BMus vs BA in music

[AgathaSpencerGregson]

Trying to understand the key differences between these two options and which would be best for DS who is 16 and just done GCSEs. He is a music scholar at his current school, grade 8 piano and violin under his belt. Enjoyed music GCSE, will take it for Alevel. He has ASD and is much stronger in performance and composition than in written exams (although has improved a lot thanks to a superbly dedicated teacher giving him extra time). His clear preference is for performing and composing though and just generally exploring musical styles. He scored v highly at grade 5 theory and I think he might do grade 8 theory too.
From what I know (which is v little) the BMus seems more up his street than a BA. but I know there’s a lot of different choices out there so thoughts from those with more knowledge v gratefully received.

Does it not simply vary by institution?

Ie. some music courses award a BA and others a BMus. The content will vary depending on the university (so not all BMus courses will contain the same elements).

My own first degree comes in various permutations which varies by institution.
In our case the content is the same but the course style varies. However you cannot pick which style a course is by the degree awarded you need to read the prospectus for each university to do that.

Look at Cardiff who offer both, the curriculum is easy to differentiate between the two courses but they can switch once there too. Dd is bmus also autistic, she is not alone, quite a few neurodiverse

Thank you both! Yes some places offer both options hence my question. @gogomoto so interested to hear about your DD. Is she enjoying the course and the city?
I had been thinking about Bangor for DS, he is quite outdoorsy (likes running and mountain biking) and I think a large city might be tricky for him (we are very rural). It’s also only about 2 hours away from us.

Also - sorry - interested to hear about support there for autistic students.

It would be worth looking at conservatoires as well if performance is his main strength as they tend to be more performance focussed.

Thank you. I had not considered that. Will explore

We have just been to the Manchester Uni open day which offer a MusB. Different again! But the course looks interesting. Year 1 is the same for all but then you can take it in the direction of your interests. Ie performance, composing or theory. They stipulate you have to do at least 20/120 credits in years 2&3 in something theory ie essays.

Hmmm. I think we are really going to have to get down into the weeds of the course details. They all seem very different.
I did law which is pretty much the same everywhere, at least with regard to core subjects!

Manchester have an interesting course where you do academics at Manchester Uni and performance at Royal Northern Conservatoire - worth a look.

Manchester have an interesting course where you do academics at Manchester Uni and performance at Royal Northern Conservatoire - worth a look.

Yes we found out about this. It's a 4 year course. 8 places so very competitive. Hard work because it's like doing 2 degrees at the same time. Composition can be one of the options as an alternative to performance.

I think Manchester is a music powerhouse. A very talented friend of DDs did music there. He was a music scholar at a very well known school. Although what you do afterwards is always the big question.

My DS is hopefully starting a BA in Music at Oxford in October. He rejected the BMUS as he wanted a more academic course so we only looked at Unis offering BA. However the BA course did vary at the different Unis.
Conservatoires could be a good option for your DS if he prefers performance more.

I did a BA and it ended up being mostly performance, my sibling did a BMus and it ended up being mostly composition. I’d just weigh up what’s in each course and how much flexibility there is for option modules in year 2 and 3.

He really does sound more like a B.Mus student, @AgathaSpencerGregson.

If he’s strong in performance then I’d certainly investigate conservatoires. RNCM seems to be a happy place, and as other have said, Manchester is a music powerhouse. Of the London places, I’ve known lots of Guildhall musicians and composers - endless opportunities for all sorts of musical experiences and performance.

I think the main difference may be that a B.Mus really is for people who want a career in Music. They’re hugely competitive - from application through the years on the course, to graduate outcomes - so really only suitable for people with a proactive hunger for success, unshakeable confidence in their own abilities, and tons and tons of resilience.

And I also think for that kind of student - you need to be where the competition is, where your fellow performers are, where there are others who will push you to be your best. Great teaching and a critical mass of like minded peers is the absolute priority - for most.