Study Music at Otago

Nathaniel Otley:

Kia ora, my name is Nathaniel, and I studied music at the University of Otago. I’ve had a great time studying at Otago, learning from some of Otago’s leading practitioners in the field of music. I’ve had the opportunity to study performance violin through to honours level, and I’ve done the same with my composition.

The opportunities provided at Otago through this have been through lunchtime concerts, as well as external opportunities performing with organisations such as the Dunedin Symphony Orchestra, Otago Symphonic Band, and Southern Youth Choir. I’ve also had the privilege of taking many papers outside of my major fields, including conducting and singing, as well as music theory and musicology, learning about how the music world around us works.

I’ve really enjoyed my time studying at Otago, and I hope you will too.

Professor Anthony Ritchie:

Tēnā koutou katoa, I’m Anthony Richie, Head of the School of Performing Arts, and I’m here today to talk to you about our music program. Here at Otago, we offer a wide range of types of music that you can study. You can learn anything from violin to guitar, to taiko drums and tango porto. You can learn to create music on your laptop or in the studio, and you can write avant-garde works for symphony orchestra and a whole host of things here.

To help you do this, we have leaders in the field, a team that mixes youth and experience. As well as that, we have top-notch facilities such as this wonderful new multi-million dollar studio and performing arts wing, where you can record ensembles and bands, learn to use a mic, and learn how to produce music.

Down the road, we have Marama Hall, which is our performing arts venue where lunchtime concerts happen every week. You might have a chance to play. At Otago, you can study towards a music degree or a BA in music. We’re sort of half and half: music and other subjects. There’s also the minor in music and other options as well. We designed it to be as flexible as possible to suit your needs.

We have three main types of performance here: one classical music, the other contemporary and popular music, and then also traditional or ethnomusicology. But it’s not all about practical music making. Here at Otago, we like to discuss and talk about music. We like to explain why music matters so much in society.

In fact, we have a first-year paper called Music Matters, and in this, we discuss things such as mental well-being and emotional intelligence. We look at why music is good for communication, good for creativity and critical thinking, and we even discuss why music is good for jobs, which it can be. Some of our graduates have jobs in studios, on the radio, in orchestras, music centres, and elsewhere.

So, I’d encourage you to follow your dream and come to Otago and study music with us.