. Students are prepared intensively for these events
and a producer works with an entire group to determine and develop the overall character of a particular
Opera Scenes event.
The assessment draws together evaluation of the students vocal and dramatic abilities. Working with a
minimum of props and with no larger dramatic context in which to locate their scene, they must
nevertheless establish some sense of character and dramatic conviction. At the same time, because they are
not carrying a part through an entire opera, they are able to focus all of their effort and concentration into
the scene in question.
Whilst issues of vocal development, stamina and maturity of stage presence will not be expected to have
been addressed in any great depth at the Graduate Diploma stage, students are expected to show the
beginnings of potential as operatic soloists.
In exceptional circumstances where the Grad Dip student is performing a principal role of substance in a
College Opera production this may avoid the need to be assessed in two opera scenes and a full length
recital. If the role is named but not over-demanding in terms of length or vocal compass the singer would
be required to perform a recital of 15-20 minutes duration and to perform one opera scene during the
course of the year in addition to the operatic role.
All Opera Scenes elected for assessment must be approved by the Head of Vocal Studies as being of
sufficient substance to stand as assessed elements. The signature must be obtained on the Assessment
Request Form before it will be accepted by Registry
Song Class - Assessed Performance
See Learning Outcomes 2 and 3:

A broad familiarity with the nature of the vocal repertoire, coupled with a core of works known in
some detail;

Facility in the principal European languages of the vocal repertoire and an informed awareness of the
main national types.
Students must decide which of the two languages, German or French, they wish to be formally assessed in.
For the Song Class in question, during the course of the year, they must perform in one of the following:
o

The German or French Song Class concert

a specially nominated College concert during the year

The Lieder Competition

A specially nominated external concert such as that at the Austrian Cultural Forum

7. Programme Management Arrangements

Leadership within the programme
The Graduate Diploma is managed through a team led by the Director of Programmes & Research and the
Head of Vocal Studies. Key members of this team are the Deputy Head of Graduate School and the Director
of Opera. There is also an important liaison role with the Vocal and Opera Department Administration
(through whom opera coaching, movement, acting and language classes are coordinated), as well as with the
Registry Programmes Team.

Committee representation
In all aspects of its organisation and delivery, the Graduate Diploma for singers both reports to and is
represented through the Graduate School Committee. Matters relating to the course are also integral to the
business the Vocal Faculty Committee. In particular, any general changes to the framework of assessment, or
of progression through the courses, would be discussed through this committee, although more formally
processed through the Graduate School Committee.

Boards of Examiners and the general regulatory framework

The results of all assessment carried out within the Graduate Diploma programme are reported to and
ratified by the Board of Examiners. In all regulatory matters, the course for singers is operated subject to the
Regulations and Overall Credit Framework for Taught Postgraduate Programmes.
In the event of any ambiguity arising in matters of assessment relating to the Graduate Diploma course, it is
the Board of Examiners which would rule on any specific case. Any consequent modifications to regulations
affecting the course should, by definition, concern the award rather than the curriculum. Hence they would
be matters for the College alone to consider and would initially be brought in the form of proposals to the
Graduate School Committee. In the unlikely event of regulatory changes affecting how the curriculum was
to be delivered, then, having reached the Graduate School Committee and if approved at this stage, they
would be taken through the Colleges quality assurance procedures relating to course modifications.

10

Appendix I
General Information

Vital and comprehensive details about most facets of College life are found on MUSE, the Colleges
web portal, including:

Absences
Additional Studies
Changing Professor or Mode of Study
Competitions
Course Documents & Forms
Deferring Examinations
Fees and Funding
General Information for Students
Information Communications Technology (ICT)
International Exchanges
Interrupting Studies or Leaving
Opening Hours
Performance Management Department
Planning & Review Week
Practical Examination Procedures
Principal Study Syllabuses
Procedures for Submission and Assessment of Postgraduate Written Work
RCM Students Association
Registration
References
Registry
Regulations for Students
Room booking procedures
Studios
Submission of assignments
Travel and Student Oyster Card
Virtual Learning Environment (vle)

All students are required to activate their College email account at the start of the academic year. This is
the primary means of communication between you and the College.
Access to Learning Fund (ALF)
ALF provides a limited amount of government money to assist undergraduate and postgraduate UK
students who are suffering financial hardship. The conditions and application forms are available
from Registry Services or Student Services. Application forms may be submitted to the Welfare
Officer. Meetings are held five times during the academic year. The Access to Learning Fund is not
available to Artist Diploma students. Students are advised to look out for the notices inviting
students to apply for Hardship Fund grants, or see the Welfare Officer. Application deadlines are
communicated to students via their RCM email address.

