School of Music & Performing Arts BA (Hons) Music and Combined/Creative Arts Music Welcome Week Handbook September 2014 1
Welcome to Bath Spa University and the School of Music & Performing Arts (MPA). This booklet will tell you everything you need to know about how to get started as a BA Music/Combined and Creative Arts Music student. It tells you about the practicalities of your first week, with a schedule of key meetings and introductory sessions. By the end of the week, we hope that you ll have begun to feel a part of the creative community that is the School of Music & Performing Arts. The School s aim, essentially, is to provide high quality, practice- based programmes in Acting, Dance, Drama, Music and Theatre Production for as wide a range of talented students as possible. The School currently has over 900 full- time students, 44 academic staff, more than 80 visiting staff in specialist fields, plus technical and administrative teams. Our facilities include: the concert hall, the University Theatre, our city centre venue Burdall s Yard, the stately home of Corsham Court, our Theatre Production at Ashman s Yard, a large sprung dance studio, a semi- sprung gallery studio, several performance studios, digital recording studios, multimedia labs, practice rooms and band rooms, plus other specialist teaching and rehearsal spaces. Performance is at the heart of what we do and our calendar is a busy one. Bath Spa Live runs a high- ile performance series with countless opportunities both to perform and to see internationally renowned musicians, theatre and dance companies. See www.bathspalive.com for more details. We consider ourselves staff and students as a vibrant community of artists making work, inventing new forms, reaching new audiences, discovering new insights and making new connections. I look forward to meeting you this week. Joe Bennett essor Joe Bennett Dean of School of Music & Performing Arts 2
BA (Hons) Music at Bath Spa University at Bath Spa University is part of a vibrant School of Music & Performing Arts. There is an exciting and creative programme of student performance and composition, which combines with our essional concert series based at the and at Burdall s Yard in the city centre. The course emphasises creativity through performance and composition, and is also alive to the constantly changing needs of the job market. The Music team is keen to make you feel involved in the subject, and there is plenty of opportunity for formal and informal contact with all members of staff. Performance opportunities include annual staged musical theatre and opera productions, plus a range of ensembles from big band to wind band, early music to gamelan ensemble, as well as several choirs. With around 150 students on, and 30 music combined with another subject, we are large enough to take on performance projects such as the recent British premiere of Philip Glass's opera Satyagraha and Brahms's German Requiem, but small enough to have a real sense of community, helped in no small part by the beautiful campus and surroundings. This year, performances to look forward to include our first orchestral and wind band concert at the end of October with Shostakovich s Fifth Symphony; choir and big band perform Will Todd s jazz Mass in Blue, in early November at St George s Brandon Hill in Bristol, together with Gavin Bryars Jesus Blood Never Failed Me Yet, in a version for chorus and orchestra which will include all students. Our opera production at the end of November this year is Offenbach s Orpheus in the Underworld. In the spring, a Morton Feldman/American New Music Project will take place, and later concerts feature film music and orchestral transcriptions. There are also numerous jazz evenings through the year at Burdall s Yard in the city centre. MUSIC TEAM Performance and Musicology essor Subject Leader Dr Matthew Spring Dr Charles Wiffen essor Amanda Bailey Adam Biggs Maria Garcia Composition essor James Saunders Nick Atkinson essor Joe Duddell Dr Jeff Boehm Music Administration Cath Foxwell and Janis Hasteley 3
HELP! Any member of staff will be happy to help with any queries you might have. However, throughout the week, the Departmental Administration team (Cath and Janis) in the Admin Offices (Department of Music - Rooms MT.G06 and MT.G14) will always be available to help answer your questions, or guide you to the right place and/or person. COMBINED AND CREATIVE ARTS STUDENTS TAKING MUSIC MODULES Please join the students in as many of the activities in the calendar for the week below as you can. Module selection will be done online via The Hub and you should do this by the end of Wednesday. You will already have been scheduled for any compulsory modules in your two subjects, but you must choose the additional modules you want to take. These can be in one or both of your subjects. You can find out more about modules by attending the subject presentations on Monday afternoon or Tuesday morning (if any of your sessions clash). 4
and Combined/Creative Arts Music WELCOME WEEK Monday 22 nd September What Students Staff How long Where When Welcome Session students Roger Heaton and the Music 120 11am - 1pm Welcome & Subject Session Combined and BACA students taking Music modules Roger Heaton and the Music 2pm 2.pm Tuesday 23 rd September What Students Staff Duration Where When Welcome & Subject Session Combined and BACA students taking Music modules FOR THOSE WHO COULDN T MAKE YESTERDAY S SESSION and the Music 10am 10.am Music Workshop Music modules and the Music 90 11am - 12.30pm 5
and Combined/Creative Arts Music Wednesday 24 th September What Students Staff Duration Where When BSU Fresher s Fair All BSU Students Students Union 240 (drop- in) Students Union 9.00am 1pm Music Workshop Music modules and the Music 60 11am 12pm Lunchtime Concert Open to all 1pm - 1.pm Introduction to Minerva and Online Resources Music modules 60 2.30pm - 3.30pm Singers Auditions for Chamber Choir Singers Dr Matthew Spring 90 MT.101 - upstairs in the Gallery) 3.30pm 5pm BSU Student Dyslexia Screening All BSU Students Student Support 180 (drop- in) TBC 2pm 5pm 6
and Combined/Creative Arts Music WELCOME WEEK Thursday 25 th September What Students Staff Duration Where When Music Workshop music modules 90 11am - 12.30pm Lunchtime Concert Open to all 1pm 1.pm Introduction to Music Technology All Creative Forum 1 Composition Nick Atkinson and Jon Savage 120 Twiverton Building TN.115/TN.116) 2pm 4pm Second Study Auditions the Performance module who would like second study lessons 120 MT.101 - upstairs in the Gallery) 4pm 6pm 7
and Combined/Creative Arts Music WELCOME WEEK Friday 26 th September What Students Staff Duration Where When Music Workshop Music modules 90 Minutes 11am - 12.30pm Lunchtime Concert Open to all Minutes 1pm - 1.pm Orchestral Auditions Instrumentalists (excluding pianists) 120 MT.101 - upstairs in the Gallery) 2pm 4pm Party (with music and beer) students TBC & Gallery MT.G01 & Room MT.G30) 4pm 8pm 8