Professor Bronwyn Parry: changes reflect study trends. Photo: Region.
The ANU has defended its plan to axe the School of Music and performance studies, saying the university is not a conservatorium and is only responding to the contemporary needs of students.
The Dean of the ANU College of Arts and Social Sciences, Professor Bronwyn Parry, said the curriculum proposals were designed to ensure that music education and pedagogy offered at the ANU remain fit for purpose and reflective of best practice.
“The proposed new School [of Creative and Cultural Practice] reflects how artists and creatives work in the real world today and is designed to equip students with the range of skills that they will require to excel in these domains in the future,” she said.
The Dean was responding to the Canberra Symphony Orchestra campaign and Saturday night’s protest against the changes at the Australian Chamber Orchestra concert at Llewellyn Hall, including a speech from the stage by the ACO’s acclaimed artistic director Richard Tognetti.
Professor Parry said ANU was responding to what students had been telling it they wanted.
She said more than 60 per cent of students at the School were taking music as part of a flexible double degree, running their musical studies alongside a degree in another subject such as physics or accounting, and this was growing year on year.
“The intake of students into performance was 22 this year, down from 49 in 2018,” Professor Parry said.
“By comparison, Introduction to Music Technology averages 110 students per year. This reflects students’ interest in a broad range of music subjects from composition for media and film, to music production and recording.
“We are a university, not a conservatory.”
ACO Artistic Director Richard Tognetti leads the musical protest at Llewellyn Hall. Photo: Martin Ollman.
The ANU’s focus was on academic and creative inquiry, not on replicating conservatory models, Professor Parry said.
She said the proposed changes came about through consultation, strategic planning, and internal and external benchmarking with the world’s finest university Schools of Music, including Oxford, Cambridge and Surrey.
“All recognise that musical education needs to evolve to address the changing nature of creative practice today, which is increasingly multidisciplinary, collaborative, and community-engaged,” Professor Parry said.
She acknowledged community concerns but said the ANU’s decisions sought to keep its curriculum, including musical education, responsive to changing needs and focused on delivering a world-leading research-led education.
“We are proud that this proposal saves every existing discipline in the arts, humanities and social sciences in the midst of extremely challenging financial circumstances,” Professor Parry said.
“Partnerships with the Canberra Symphony Orchestra, Canberra International Music Festival and National Folk Festival remained important to us, and the university was committed to continuing these in mutually beneficial ways.”
Professor Parry said ANU was reviewing feedback and would present its implementation plan to staff, students and the wider community in due course.
The ANU is cutting costs across the university in a bid to save $250 million in its recurrent spending by the start of 2026.
