Composition Master

The master's degree program in composition builds on a first professional degree and serves to deepen and expand the skills acquired there and to introduce students to potential professional fields. It aims at the further development and specification of the personal artistic profile and enables a specific expansion of the horizon of experience. It develops in students a comprehensive practical competence to deal with artistic issues, especially in interdisciplinary contexts.

The focus is on the student's own project

At the center of the course is the implementation and realization of one's own extensive composition project (e.g. music theater, ensemble or orchestral composition, spatial sound project, interdisciplinary project, performative project, electronic or live-electronic composition, etc). The content and format of this project will be coordinated with the program director on the basis of an exposé to be submitted with the aptitude test. In the course of the study program, all aspects of the project are worked out and developed in the form of research, discursive reflection and practical testing. At the end of the course, the master's thesis is the implementation of the composition project and its realization in a public presentation/performance and its written reflection.

The conception of the study program allows for an adaptation of the contents to the necessities and requirements of the respective project and thus to the individual needs of the student. This type of study demands a high degree of personal responsibility and independence from the student. Successful completion of the program qualifies the student for the professional fields of free and applied composition in performative contexts (interdisciplinary, instrumental, technological, etc.).

Admission to the master's degree program requires a completed university degree at a university of music or a comparable university in Germany or abroad. This does not necessarily have to be in composition; degrees in courses such as conducting, music theory, artistic instrumental playing, school music are also possible.

For applications from abroad, sufficient knowledge of the German language is required for admission to the program. Alternatively, an application is also possible with sufficient knowledge of the English language. Admission to the master's program in composition requires successful completion of an aptitude test.

Admission to the master's program in composition requires successful completion of an aptitude test.

The following must be submitted with the application:

• at least three scores of own compositions in different instrumentations.
• an exposé on the planned artistic project in the context of the master's thesis.

In addition to a description of the project idea and the underlying artistic orientation, the exposé should also include a project outline for implementation (including required resources, possible cooperation partners, etc.).

After reviewing the scores and the exposé, the jury of experts will decide on the invitation to the qualifying examination.

The qualifying examination consists of a 30-minute colloquium.

In an interview, questions regarding motivation, previous training, development perspectives and musical artistic content are discussed. In particular:

• Questions about the submitted compositions
• Questions about the project planned as part of the master's thesis

The Study and Examination Regulations (SPO) set out the framework conditions and regulations for your studies. They apply together with the General Regulations (for Bachelor's and Master's degree programmes) or the SPoL (for teacher training degree programmes). All versions of the SPO for your degree programme (including earlier versions for students of previous academic years) can be found at Examinations.