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Master
Accompaniment

Choosing to do the Master’s programme in Piano Accompaniment/Collaborative Pianist at Conservatorium Maastricht means spending an intensive period developing your skills. The supporting curriculum aids this development and gradually adds challenges: Working in duo and chamber music settings, learning to work with short and mid-term deadlines, and developing a repertoire list for at least 2h30min per semester. The combination of individual attention in an international class and a curriculum with substance will inspire you to achieve your full potential as a performing artist in a competitive and creative musical environment.
 

  • Improving technique to increase ease and comfort in playing
  • Improving the speed of learning; Learning to deal with short-term and mid-term deadlines
  • Building a repertoire list of a minimum of 2h30min per semester/year
  • Mastering communication, learning to give and take in musical interaction (the art of dialogue)
  • Developing coaching skills
  • Working on refinement in sound production and being able to adapt quickly to different circumstances
  • Mastering confidence on stage
  • Learning to play a piano reduction smoothly
  • Working in an inspiring and creative environment with high-level colleagues
  • Maastricht is a Steinway & Sons school, and you will have the opportunity to play on the best and newest Steinways during practice hours at school

Meet our team

Meet your lecturers

Jeroen Riemsdijk

Classical Piano and piano accompaniment

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Curriculum

Curriculum

Major Accompaniment

More info

Year 1

Year 2

Year 3

Year 4

Main Subject and Components related to the Main Subject

45

49

Main Subject - Classical Instrument

40

44

Ensemble, including projects

5

5

Free Space

2

2

Free Space

2

2

Personal and Professional Development

2

2

Personal Development Plan

2

2

Research Skills

8

7

Master Project

8

7

Social Positioning & Communication

3

Your Art as a Business Basic Course

2

Your Art as a Business Electives

1

Before you apply

Admission
requirements

Pre-audition video requirements:

For the pre-audition, the candidate needs to send:

  • Video 1: A short introduction of him/herself in English
  • Video 2: A recording of the audition programme in one take, in fixed camera position without any editing. The candidate’s face and body should be clearly visible. At the start of the video, the candidate announces his/her Zuyd student number and the programme he or she will perform.

The videos should be uploaded to an online platform such as YouTube.com or Vimeo.com. It is the candidate’s responsibility to make sure that the video links work.

 

Audition requirements for a Master audition

The student should have affinity with Duo and or Chamber music playing. The student can specialise in string-, wind- or singing accompaniment or stay more general orientated. After the MA, the student is able to study a ‘fresh’ work in a fairly quickly tempo and is able to perform it already comfortably during lessons in string- wind and/or singing classes with their duo-partners within some weeks. Practicing skills, to improve efficiency of studying, are trained during the studies and the student should show some basic talent for it. It should come with some improved, ‘next level’ technical comfort and attention to refined sound, which will be an important focus during the course of the two years. After each year, the student will have a repertoire performed of at least 2 and preferable 3 hours.
The audition programme needs to be at least 30 minutes with duo compositions. It's allowed to include a solo-work (BA final-exam level).
Examples:

  • Beethoven Violin Sonata 2 Mvt
  • Parts from Schumann Dichterliebe
  • Brahms Clarinet Sonata op 120 no 1-2 2 Mvt
  • Sancan Flute sonata
  • Hindemith Sonata for Saxophone and Piano

Many students are doing a BA-Piano solo exam before entering the MA accompaniment. Therefore, if a student doesn’t have enough accompaniment repertoire available, more solorepertoire can be included in the audition program. After all, the student should show some pianistic and interpretative skills, but a better valuation can be made, when duo-repertoire is presented. During an interview, past experiences and skills will be shared with the professor.