About Rhodes University Department of Music 

Department of Music and Musicology

Situated within the attractive garden campus of St Peter’s, the Music department building (Beethoven House in Somerset Street) comprises teaching rooms, practice rooms, a library, a computer lab, a sound studio, and the Beethoven concert venue.

St. Peter’s is close to the rest of campus, and a short walk from the town centre. Grahamstown offers a range of cultural activities for music students. The Department currently has 12 full-time staff members and a large complement of part-time staff.

Rhodes Music Department has three main areas of specialisation: western classical music, jazz and ethnomusicology (the relationship between music and culture).

Instrumental studies are offered in piano, brass, woodwinds, strings, jazz and classical voice, steel pan, jazz percussion, guitar, jazz bass, organ and african ensemble

Why Study Music at Rhodes?

• Being a small department (by choice), you enjoy all the advantages of individual attention, with abundant opportunities to be musically active in the vibrant Grahamstown performing scene.
• Our facilities offer you everything you need, including studying in an aesthetically and culturally stimulating environment.
• Our in-house library is well resourced with music scores, literature, CD and LP collection and computer and listening facilities, enabling you to tackle all research work and projects from within the department.
• We have outstanding and committed staff of both national and international experience and standing.
• You can tailor your course around music to include other interests and ambitions.

Musical Life at Rhodes

The performance scene at Rhodes is as vibrant as it is diverse, and many students get actively involved throughout the year. During the National Arts Festival, students are encouraged to participate in local concert venues, as there are numerous opportunities for students, which provide valuable exposure and experience for student performance.

The Music Department also has ensembles which musicians can join by audition without needing to take any music subjects at all, such as the RU Orchestra and the RU Chamber Choir.

Life after Music at Rhodes

A Rhodes music qualification can lead to career opportunities in many diverse areas of the music industry. Most music graduates create their careers from more than one of these options: teaching, either privately or at a school; lecturing at a tertiary institution; ethno/musicological research; performing; conducting; composing and arranging; sound engineer (studio or live); arts administration, management, and publicity (in community, private, or state structures); music publishing; and arts journalism.