Musicology

Our research Master’s in Musicology will train you in advanced research while giving you academic insight into the theoretical and artistic principles underpinning music across history and cultures. You will also investigate the contextual circumstances influencing the production, distribution, and reception of music. The programme is innovative, while at the same time retaining its links to the traditional musicological research fostered at the University over the past 85 years.

Western music from the Middle Ages to the present; music and media

The Musicology programme at Utrecht University focuses on Western music from the Middle Ages to the present, the impact of media on the reception and conceptualisation of music, and digital musicology. Interdisciplinary work is central to the programme, and there are particularly strong links with Medieval and Renaissance Studies, New Media & Digital Culture, Gender Studies, Postcolonial Studies, Computational Humanities, as well as Game Research.

Why this programme in Utrecht?

Inspiring setting

The city of Utrecht is home to a large number of concert venues, notably the just completed, state-of-the-art TivoliVredenburg complex, as well as the Utrecht School of the Arts. It is also host to a number of world-famous musical events such as the Utrecht Festival of Early Music, the Utrecht International Chamber Music Festival, the Gaudeamus Festival for Contemporary Music and Young Composers, or the triennial International Franz Liszt Piano Competition. The rich cultural facilities of Amsterdam, The Hague, and Rotterdam are all within easy travelling distance.

Internationally acclaimed library

The Utrecht University Library’s extensive music collection is internationally acclaimed and widely recognised as the most significant musicological research collection in the Netherlands and Flanders. The library also houses a range of original source materials for musicological research within its Special Collections.

Hallmarks of research

Our current research focuses on late medieval music from the 13th to the early 15th centuries, Renaissance Franco-Flemish polyphony, music and migration, Baroque opera, Dutch music since the 17th century, music and its epistemologies from the late 18th century to the present, 20th-and 21st-century art and popular music, the complex relationship between music and politics, the interaction between music and media, and the impact of digital research tools on musicology. This research is firmly imbedded within the taught components of this programme, which are further enhanced by guest lectures and master classes led by international experts. As a student of this programme, you will become part of a strong community of students, PhD researchers and teaching staff working together at a leading research institute. 

International contacts

Our academic staff’s wide network of national and international contacts enables you to conduct research in the Netherlands or another country. A number of our graduates have received funded doctoral positions and are pursuing doctoral research at Utrecht University, as well as at other world-renowned research universities such a Cornell University, Brandeis University, UCLA, Berkeley, University of Toronto, Royal Holloway, Cambridge University, Max Planck Institute for Empirical Aesthetics, Duke University, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, University of Ghent, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona and University of Oxford.

After graduation

This programme will give you the specialist knowledge, insight and skills necessary to pursue further study at PhD level or a career as a researcher. Many alumni pursue academic careers  in international musicological research.