NAIP: Innovation in Higher Music Education

The Music Master for New Audiences and Innovative Practice (NAIP) is a new and innovative programme, result of a collaboration of higher music education institutions in four European countries, as well as other associate institutions around the globe. This two-year strategic partnership aims at the modernisation of curricula, and teaching and learning approaches in higher music education.

NAIP objective and aims

The traditional conservatoire system is built on the assumption that the pathway of each graduating student is known beforehand, with a steady stream of orchestral players, soloists, composers, instrumental, theory or classroom teachers. Today, those traditional jobs for musicians are a much smaller part of the whole picture. The majority of musicians of today are entrepreneurs or independent portfolio artists who have created their own career or are combining their independent career with a traditional part-time job. In the world we now live, we are tackling other barriers than before. Access to information is, with all the new technology, without any difficulties whatsoever. This means that education, including higher education, needs to aim more at personal strength, experience and adaptability then just supplying information and training.

The European Master of Music for New Audiences and Innovative Practice (NAIP) programme was developed to address these and other issues.
The strategic partnership will focus on developing new content and sustainable structures for the NAIP training programme in terms of curriculum, mobility and recognition. It will develop expertise in the field of new audiences & innovative practice, especially with regards to the pedagogical knowledge and skills of the NAIP teachers, as well as to strengthen the position of the NAIP philosophy in regular training programmes. It will develop and spread the ideology of the creative collaborative learning methods that address the above-mentioned issues, with the aim to increase collaborative composition, improvisation, practice based research and building up personal skills in traditional study programmes.

NAIP partners

The programme is currently available at the Royal Conservatoire The Hague (NL), Prince Claus Conservatoire in Groningen (NL), Iceland Academy of the Arts (IS) and Royal College of Music in Stockholm (SE).
In addition, the following conservatoires participate in the project: Guildhall School of Music and Drama London, Norwegian Academy of Music, Helsinki Metropolia University of Applied Sciences, University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna and the National University of Singapore.

AEC’s role in NAIP

The AEC’s role in the project is to:

  • Contribute to the dissemination and exploitation activities of the project;
  • Develop criteria for the evaluation of the Strategic Partnership;
  • Appoint an external evaluator for the project in charge of visiting one project activity a year, read through materials and write an annual evaluation report.

For more information regarding the project please visit http://musicmaster.eu/