Study Keyboard Instruments (Master of Music)Major Subjects: pianoforte, harpsichord, fortepiano, organ
Regular course length 4 semesters
Course leading to the degree of Master of Music
There is a tradition of excellent piano tuition at the HMTMH going back many decades. The University’s greatest assets in this respect are an outstanding faculty of worldwide renown and excellent facilities for students.
The new Master’s degree course in “Keyboard instruments” is given greater breadth by the possibility of studying the organ, the harpsichord and the fortepiano as principal instruments.
Further information on the courses available can initially be obtained from the Registration Office (Immatrikulationsamt) or from the tutors for pianoforte, organ, harpsichord and fortepiano (see column on the right).
1. Course content and objective/ Tuition
In addition to tuition in the principal study subject, the curriculum also includes many useful and practically orientated supplementary subjects:
- Chamber music
- Tuition on historic keyboard instruments; in addition to various harpsichords and clavichords, the HMTMH also has a collection of historic upright and grand pianos from the period 1790 to 1910 available (originals and copies)
- Contemporary instrumental techniques
- Introduction to management and marketing
- Concert with discussion
- a one-hour CD production
- Conducting
- Special offerings in the field of New Music for the piano
- International master classes additional to the range of tuition otherwise available
The programme aims to enable all students to emerge from the course as comprehensively trained personalities who will be able to hold their own successfully in their profession despite the changing face of the world of music.
2. Who is the course aimed at? / Requirements for admission
At the admission examination the young musicians are expected to present an excellently prepared programme and to already strongly display the traits of an artistic and teaching personality able to meet the high demands made on a professional musician.
3. Career outlook
Over the course of time, the requirements for a career as a pianist / organist / harpsichordist have constantly developed and expanded. In addition to giving solo concerts, these instrumentalists are expected to be able to perform as members of an ensemble or in chamber music, and moreover to undertake teaching tasks and to have communicative and self-management abilities. Graduates of this Master’s degree course should not only be up to meeting the demands of the musical life of the future, but also be in a position to play a active part in shaping it through their creative input.
4. Institute/Faculty
Students will be assigned to the Pianoforte or Organ/Church Music groups.
There are numerous opportunities to perform, both within and outside the University. There are also internal competitions, scholarships and other forms of financial support available.
Programme learning outcomes
The master’s degree program in “Keyboard Instruments” builds upon the work of the bachelor's program; thanks to the streamlined structure of the curriculum, a high degree of concentration on practical subjects is possible and indeed expected of the students. The constant expansion of the repertoire demands a corresponding flexibility in instrumental technique; the intensive study of each new work entails a greater depth of understanding of musical structure and a broadening of tonal horizons; self-confidence in performance as well as expressive ability are fostered and stabilized through regular participation in class-meetings and podium training, as well as through extracurricular concert activities.
The master's degree program in “Keyboard Instruments” prepares students for the demands of the future professional world through excellent mentoring. Through intensive individual and group instruction in the major subject and in the practical minor subjects, students achieve a high degree of qualification in their artistic skills. The goal is to produce thoroughly well-trained artistic personalities that can hold their own in the job market. The supplementation of practical lessons with musicological and music-theoretical seminars ensures that students can underpin their artistic skills with scientific competence. The master's degree examination is the professional qualification of the program; it proves that the graduates have the musical, stylistic and technical skills to practice their profession professionally in its many forms.
Collegial and creative collaboration with others plays an indispensable role in the professional life of every musician and is therefore an essential part of the practical minor subjects in the degree program. The student body of the master's program in “Keyboard Instruments” consists of over 50% international students, so that cooperation and friendships between people of very different cultural backgrounds are a matter of course. This not only means a personal and musical enrichment of the respective students, but in the global age of networking is of great importance for their professional future.
The students' civic engagement is encouraged and promoted in the form of numerous concerts and performances for the public. The university enjoys the support of an avid and enthusiastic local audience; in many cases these are older people to whom the participation in cultural events means a great deal. Students in the master's degree program in “Keyboard Instruments” have a podium here and can thus play a valuable social role. Organizing events such as concerts, lectures, etc. on one‘s own initiative within the university is encouraged. In cooperation with LMN (Live Music Now e. V.), students have the opportunity to apply for a scholarship that enables them to perform in places such as hospitals, hospices, and correctional facilities etc., in order to bring music to people who would otherwise not have the opportunity to attend concerts.
Download (partly just available in german)
- Information for the audition 2024 (pdf Datei,62 K)
- Zulassungsordnung 13/2022 (pdf Datei,100 K)
- Studien- und Prüfungsordnung 32/2022 (study and examination regulation/course and ECTS description) (pdf Datei,344 K)
Representative Professor
Prof. Christopher Oakden
Professor of Piano
Hanover University of Music, Drama and Media
Neues Haus 1, 30175 Hannover
Examination Office
Judith Degro
Department for Studies and Teaching | Examination Board Pianoforte B. Mus., Keyboard Instruments M. Mus., Musical Performance and Education B. Mus./M. Mus., Church Music B. Mus./M. Mus.
Hanover University of Music, Drama and Media
Neues Haus 1, 30175 Hannover
E001 | Loebensteinstraße 2Phone: +49 (0)511 3100-7254
judith.degro@hmtm-hannover.deOffice hours: Mo 09:30-12 Uhr | Di 09:30-12 Uhr und 14-15:30 Uhr | Do 14-15:30 Uhr | und nach Vereinbarung
Student Registration Office
Beate Heitmüller
Department for Studies and Teaching | Matriculation Office, Examination Office Junior Students, Solo Class
Hanover University of Music, Drama and Media
Neues Haus 1, 30175 Hannover
E007 | Loebensteinstraße 2Phone: +49 (0)511 3100-7223
I-Amt@hmtm-hannover.deOffice hours: Mo 09:30-12 Uhr | Di 09:30-12 Uhr und 14-15:30 Uhr | Do 14-15:30 Uhr | und nach Vereinbarung
Tanja Ebeling
Department for Studies and Teaching | Matriculation Office, Examination Office Junior Students, Solo Class
Hanover University of Music, Drama and Media
Neues Haus 1, 30175 Hannover
E007 | Loebensteinstraße 2Phone: +49 (0)511 3100-7224
I-Amt@hmtm-hannover.deOffice hours: Mo 09:30-12 Uhr | Di 09:30-12 Uhr und 14-15:30 Uhr | Do 14-15:30 Uhr | und nach Vereinbarung
Last modified: 2024-06-04
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