COURSE SUMMARY

The one year Higher Diploma vocal course (in Popular Music Performance) is designed to equip aspiring professional vocalists and singers with the training, skills and awareness required by today's ever-changing music industry.

Successful students will gain two awards, our own Institute of Contemporary Music Performance Diploma and the OCN Diploma (in Popular Music Performance.) This is a level 3 award and is equivalent to 1.5 GCE 'A' levels and can be used for entry into Higher Education.

On the Higher Diploma Vocal course you will sing every week in live band situations with other instrumentalists, studying the different musical styles essential to a sustainable career in today's music industry. Class sizes are generally no more than 12 students, creating a high level of interaction with both your tutors and your fellow musicians. This ensures that your learning opportunities are maximized and the learning environment remains extremely focused.

GENERAL COURSE DETAILS

Course name:		Higher Diploma (Vocals)
Commencement:		6th October 2008
Duration:		30 weeks full-time made up of 3 x 10-week terms
Class Times:		16 hours/week, 3 days/week
Cost:		£4,950
Entry Req:		Students should possess Intermediate skill levels on the instrument. There is a mandatory FREE assessment prior to acceptance. Academic qualifications and sight reading skills are not required.

COURSE OUTLINE

Click here to download the 2008 Prospectus with the Higher Diploma Course Outline.

The Higher Diploma course is broken down into four main areas of study, as follows:

1. Core Curriculum: Covers and develops the essential technical skills that you will require throughout your career as a vocalist. For example, harmony and theory, voice technique, aural and transcribing, and keyboards.

2. Performance: LPW's and Ensemble cover all the principle contemporary styles, from Blues, Rock and Soul, through to advanced styles such as Jazz and Fusion. This provides you with performance experience and skills, as well as a widening song repertoire.

3. Stylistic Studies: This part of the course provides you with an in-depth understanding of all the principle contemporary musical styles, both in terms of performance, their historical importance and perspective and in creating your own material.

4. Sight Reading: Assuming no prior reading experience, this part of the course will provide you with the tools required to sight sing standard notation. This essential skill is supported throughout the course in practical performance classes, and is an integral part of a vocalist's skill set.

COURSE OUTLINE

Click here to download a PDF of the Higher Diploma (vocals) course outline.

Level I (Term 1)

Core Curriculum Modules

·Aural & Transcribing 1: Introduces some of the basic elements of aural training, such as interval and triad recognition, whilst the transcribing element helps students to develop selective hearing.

 ·Harmony & Theory 1: Introduces the basic theoretical knowledge you will need to progress forward in your studies.

 ·Voice Techniques 1: Underpins the most important elements required for a healthy, flexible and individual voice, giving the student the necessary foundations to prepare for the following levels. Split into two, one-hour classes, the first session focuses on the mechanics of singing, whilst the second session focuses on the needs of the individual student.

 ·Keyboards 1: Designed to support understanding of the materials presented in Harmony and Theory, this course provides students with a functional introduction to keyboards.

 ·Music Tech: Provides an introduction to the use of music technology. It is designed to equip all musicians with the programming skills required to realise their own works, supporting the creative study that takes place in Level II and Level III.

 ·Stage & Studio Craft 1: Starts to prepare the student for the most important situations they find themselves in; delivering a live, professional performance.

 Performance Modules

·Live Performance Workshop 1: This module teaches vocalists to function in a real-band environment. Alongside fellow students from the guitar, bass and drum faculties, they will learn and perform a repertoire of tunes, covering three key styles; Blues, Soul and Rock.

 ·Ensemble 1: The most basic element of ensemble is that of the backing vocalist whose role and skills must not be underestimated, and for most vocalists this is the most immediately challenging discipline. For this reason, at Level I only, this class is delivered for two hours per week. The student will learn to perform by ear and follow musical notation.

 Stylistic Study Modules

·Blues: This module will give you a clear understanding of classic 60's Blues vocals. Each unit involves studying a well known vocalist, a standard tune from the Blues repertoire, some classic blues 'licks', as well as essential historical information.

 ·Soul: This module studies a variety of Soul classics, as well as discussing the history and style of the artists studied. Attention will be paid to the rhythm backings on these classic songs to appreciate how the vocal fits in to the overall track.

 ·Song Writing 1: The singer/song writer has become a prominent figure in contemporary music, making song writing an essential part of any vocalist's skill set. As well as learning the fundamental compositional skills, the vocalist will develop a further awareness of interpretation and dynamic regarding the lyric.

 ·Improvisation 1: The skills needed for strong improvisation and intelligent ad-libs are explored and studied, giving the student a greater knowledge and control over their performance.

 Sight Reading Modules

Sight Singing 1: As many professional situations still involve the use written notation, a thorough grounding in sight-singing is essential. This class introduces the student to the study of note values, rest values and pitch.