11

Appointments with Graduate School staff

Dr. Amanda Glauert, Director of Programmes & Research (Room G11) and Dr. Ingrid Pearson, Deputy
Head of Graduate School (Room 117) welcome regular contact with students. You can sign-up for a
time to see Ingrid on the noticeboard outside her office door, Room 117, on the first floor of the
Blomfield Building. Ingrid can be contacted at iepearson@rcm.ac.uk and tel. 020-7591 4364. Persons
wishing to see Amanda should arrange this with her assistant, Rebecca Mair, in Secretariat,
rmair@rcm.ac.uk tel. 020-7591 4312.

Centre for Music and Multimedia (CMM)

A development of the RCMs Centre for the Study of Composition-for-Screen, the CMM encompasses
the following areas:

composition for film, television and other multimedia forms,

electroacoustic composition and performance,

audio and video recording as tools for composition and performance,

the use of other applications of music technology

A feature of the centre is interaction between composers and performers. Many postgraduate students
present work developed through the CMM. For further information, contact Professor David Burnand
dburnand@rcm.ac.uk

Centre for Performance History (CPH)

Formed in 2004, the CPH incorporates important collections that together offer unique insights into the
history of musical performance. The Museum of Instruments (in the East Quadrangle) houses an
internationally renowned collection of instruments, associated documentation and some of the most
famous images from the Colleges collection of nearly 400 original works of art relating to music and
musicians. The CPHs other collections are mostly housed in a new facility at College Hall, among them
10,000 prints and photographs of musicians, 600,000 concert programmes from 1736 to the present day,
press-cuttings and memorabilia. The Museum is open to staff and students of the RCM and the public
on four afternoons a week (Tuesday-Friday) during term time, and during the summer vacation, or you
may make an appointment to visit the Museum at other times. You may also book appointments to
consult the collections at College Hall. Specialist members of staff are available to offer help and advice
and during the later stages of your degree you may opt for an elective in Performance History. For further
details of the collections and numerous images, see the CPH website www.cph.rcm.ac.uk.

Centre for Performance Science (CPS)

The CPS promotes collaborative research and teaching among musicians and scientists at the Royal
College of Music, London. From the investigation of music cognition and perception to the study of
expert performance, the CPS benefits from its position within a vibrant musical environment. As
such, the Centre is particularly well placed to explore the interface between skilled artistry and
scientific discovery. A number of postgraduate students are actively involved in the work of the CPS.
For further information see the CPS webpages at www.cps.rcm.ac.uk/CPS/Home

12

Grove Forum
Staff and students at the College are involved in a wide range of research activity. Grove Forums are held on
most Thursdays during term from 5:15pm, and offer an opportunity for all members of the College to hear
the fruits of research by colleagues and by a wide range of guest speakers. The format of the meetings is
flexible including concerts, lecture-recitals, discussions and scholarly papers and the atmosphere is
informal and friendly. Proposals for presentations from post graduates are welcomed, and can be emailed to
grove@rcm.ac.uk

Library
The Library is open from 9am to 7pm from Monday to Thursday, and from 9am to 5:30pm on Friday. and
offers a comprehensive service for advice, lending, reference, listening and research. One of the worlds
major collections, it offers a comprehensive service for advice, lending, reference and listening. A wide
range of reference material (dictionaries, encyclopaedias, catalogues, bibliographies, collected editions
and journals) is maintained, and an increasing number of works can be consulted on CD-ROM or via the
internet. There is a reading room for 40, a listening room for 20 and an IT room with 11 computers
(additional computer access is provided in a multimedia room with Sibelius score-writing facilities, one
floor above). Audio-visual facilities include CDs, LPs, cassettes, tapes, DAT, mini-disc, videos and DVDs.
Postgraduates are strongly encouraged to make use of the excellent general humanities library in
neighbouring Imperial College for wider, interdisciplinary reading, and to join the public music libraries in
Kensington and Westminster. New postgraduates should attend a library induction session during their
first weeks at College. This vast resource will open many doors for you and may well lead to life-changing
experiences!

