Studying Music at Salford

The Greater Manchester music scene is etched on the world map, having produced high-profile artists such as Oasis, The Smiths, The Stone Roses and The Chemical Brothers to Joy Division, New Order and our very own alumni band Everything Everything.

There are so many venues across the city, from independent venues hosting local open mics, to arenas and concert halls for touring global acts. Everything from classical to clubbing, and big band to blues is catered for so whatever your taste and talent, you will find something for you. 

You can find us: 

Facebook /MusicAtSalford

Instagram @musicatsalford

Our tutors have current, extensive experience across multiple fields, including performance, arranging, composition and recording and technology. In addition, you will be able to attend regular masterclasses from external speakers, giving you exposure to the experience of those in the industry.

Each week you will have about 11 or 12 hours of teaching. There will be lectures in larger groups, seminars in the studios in smaller groups and one-to-one teaching with an instrument tutor. There will also be other timetabled events such as the weekly masterclass series where we invite guest speakers from industry.

In addition to your scheduled classes, you’ll be able to book time in our rehearsal and studio facilities,  join one of our ensembles or form a group of your own. With the New Adelphi building at the centre of campus and only a short walk from Manchester’s city centre, there will be plenty of opportunities to get involved in other activities around your weekly schedule.

Eric Taylor's ‘A to B Guide to Music Theory’ is a useful and easy to follow text that will help you brush up on your music theory before starting.

Everyone needs a working knowledge of theory on all our music courses. We teach music theory as part of the core skills in first year along with studio engineering skills. It is important that all music students develop an understanding of these skills to work together.

We mainly use Logic Pro for teaching in the studios, but we run teaching on a variety of DAWs including Pro Tools and Ableton. We also run AVID certified Pro Tools courses, which are useful as it's a DAW usually found in industry music studios. These courses run several times a year in addition to timetabled teaching.

The list includes: the University of Salford Big Band, the University of Salford Brass Band, Adelphi Brass Band (student run), Salford Symphonic Wind Band, Wind Consort Adelphi Contemporary Music Group (experimental music), the University of Salford Choir, Latin Percussion, World Music Group and the ensembles programme for other ensembles (rock, jazz, electronic etc.).

Yes! We have an incredible opportunity for students to study a semester abroad at another University in either Europe, America or parts of Asia. At the same time we typically have exchange students come and study here for a semester which is a great opportunity for them and us. This typically happens in second year and will either be in semester one in the Autumn or semester two in the Summer. 

If you are doing Performance or Popular Music and Recording, then it is provided throughout. For Creative Music Technology then it is only provided in the first year.