 Level II (Term 2)

 Core Curriculum Modules

·Aural & Transcribing 2: Building upon the skills acquired in Level I, this course further extends the aural and transcribing skills.

 ·Harmony & Theory 2: This class builds further on the essential theoretical knowledge learnt at Level I.

 ·Voice Techniques 2: Taken from the fundamentals of classical coaching and developed with the contemporary vocals needs in mind this module further builds a solid technical base for the vocalist.

 ·Keyboards 2: Following on from Level I, this module is designed to support a greater understanding of harmony and theory.

 ·Stage & Studio Craft 2: The students will begin to explore the nuances required to demonstrate emotive, dynamic performances.

 ·Introduction to Songwriting: this module introduces the broad concepts, and lays the foundations of, the art of songwriting, encouraging students to explore their creative capabilities.

 ·History of Popular Music: Popular Music is inextricably linked to the environment that nurtured it and in this module students will develop an understanding of it in its historical context, focusing on the cultural and social factors that have influenced its evolution. In practical terms, this provides students with the broader understanding required for convincing, authentic performance.

 Performance Modules

·Live Performance Workshop 2: This module teaches vocalists to function in a real-band environment. Alongside fellow students from the guitar, bass and drum faculties, they will learn and perform a repertoire of tunes, covering three key styles; Pop, Rock and World Music.

 ·Ensemble 2: In this module modern choral singing is taught as part of this very contemporary course, preparing the student for the needs of producers, composers, and any number of session styles.

 Stylistic Study Modules

·Modern Pop: You will be working on the most current material, focusing on the vocal techniques involved in each track. Also, the vocal effects and vocal licks of each chosen artist will be analyzed and studied.

 ·Rock: Focusing on various Rock vocalists, this module will introduce you to the classic, and the modern rock tracks, again discussing the history, the artists, and the style features of each tune.

 ·Song Writing 2: Developing the skills acquired at Level I, this module takes the song writing skills acquired and broadens their applicability.

 ·Improvisation 2: Building on the skills developed at Level I, strong improvisation and intelligent ad-libs are developed further.

 Sight Reading Modules

Sight Singing 2: This class further develops your sight-singing skills and then applies this knowledge to simple vocal charts.

 Level III (Term 3)

 Core Curriculum Modules

·Aural & Arranging:  Further developing the aural skills this class focuses on more advanced material. For example, the arranging aspect now requires students to create arrangements for small groups.

 ·Harmony & Theory 3: Developing fully the more advanced concepts of harmony and theory, this class results in a well-rounded and fully informed musician.

 ·Voice Techniques 3: Taken from the fundamentals of classical coaching and developed with the contemporary vocals needs in mind this module further builds a solid technical base for the vocalist.

 ·Keyboards 3: Developing on the skills learned at Level II, this module focuses on modes; accompaniment; and performance of suitable repertoire.

 ·Stage & Studio Craft 3: This module fully explores the nuances required to produce emotive, dynamic performances. The work prepares the student for the more demanding roles, such as a session situation.

 ·Music Business (2hrs): A practical understanding of the complex nature of the business that they are entering is an indispensable skill for any aspiring professional musician. This module provides students with a coherent and solid overview of the main business practices currently used within the industry, focusing on issues such as revenue streams to copyright protection.

 Performance Modules

·Live Performance Workshop 3: This module teaches vocalists to function in a real-band environment. Alongside fellow students from the guitar, bass and drum faculties, they will learn and perform a repertoire of tunes, covering three key styles; Funk, R 'n' B, and Jazz.

 ·Ensemble 3: This very contemporary course prepares the student for the needs of producers, composers, and any number of session styles. The student will learn to perform by ear and follow music notation, as well as writing and directing their own arrangements.

 Stylistic Study Modules

·Jazz: This module bridges the gap between Blues, Fusion and Jazz singing by giving you a clear understanding of how to listen to the chord progressions, and work around them with your improvisation. It's in this class that all the work done in the improvisation module will really come into its own.

 ·Funk:  Funk vocal techniques are thoroughly embedded in most vocal styles so this class is really vital. Starting with 60's funk, you will focus on the various styles of singing employed in this idiom, moving through each era of Funk, Disco, Pop and Fusion.

 ·Song Writing 3: Aimed at drawing together all of the skills learnt at the previous levels, and giving the student the confidence to continue to develop their writing after the course.

 ·Improvisation 3: The skills needed for strong improvisation and intelligent ad-libs are further explored and studied, giving the student a greater knowledge and control over their performance.

 Sight Reading Modules

·Sight Singing 3:  As most musicians still use written notation in studios and rehearsals for gigs, a thorough grounding in sight-singing is essential.