Trinity Laban’s International Academies Programme – an introduction by Tim Palmer

Trinity Laban, formerly Trinity College of Music, has had a relationship with India since the 1890s. Now separate from its partner exam board Trinity College London and situated in a World Heritage Site in Greenwich, London, Trinity Laban is a world-leading conservatoire with over 800 music students from 60+ countries. Our commitment to India continues: since 2013, we’ve been working with two parallel missions: to support the western music learning ecosystem, and to support the very best young Indian musicians into further music study in higher education. We are very grateful for the ongoing support of our principal partners, Furtados in Mumbai and Musee Musical in Chennai, and our excellent relationships with a number of music schools around the country, all of whom support and drive this work with us.

I took over leadership of this programme in 2018 and have since developed it into five main strands of activity. The first is a series of annual masterclasses and lessons, mostly in piano but we have also offered strings, vocal and music theory & composition projects. These are conducted in India by Trinity Laban’s outstanding staff, including Sergio de Simone, Douglas Finch, Gabriele Baldocci, Nic Pendlebury and Mikhail Kazakevich. Whilst staff are in India, they often perform, which forms our second strand. Last year, for example, Sergio de Simone gave a very well-received and sold-out recital in the Mumbai Royal Opera House. Thirdly, we have developed an ongoing programme of teacher development, which I lead – this year, I will be in Colombo (Sri Lanka), Chennai, Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru to meet teachers and offer insights from the latest research in music education. Piano staff also lead piano teacher development events during their visits.

This year, we have developed an audition preparation project, in which anyone considering applying for a Western conservatoire can have a trial performance and interview in front of a panel, and be offered detailed feedback from experts. We are hoping that this will help to further bridge the gap for Indian students wanting to understand the requirements for study overseas. Finally, we offer a mentorship programme for a small number of outstanding young musicians that we have identified from our masterclasses. We connect them with a tutor in London to receive regular online support and advice and have seen remarkable results in their progress and outcomes.

Indian students now regularly come to London to study on Trinity Laban’s degree programmes, and over half receive some kind of financial support. We have a range of funding partners, including the British Council, who work with us to offer scholarships to the very best. We also have Indian music teachers gaining qualifications online from home on our MEd Music Education (Online) programme, designed to be taken alongside full-time work or overcome barriers for students for whom moving to the UK is impractical or not possible. We are thrilled to partner with KM Music Conservatory with whom we are developing ever closer links, and we are now able to offer their students the chance to complete their undergraduate degree at Trinity Laban.

This is just a brief overview of our work, but from a personal perspective, this has been a fabulous project to lead. I have developed friendships with the most interesting and dynamic musicians and leaders across the nation, and have been privileged to witness young musicians develop at an exponential rate. It is now possible to witness a cycle in which young musicians are identified in India, nurtured by Trinity Laban, come to study in London and then return to the country to perform and teach, able to recommend their best students to our masterclasses. Many of India’s leading young musicians have had some contact with us, either through masterclasses, mentoring or study in London. There are too many to name all of them, but a few outstanding stars have been string players Jasiel and Joy Peters (Jasiel is now in the Symphony Orchestra of India); tenor Sandeep Gurrapadi (now a doctoral student and an established opera singer); Jay Parte and Rishab Jain, winners of the Con Brio solo piano competition; Meera Arora, winner of the Con Brio solo voice competition and, at a younger stage of learning, Martina Charles Devasia, who gained her FTCL in violin performance aged just 14 and is currently being mentored through us by Jan Schmolk, principal violin at the Royal Opera House in London.

The International Academies programme is marketed through its Instagram feed @internationalacademies.tl and the Trinity Laban website. If you know of young musicians who are dedicated to becoming outstanding performers, then please do encourage them to explore our programmes. I am regularly reminded how much a privilege it is to lead this programme and to see the life-changing impacts it can have on young Indian musicians. Trinity Laban offers a unique opportunity to learn from outstanding world-class performers and to develop life-long careers in music.

2024-2025 International Academies Season

By Tim Palmer, Head of Music Education, Trinity Laban, and Programme Leader, International Academies.