Choosing where to study classical guitar is an exciting, important and of course nerve racking decision. It defines the city a student will live in and the people they will be influenced by for many years. Aside from the city, country and other considerations, a prospective student may be most interested in who their teacher will be.
Throughout the history of western music, prominent composers and musicians of the day have been tied to leading educational establishments. Just as composer Gabriel Faure directed the Paris Conservatoire for 15 years - and Debussy taught there too - the same is true for today's greatest guitar players. Students come from all over the world to study with Jason Veiaux at the Cleveland Institute of Music, or Manuel Barreuco at Peabody Institute, to name just a couple. However, it is worth mentioning here that teaching and playing are very different skills, and the best teacher might not be the most popular player.
I have compiled below a list of some of the universities and conservatories that offer classical guitar performance degrees. It is by no means an extensive list. Most of the conservatoires listed offer a specific, intensive, performance-focused programme for classical guitar students. For those students who wish to focus on composition and other aspects of music, there are universities that offer courses that aren’t so performance focused.
Competition to get into all of these conservatoires is extremely high. The level for entry is high and it’s likely that the students entering these places have already exceeded the ‘10000 hours of practice’ supposedly needed to become an expert in something.
Different countries have different education systems, age requirements, language requirements and so on. For example, the English conservatoires have a minimum age of 18, whereas many places around the world simply accept students based on their talent, regardless of any other considerations, including age. Some of these conservatoires will only accept one student studying classical guitar per year, others perhaps more.
My name is Michael Edgeworth. I am a classical guitar maker and this is my article exploring the topic of the best universities and conservatoires for classical guitar students. I have also written an article on the best classical guitars for students which you can check out here: https://www.michaeledgeworthguitars.com/en/uk-classical-guitar-maker/the-best-classical-guitars-for-students
Conservatoires in England
The London conservatoires:
London is the lively beating heart of England, full of history and culture. Everything is happening in London, including many things relating to the classical guitar. The London conservatoires are amongst the most highly regarded in the world.
A view of London
Royal Academy of Music:
RAM is as central as is possible in London, located right near St Pancras station. A glance at the alumni reveals popular names such as Xuefei Yang, David Russell and Alexandra Whittingham. There is an impressive range of professors/visiting professors.
Website: https://www.ram.ac.uk/study/departments/guitar
Royal College of Music:
The similarly named RCM is similarly extremely highly regarded. It’s located about 2.5 miles southwest of RAM, still in central London, near Hyde Park. John Williams studied here as well as Zoe Barnett, and many others. Gary Ryan is the head of the classical guitar department.
Website: https://www.rcm.ac.uk/strings/
Campus tour here: https://youtu.be/jT0QmLeTkL8?si=UqR4ugCpEithy6a3
RAM was founded in 1822 and RCM about 60 years later. The original intent was for them to be merged into one institution, but some initial disagreement has meant we’ve been left with two.
Trinity Laban Conservatoire:
The Trinity Laban Conservatoire is located near Greenwich in London, where every year there is the Royal Greenwich Guitar Festival. The guitar department is led by Graham Devine. It has a similarly rich history as the other London conservatoires, and is set in a remarkable building, a former Royal Naval College.
Website: https://www.trinitylaban.ac.uk/study/music/strings/guitar/
Guildhall School of Music
Guildhall is in central London and the guitar department is led by Robert Brightmore, Sasha Savaloni, Sean Shibe and Toby Carr.
UK Conservatoires, outside of London
Royal Northern College of Music
RNCM is set in Manchester - a large, vibrant city in northern England, full of culture and things for students. “Over 100,000 students call Manchester their home, and it’s not hard to see why. Our vibrant city has it all: a rich and varied music scene, a proud history of science and industry, nightlife, culture and politics, and a host of famous sports venues.” The guitar department is led by Craig Ogden, who has been hailed as a successor to Julian Bream and made a huge impact to the UK classical guitar scene since relocating from Australia in the 90s. I highly recommend the video in the link below.
https://www.rncm.ac.uk/study-here/what-you-can-study/schools-of-study/school-of-strings/
Royal Conservatoire Scotland
The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland is in Glasgow, and started life named Glasgow Athenaeum when originally established in 1847. The head of the guitar department is Allan Neave,and lecturers include Mathew McAlister and Peter Stewart. Mathew McAlister also runs a popular classical guitar retreat. Ed Pedzek of Classical Guitar Academy studied at RCS.
Website: https://www.rcs.ac.uk/courses/guitar-harp-undergraduate/#
Birmingham Conservatoire
Birmingham is in the West Midlands of England and is a popular city for students. The Royal Birmingham Conservatoire’s history dates back to 1859. Their guitar staff is impressive, consisting of Mark Ashford, Mark Eden and Xuefei Yang.
https://www.bcu.ac.uk/conservatoire/music/departments/strings/guitar-and-lute
Royal Welsh College of Music
I attended Leicester MusicFest in 2024 and heard there some fantastic, talented classical guitarists from the Royal Welsh College of Music. The head of department is Helen Sanderson, and the current guest tutors are Zoran Dukic and John Mills. Recent visitors have included David Russell, Gabriel Bianco, Margarita Escarpa, Xuefei Yang, Pavel Steidl, Mela Guitar Quartet, Zoran Dukic, Pavel Ralev, Jonathan Parkin, Andrey Lebedev and Jorgen Skogmo.
