Personally I am a little unsure on the merits of such a course for traditional musicians in the present UK higher education system. Does this mean that the students from this course will graduate onto the UK job market with the usual several thousand pound student debt and just the ability to play the fiddle or pipes (albeit very well)? Only yesterday I was reading about the record number of graduates now being forced into previously non-graduate clerical jobs because of the number of media studies type graduates now on the market. There are many examples of players such as Eileen Ivers (mathematics graduate) and Charlie Lennon (physics gradute) who are amongst the highest regarded players who have achieved success without a higher education music course and with the security of a profession behind them.

Ian S