Master of Music (Opera Performance) (MC-MUSOP) // Attributes, outcomes and skills

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Intended learning outcomes

On successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

  • demonstrate knowledge of, and practical skills in, past and present operatic vocal practices;
  • for the singer, employ acting, movement and other stagecraft skills required of a professional operatic vocalist, OR, for the repetiteur, employ bass realisation, score reading and conducting skills required of the professional operatic repetiteur;
  • analyse and interpret operatic repertoire from the perspectives of style and role development;
  • demonstrate team-work and collaborative music making;
  • prepare for, and perform in, staged operatic productions at a professional level;
  • appraise and implement research principles and methods applicable to performing arts research as well as skills in critical reflection, writing and artistic communication;
  • develop and apply community and industry engagement skills as appropriate for opera professionals.

Generic skills

Graduates from the MMus (OperaPerf) course will be:

  • academically excellent and musically skilled as opera performers as a result of intensive and rigorous one-to-one and studio-based tuition in chorus, ensemble and solo vocal performance, acting, stagecraft and movement skills for singers; and keyboard, vocal coaching and repertoire and language skills for repetiteurs;
  • active global citizens through participation throughout the course in the inherently international nature of opera in all its manifestations;
  • artistically sophisticated with a high level of understanding of the aesthetic of their discipline, honed through learning, practice, critical reflection and performance, with high levels of personal autonomy and accountability;
  • familiar and competent with written, spoken and vocal communication, the ethics associated with collaborative operatic performance, and basic performance research protocols gained through a program of performance practicum subjects, language and diction subjects in languages commonly encountered in opera, and professional experience in operatic performances and vocal coaching;
  • creative and critical music performers and thinkers with highly developed skills for on-going, self-directed professional learning;
  • knowledgeable across the disciplines of operatic performance, acting, stagecraft, movement, and language and diction;
  • accepting of the responsibility to move towards artistic independence and towards accountability in terms of both specialist and non-specialist audiences;
  • able to execute one or more capstone projects in operatic performance;
  • leaders in the operatic performance communities with knowledge developed through: a program of professional performance practicum; and high level development of teamwork and group dynamic skills through participation in group activities in operatic performance settings;
  • attuned to cultural diversity through: the opportunities provided that involve thinking about a variety of notions of musicality as well as participating in operatic performances from different times and places; familiarity with culturally-diverse ways of conceptualizing, discussing and performing the operative repertoire; and performing for audiences from varied cultural, socio-economic and musical backgrounds.

Last updated: 20 March 2025