https://www.rwcmd.ac.uk/department/music/guitar
University of Newcastle
More UK universities offer music degrees where you can still focus on the classical guitar, as well as other aspects of music such as composing. I met up with a guitarist friend after many years of not seeing each other. I was delighted to hear that he is just about to begin his fourth year studying music at the University of Newcastle, his third year having been a study-abroad year in Belgium. His experience sounds extremely rich, and I can testify to the quality of his guitar playing and composing. I have asked if he might write a bit about his experience, so stay tuned for an update.
https://www.ncl.ac.uk/undergraduate/degrees/w300/
European Conservatoires:
Paris, France:
Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris (CNSMDP):
The Paris Conservatoire was founded all the way back in 1795. I have recently had the pleasure of hearing Jeremy Jouve play a concert, who studied at the Paris Conservatoire under Alberto Ponce and Roland Dyens; his playing was extraordinary. Living in Paris, one could fully absorb the strong French culture. The initial year requires a B1 level certificate in French, then B2 or higher for subsequent years.
Helsinki, Finland:
Sibelius Academy:
Finland is in northern Europe, east of Sweden, west of Northern Russia. Its capital and most populous city Helsinki lies to the very south of the country, on the shores of the Gulf of Finland. Most Finnish people living in Helsinki also speak English so there’s no requirement to learn Finnish. Teachers include Andrzej Wilkus and Ismo Eskelinen. The Sibelius Academy is very highly regarded.
https://www.uniarts.fi/en/study-programmes/guitar-classical-instrument-bachelor-and-master/
Austria, Salzburg:
Mozarteum University:
Austria is in central Europe as has been at the heart of Western classical music for many centuries. In Eastern Austria, almost on the border of Germany, lies the calm, picturesque city of Salzburg. The classical guitar department is led by Laura Young, Isabel Siewers, Eliot Fisk and Andrea De Vitis. Eliot Fisk is a particularly well known player in the classical guitar world. At the time of entry students must prove their German language skills at A2, which is beginner/pre-intermediate level.
https://www.moz.ac.at/en/study/course-finder/string-plucked-instruments/guitar-ba
Prague, Czech Republic:
Academy of Performing Arts:
I am somewhat more familiar with the educational system in The Czech Republic than with other European countries. The conservatoires teach students up to a certain level, and then student study performing at an even higher level at the Academies. The leading Academy in the Czech Republic is the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague, where the classical guitar department is led by Stepan Rak and Petr Saidl. Prague is a beautiful city and the Czech culture is a very rich one. English isn’t so widely spoken compared to some other European countries - although it is more so in Prague, the capital - so students would benefit from learning some Czech.
https://www.hamu.cz/en/departments-sections/string-instruments-department/
The Hague, Netherlands:
A view in The Hague
Royal Conservatoire The Hague:
The Hague is the capital of the region South Holland in the Netherlands, and the third most populous city in the Netherlands. The teachers here are Zoran Dukic, Pavel Steidl and Enno Voorhorst. The conservatoire is set in a fantastic building called Amare, in which the conservatoire is on the highest floor.
https://www.koncon.nl/en/programmes/bachelor/classicalmusic/bachelor-classicalmusic-guitar
USA Conservatoires
Peabody Institute, Baltimore:
Baltimore is on the East Coast of the USA, between Philadelphia and Washington, and about a 2.5 hour train journey to New York. “Founded by Aaron Shearer, the department has produced some of the finest performers and teachers active today, including Manuel Barrueco, the Beijing Guitar Duo (Meng Su and Yameng Wang), Julian Gray, Lukasz Kuropaczewski, Ronald Pearl, David Starobin, David Tanenbaum, and Ana Vidovic, among others.” The guitar department is led by Manuel Barreuco.
https://peabody.jhu.edu/academics/instruments-areas-of-study/guitar/
The Juilliard School, New York
“At the heart of Juilliard’s guitar department is its founder, Sharon Isbin, who established the program in 1989. As a guitar student, you will work closely with Ms. Isbin and enjoy many opportunities for solo and ensemble performances and for collaborative experiences with other instruments, including harp and winds. You can also gain valuable interactive performance experience in one of Juilliard’s community outreach programs”
https://www.juilliard.edu/music/instruments/guitar
A view of a New York neighbourhood, taken by my brother
QS World university rankings
According to the QS world university rankings, as of late 2024, the top 10 music and performing arts universities are as shown below. Of course, this isn’t a ranking of the classical guitar courses in particular, just the establishments as a whole.
1. Royal College of Music, London, UK. Teachers: Gary Ryan
2. Royal Academy of Music, London, UK. Teachers: Michael Lewin
https://www.ram.ac.uk/study/departments/guitar
3. Conservatoire national supérieur de musique et de danse de Paris, France. Teachers: Olivier Chassain
https://www.rcm.ac.uk/strings/
4. Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst Wien, Vienna, Austria
5. Guildhall School of Music and Drama, London, UK. Teachers: Robert Brightmore
6. Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, Glasgow, UK. Teachers: Allan Neave, Mathew McAlister, Peter Stewart
https://www.rcs.ac.uk/courses/guitar-harp-undergraduate/#
7. The Juilliard School, New York, USA. Teachers: Sharon Isbin
https://www.juilliard.edu/music/instruments/guitar
8. Royal Northern College of Music, Manchester, UK. Teachers: Craig Ogden
https://www.rncm.ac.uk/study-here/what-you-can-study/schools-of-study/school-of-strings/
9. New York University, New York, USA
10. The Gnesins Academy of Music, Moscow, Russia