The Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM) is a conservatoire located in

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The ...

, England. It is one of four conservatoires associated with the

Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music The ABRSM (Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music) is an examination board and registered charity based in the United Kingdom. ABRSM is one of five examination boards accredited by Ofqual to award graded exams and diploma qualification ...

. In addition to being a centre of music education, RNCM is one of the UK's busiest and most diverse public performance venues.

History

The RNCM has a history dating back to the 19th century and the establishment of the

Royal Manchester College of Music The Royal Manchester College of Music (RMCM) was a tertiary level conservatoire in Manchester, north-west England. It was founded in 1893 by the German-born conductor Sir Charles Hallé in 1893. In 1972, the Royal Manchester College of Music ...

(RMCM). In 1858, Sir Charles Hallé founded the Hallé orchestra in Manchester, and by the early 1890s had raised the idea of a music college in the city. Following an appeal for support, a building on Ducie Street was secured, Hallé was appointed Principal and Queen Victoria conferred the Royal title. The RMCM opened its doors to 80 students in 1893, rising to 117 by the end of the first year. Less than four decades later, in 1920, the

Northern School of Music The Northern School of Music was a music college located in Manchester which operated between 1920 and 1972 before merging with the Royal Manchester College of Music to form the Royal Northern College of Music. History The Northern School of M ...

was established (initially as a branch of the Matthay School of Music), and for many years the two institutions peacefully coexisted. It wasn't until 1955 that NSM Principal, Hilda Collens, in recognising the importance of performance in training students, met with RMCM Principal, Frederic Cox, to raise the question of merging. Discussions continued until September 1967 when a Joint Committee was formed to oversee plans to combine the two colleges. The RNCM was formed in 1972, moving to its purpose-built home on Oxford Road in 1973.

Building

Royal Northern College of Music, Manchester (1)

The college building was built on the corner of Oxford Road and Booth Street East between 1968 and 1973 by architects Bickerdike, Allen, Rich. The two-storey rectangular concrete structure is fronted by tall glazed

bay A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a gulf, sea, sound, or bight. A cove is a small, circular bay with a na ...

s recessed behind an array of square concrete pillars. Originally an elevated walkway ran along the Oxford Road side connecting the building to the former neighbouring Precinct Centre via a bridge over Booth Street East. Truncated sections of this walkway were the vestigial evidence an unrealised plan to create a network of high-level "boulevards", providing pedestrian routes on concrete stilts above street level from the RNCM to neighbouring buildings, and extending as far as Hulme and

Ancoats Ancoats is an area of Manchester in Greater Manchester, England. It is located next to the Northern Quarter, the northern part of Manchester city centre. Historically in Lancashire, Ancoats became a cradle of the Industrial Revolution and has ...

. Only the bridges over Oxford Road and Booth Street East were ever constructed. In 1997-8, the RNCM building was extended by architects Mills Beaumont Leavey Channon, with a new entrance built on the western side and the walkway removed. A major refurbishment of the Concert Hall was undertaken between December 2013 and September 2014 by Scott Hughes Design.

Academics

The college offers both undergraduate (BMus and joint MusB/GRNCM course with the

University of Manchester The University of Manchester is a public university, public research university in Manchester, England. The main campus is south of Manchester city centre, Manchester City Centre on Wilmslow Road, Oxford Road. The university owns and operates majo ...

in any of the five specialisations offered) and postgraduate taught programmes (PGDip, MMus) in musical performance and composition. In association with Manchester Metropolitan University the college offers research degrees (MPhil, PhD) in musical performance, composition, musicology and music psychology as part of its Graduate School and also confers awards at Companion, Fellowship (FRNCM) and Member level. In January 2005, the RNCM was awarded £4.5 million by the

Higher Education Funding Council for England The Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) was a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom, which was responsible for the distribution of funding for higher education to universities and further education colleges in Engla ...

to become a recognised Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning (CETL), the only UK conservatoire to be selected. The RNCM currently has 770 students and 320 teaching staff, the majority of whom are part-time visiting tutors. Many of the staff also teach at the Junior RNCM, a Saturday music school for talented young musicians who are keen on pursuing a musical career.

Faculties

The college is divided into 6 schools by area of specialisation. *School of Composition *School of Keyboard Studies *School of Strings *School of Vocal Studies and Opera *School of Wind, Brass & Percussion *Popular Music There is also a School of Conducting within its Graduate School.

Student life

Students' Union

The RNCM

students' union A students' union, also known by many other names, is a student organization present in many colleges, universities, and high schools. In higher education, the students' union is often accorded its own building on the campus, dedicated to ...

(RNCMSU) is the main student-run organisation. Besides representing the study body, the RNCMSU also plans and organises social programmes and provides peer support for students. The RNCMSU is member of the National Union of Students.

Student housing

There is a residential hall, Sir Charles Groves Hall, next to the campus. Alternatively, students may choose to rent a flat at the Manchester Student Homes, a provider of housing for university students in Manchester run by the Universities.

Notable alumni

Directors of the RNCM

John Manduell Sir John Manduell CBE (2 March 1928 – 25 October 2017) was the founding principal of the Royal Northern College of Music from 1973 to 1996 and the director of the Cheltenham Music Festival. Early life and education Manduell was born in Johannesb ...

(1973–1996) # :Edward Gregson (1996–2008) # Jonty Stockdale (2008–2012) # Linda Merrick (2013–present)

References

Citations

Sources

* Kennedy, Michael (1971) ''The History of the Royal Manchester College of Music''. Manchester University Press
Royal Manchester College of Music Archive
National Archives
View of the college

External links

* {{authority control Schools in Manchester Educational institutions established in 1973 1973 establishments in England Music in Manchester Musical instrument museums