Noticeboards
The College has a range of noticeboards on which important information is posted. It is essential that you
locate those relevant to you and that you consult these on a regular basis.
Postgraduate Noticeboards

Registry corridor (Registry side)

Faculty Noticeboards
Keyboard
Strings
Brass
Woodwind
Vocal
Composition
Historical Performance
Percussion

Registry corridor (side opposite Registry)

Registry corridor (side opposite Registry)
Walkway between Blomfield and South buildings
Walkway between Blomfield and South buildings
Top of stairs leading to library
Top of stairs leading to library
Top of stairs leading to library
Percussion Suite

Other Noticeboards
Chamber Music
Competitions
Orchestral
Alexander Technique
External Engagements
Students Association

Registry corridor (side opposite Registry)

Registry corridor (Registry side)
Registry corridor (Opposite side), also in Orchestral office
corridor
Blomfield building 2nd floor corridor
Blomfield building 2nd floor corridor
South end of walkway between Blomfield and South buildings

13

Questions and Problems

As a general rule, you can follow these lines of enquiry in order to find solutions to queries or problems
that arise:

activity

(i)

1-to-1 lessons

first step

(ii) if not resolved

(iii) finally

Individual professor

Head of Faculty

Deputy Head of Graduate

School/ Director of
Programmes & Research

Classes/lectures

Individual lecturer

Deputy Head of
Graduate School

Director of Programmes &

Research

Ensemble
activities

Individual professor
or
coach

Head of Faculty

Artistic Director and

Director of Programmes &
Research

Option choices

Deputy Head of
Graduate School

Director of
Programmes &
Research

General matters

Registry Programmes
Team

Deputy Head of
Graduate School

Director of Programmes &

Research

If you have a personal matter you wish to discuss, you should speak first to the Counsellor.
If your complaint is about a general programme matter and involves several students, you may wish
to take it first to the Students' Association to request that they take forward the complaint.
If the complaint is about the conduct of a member of staff, you should address it to the Registry
Manager, Elly Taylor, etaylor@rcm.ac.uk
Advice on College regulations and procedures may also be obtained from Rebecca Mair, in
Secretariat.
If you wish to appeal an examination decision refer to the procedure for a Review of a Decision by a
Board of Examiners in the College General Regulations for Students, available on the website.
If your complaint is about a serious disciplinary matter refer to the Student Code of Conduct in the
College General Regulations for Students.
The steps outlined above should be used for any problem or complaint you have. See also the steps in
the College's Complaints Procedure for students, in the College General Regulations for Students.
If you wish to use any of these procedures, you are asked to contact the Registry Manager.

Pigeonholes
All students have a pigeonhole situated half-way down the stairs leading to the Library. It is essential that
student check their pigeonhole daily whenever they are in College.
14

Woodhouse Professional Development Centre

The Woodhouse Professional Development Centre is on the second floor of the 1895 building.
It provides support and guidance to all RCM students and recent graduates, in preparation for a lifelong
career in music. This unique facility was established in 1999 and continues to thrive. The Woodhouse
team provide a range of performance opportunities, including education and outreach work, and
supports musicians through these experiences, encouraging them to develop the initiative, flexibility and
imagination required to thrive in an ever-changing profession. New postgraduates are strongly advised to
visit the Centre during their first few weeks in College.
The Department is open from 9.30am to 5.30pm (closing at 2pm on Wednesdays) and the following
resources are available:

performance opportunities in a wide range of venues and situations

education and outreach project work
instrumental and vocal teaching experience
advice on self promotion including CV, biography, publicity materials, and photography
volunteering opportunities
guidance and support in making job and trust applications
funding advice including sponsorship, grants and trusts
external competitions and scholarship information
a weekly email jobs bulletin listing current work vacancies in music
Library resources and information
access to useful contacts throughout the music business

15

Appendix II
Whos Who

Graduate School
Amanda Glauert, MA, PhD, ARCM, HonARAM

Director of Programmes & Research

Ingrid Pearson, BMusHons, PhD, DipEd, LTCL, LMusA

Deputy Head of Graduate School

Vocal Studies and Opera

Nicholas Sears, MA

Head of Vocal Studies

Michael Rosewell, GRSM, FRCM, ARCM

Director of Opera

Christopher Middleton, GGSM

Assistant Director of Opera

Ann Somerville

Opera Administrator

16