COURSES AT GC PARTNER INSTITUTIONS
Winter semester 2026
Registration via e-mail to globalconservatoire@mdw.ac.at until 18 September
Danish art songs in danish
Institution: Royal Danish Academy of Music (RDAM)
Study level: Bachelor, Master
Course tutor: Eva Hess Thaysen and guest faculty
Course content:
Discover a rich and often overlooked repertoire that deserves a place on the international concert stage.
This course invites singers and pianists to explore the world of Danish art song through language, history, poetry, and performance. Using the groundbreaking anthology Danish Diction in Art Song, students will gain practical tools for performing in Danish while deepening their understanding of the cultural and artistic contexts that shaped this repertoire.
Through expert coaching, language guidance, and collaborative performance sessions, participants will work on pronunciation, interpretation, and stylistic understanding while building confidence in presenting Danish song literature. No prior knowledge of Danish or the International Phonetic Alphabet is required.
For vocalists and collaborative pianists seeking to expand their repertoire and explore new artistic perspectives, this course offers a unique gateway into Scandinavia’s rich musical heritage.
Dates of the Live Coaching Sessions (Zoom):
- 24 September 2026 (time TBC)
- 22 October 2026 (time TBC)
- 19 November 2026 (time TBC)
- 10 December 2026 (time TBC)
Terms of participation:
max. 12 students (6 singer-pianist duos)
introduction to musical theatre songwriting
Institution: Manhattan School of Music
Study level: Bachelor
Course tutor: Andrew Gerle
Course content:
This practical and creative course introduces students to the craft of writing songs for the stage. Drawing on examples from over a century of Broadway repertoire, students will discover how melody, harmony, lyrics, character, and dramatic storytelling work together to create songs that move audiences and drive narrative action.
Through analysis, creative exercises, and guided composition projects, students will write and refine two original musical theatre songs while learning the techniques used by some of the genre’s most celebrated songwriters. Along the way, they will explore everything from hook writing and harmonic language to lyric structure and character development.
Ideal for composers, performers, lyricists, and theatre-makers, this course offers a rare opportunity to develop both musical and dramatic storytelling skills in a collaborative and supportive environment.
Course format:
- 3 live online sessions
- 7 weeks of asynchronous lectures, assignments, and songwriting workshops
Terms of participation:
max. 15 students
Musical Texture
Institution: Conservatorium van Amsterdam
Study level: Bachelor, Master
Course tutor: Amit Gur
Course content:
Texture is one of the most important elements of music, but also one of the least understood ones. In the twentieth century, the term became widely used in musicians’ discourse, yet even today, a formal understanding of musical texture is lacking. During the course, we will explore texture as a perceptual phenomenon. According to that approach, musical texture is first and foremost an experience characterized by a sense of persistency and relative stability over time – “the domain of sameness in music.” Following this approach, we will engage in composition assignments and analyze textural pieces from the 20th and 21st centuries.
The course is suitable for composers, jazz musicians, performers, and music theorists. Students will engage in lively discussions where they will be encouraged to rely on their intuition and areas of expertise to develop a personal understanding of the topic.
Course format:
- 4 live online discussion sessions
- 7 asynchronous study modules
Terms of participation:
max. 20 students
REGISTRATION FOR mdw STUDENTS
Please register via email to globalconservatoire@mdw.ac.at until 18 September 2026 (name, gender, birth date, mobile number, matriculation number, study field, study cycle).
The capacity of the courses is limited, the principle "first come, first served" applies!