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Welcome to the Faculty of Music 

Welcome to the Faculty of Music of Oxford University, one of the largest and liveliest music departments in the country, and an internationally renowned centre of musical teaching and research. The Faculty came top of the ‘research power’ rankings in the most recent (2008) Research Assessment Exercise (RAE), with 50% of its research rated as ‘world-leading’ and the largest number of research active staff submitted by any Higher Education Institution in the UK. It gained the highest (5*) rating in the two previous RAEs of 1996 and 2001, and was ranked best UK music department by both The Times and The Independent in their most recent surveys.

Through its undergraduate and postgraduate programmes, the Faculty offers a highly stimulating environment for anyone interested in a practical, scholarly and creative engagement with music - musicologists, performers and composers.  The exceptionally rich musical life of the University and its Colleges - including world-famous choirs, University orchestras and chamber groups, jazz ensembles, and contemporary music groups – is complemented by the wide range of musical activities to be found in and around the city,  drawing on numerous musical traditions.

Our undergraduate and graduate curricula are strong in traditional musicological and musical skills, but are also notably wide-ranging and imaginative, reflecting contemporary developments in music and musicology; and alongside these formal programmes we organise and participate in a stimulating variety of concerts, masterclasses, workshops, public lectures, and conferences. Our resources include the internationally important Bate Collection of Musical Instruments, a high specification electronic music studio, an Indonesian gamelan,  and specialised resources for the study of performance. The Faculty's research and teaching strengths cover a broad spectrum, including European music of many periods, ethnomusicology, composition, opera, film music, analysis and music theory, the psychology of music, performance, and performance practice.

Perspectives on Musical Improvisation

Registration is now open: international conference on the nature of improvisation from 10-13 September 2012.

Hearing Landscape Critically: Sense, Text, Ideology

In conjunction with the RMA, this conference seeks to expand and explode our critical frames of reference, and develop alternative strategies for engaging critically and creatively with the poetics and politics of landscape (18-19 May, 2012)

Vacancy: Information and Music Technology Officer

The Faculty of Music seeks an enthusiastic and skilled person to join the team in this unique role, available from 1 August 2012 or as soon as possible thereafter.

Research Colloquia

The weekly Research Colloquia feature visiting and Oxford-based scholars and musicians presenting stimulating research papers on all kinds of music-related topics, as do the seminar series in Late Medieval and Renaissance Music, and Ethnomusicology - offering outstanding opportunities to hear and discuss current research across a broad spectrum of music.

Composing and performing

The Faculty encourages student involvement in a wide range of practical music. We promote a rich programme of events designed to stimulate performance and composition within the curriculum. Regular composition workshops, masterclasses and coaching sessions are offered by our professional ensembles in residence.