ONLINE COURSE CATALOGUE / STUDY PROGRAMMES (ACADEMIC YEAR 2022/2023)

Conducting had been thought as a course for students of Composition, Theory and Pedagogy at the Academy of Music Composition Department from 1921. In 1944, Conducting joined Composition, as a major subject in the study programme. Through the reform of the departments and curricula of the Academy of Music in 1977, Conducting was separated from Composition, and Conducting Department was formed, augmented by Harp and Percussion in 1999.

A number of prominent conductors have taught at the Department, including Friedrich Zaun, Fran Lhotka, Milan Horvat, Jovan Šajnović, Slavko Zlatić, Igor Gjadrov, Pavle Dešpalj, Vjekoslav Šutej and Uroš Lajovic.

Harp has been a course at the Academy of Music since its beginnings thanks to the activities of Lujza Holub, and the first professor of Harp as a major subject was Ruda Ravnik-Kosi from 1971 to 1980. Marija Mlinar continued with the work in 1992. The department was joint by two current professors in 2002 and 2005 respectively.

The establishment of the Principal Study in Percussion in 1988 can be considered a turning point for Croatian percussive art, bearing in mind that academic education started to encourage solo, chamber and composing activities related to percussion.

The Symphony Orchestra, Choir, Chamber Choir and biNgBang – the Percussion Ensemble of the Academy of Music are active within the Department, and they produce a large number of concerts and projects, including their regular appearances in the cycles of the Vatroslav Lisinski Concert Hall in Zagreb, at the Zagreb Music Biennale, and elsewhere. The intense international activity of the Percussion Ensemble since they joined the Department has included performances on four continents.

At this Department one can study one of the three integrated undergraduate and graduate university study programmes: Conducting, Harp and Percussion. After the first joint year of study, students of Conducting can opt for either Conducting or Choral Conducting track.

Conducting / Choral conducting

The principal study programme in Conducting, with its main subjects (Conducting, Choral Conducting, Operatic Literature and Piano Accompaniment) provides students with the necessary skills to lead various instrumental, vocal and mixed ensembles and introduces them to a wealth of musical literature for a variety of instruments and ensembles. These skills are complemented with theoretical disciplines such as Solfeggio, Harmony, Polyphony, Music Forms and Styles, History of Music, Instrumentation, and practical disciplines such as Piano, Basics of Vocal Technique, Choir and Orchestra. After the joint first year of study, the programme is divided into two tracks: Conducting (with the focus on instrumental ensembles) and Choral Conducting (with the focus on vocal ensembles).

Among elective subjects, students can choose those that deepen or broaden their existing knowledge, as well as those that develop new knowledge. The elective module in Pedagogy introduces students to basic theoretical and practical knowledge in music pedagogy.

The study programme is completed after passing all the required exams, writing a thesis, as well as by passing the final exam in which a student publicly performs a concert programme before the committee.

Harp / Percussion

During their studies, students acquire and master the skills of playing the instrument, which is the principal subject of study, and gain knowledge in skills related to their chosen area of study.

The theoretical subjects such as Solfeggio, Harmony, Musical Forms and Styles, History of Music, Literature and others, and practical disciplines, Chamber Music, Study of Orchestral Parts, Orchestra, provide the foundations for a broad and thorough study programme.

Among elective subjects, students can choose those that deepen or broaden their existing knowledge, as well as those that develop new knowledge. Upon the successful completion of one of the elective modules in its entirety (Pedagogical Module, Jazz Music, Early Music, Contemporary Music, Sound Engineering, Cultural Management, Leading an Ensemble), students acquire additional competencies in more specialist professional areas.

The study programme is completed after passing all the required exams, writing a thesis, and by giving a public performance of the final exam in the form of a solo recital.

Upon the completion of the Integrated Undergraduate and Graduate Study Programme in Conducting, Masters of Music are qualified to lead professional and amateur orchestras, choirs and similar ensembles, as well as to promote other appropriate musical activities. They can also be accompanists in professional opera houses. In the wider area of the music industry, they can work in music publishing, music production and distribution, music management, and in the media. After completing the pedagogical module, they are able to work in primary and secondary music schools as teachers of conducting and music theory.

Masters of Music, graduates of the Integrated Undergraduate and Graduate Study Programme for Instrumentalists can work as independent performers, either as soloists and members of chamber ensembles or as orchestral musicians. They are also qualified for collaborative and individual work in the field of culture, education, tourism and festival productions, mass media and other similar activities.

With the fully completed elective pedagogical module, they are trained to work in primary and secondary music schools as teachers of an appropriate instrument and chamber music.

STUDY PROGRAMMES:

Integrated undergraduate and graduate study of CONDUCTING (track choice in 2nd year of studies):

Track: Conducting
Track: Choral Conducting

Integrated undergraduate and graduate study for instrumentalist*:

Track: Percussion – specialization choice in 4th year of studies:

Specialization: Percussion
Specialization: Keyboard Percussion

Track: Harp

*All instrumentalist study, tracks share a joint study programme Integrated Undergraduate and Graduate studies for Instrumentalists