Musical life at Fitzwilliam is active, varied and stimulating, and we aspire to the highest standards in both practical and academic music.
Practical music
Distinguished Fitzwilliam music alumni include composer Sir Henry Walford Davies (Master of the King's Musick 1934-41), writer and broadcaster Humphrey Burton CBE, conductor David Atherton OBE, musicologists Professor Simon Keefe, Dr Alan Brown and Professor Mervyn Cooke, violinists Roger Garland and Nicholas Dowding, violist Martin Outram, oboist Rachel Frost, bass Matthew Waldren, jazz pianist Colin Purbrook, opera director John Ramster, songwriter Nick Drake, composer Nicholas Marshall and recorder player John Turner.
To find out more about practical music in the College, enquire about putting on a concert or how to get involved in the huge amount of music on at Fitzwilliam College email the Director of Music, Catherine Groom (music@fitz.cam.ac.uk).
Studying Music
Three students are normally admitted to read for the Music Tripos every year; an Organ Scholar (who may or may not read Music) is elected every other year; and there are eight Choral Scholars. Students reading Music are taught through formal lectures in the Music Faculty and through College supervisions - held either on a one-to-one basis for subjects requiring individual attention (such as Harmony and Counterpoint), or in groups of two or three where broader discussion is beneficial (History, Analysis and so forth). These weekly sessions are designed to support and complement the lectures, and the Faculty also provides practical classes in Aural skills and Keyboard Harmony. Supervisions are taught by a team of specialist subject supervisors appointed by the Director of Studies in Music, and include senior faculty members, postdoctoral researchers and external scholars. The College's impressive new library houses one of the largest music collections in the University.
- For details of the Music Tripos at Fitzwilliam, see our Music course page
- The Undergraduate course structure can be found on the Music Faculty webpage
- University-wide music scholarship information is available on the University's music awards page
- Fitzwilliam also admits students for both MPhil and PhD in Music, and for Master of Music.