Support your studies

Our postgraduate awards offer support to students who wish to complete their studies at leading UK conservatoires and performing arts colleges. 

You could be awarded between £1,000 and £5,000 to go towards the cost of a postgraduate course starting in September 2023 and associated living costs and expenses. 

To apply for our postgraduate awards, you must: 

• Be studying or are intending to study a postgraduate music performance degree (ie. MMus, MA, PGDip, Artist Diploma), starting in September 2023, at one of the UK conservatoires listed below 
• Have the right to live and work in the UK
• Be in financial need and without significant backing (by this we mean not receiving significant financial backing from a private investor and not having over £16,000 in savings) 
• Demonstrate that you have the musical potential and ambition to create a successful and sustainable career in music

If you are not sure if you are eligible, please contact support@​helpmusicians.​org.​uk.

• Guildhall School of Music and Drama 
• Leeds Conservatoire
• Royal Academy of Music 
• Royal Birmingham Conservatoire 
• Royal College of Music 
• Royal Conservatoire of Scotland 
• Royal Northern College of Music 
• Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama 
• Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance 
• National Opera Studio (répétiteurs only)

We are unable to support the following through these awards:

• Undergraduate courses
• PhDs, MPhil, DMus, Doctorates
• Non-music performance degrees such as composition, music technology, music education, music therapy, arts administration, and music business
• Study from the previous academic year 

• Monday 3 April — Voice
• Tuesday 4 April — Upper Strings
• Wednesday 5 April — Woodwind
• Thursday 6 April — Brass
• Tuesday 11 April — Piano
• Wednesday 12 April — Historical Performance and Percussion
• Thursday 13 April — Lower Strings
• Friday 14 April — Jazz and Pop
• Monday 17 April — Guitar and Harp

We can offer travel expenditure of £75 for those travelling outside of London and £120 for those travelling from Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Should you be shortlisted for audition, you must provide us with your proposed audition programme. For most singers and instrumentalists your programme must consist of at least two contrasting pieces by different composers and your whole programme should last no longer than 10 minutes. We are able to provide an accompanist for brass, upper strings, lower strings, woodwind and voice disciplines. Please indicate on the form if you require the services of our in-house accompanist. 

Accompanists, repetiteurs, jazz and pop applicants should review the specific audition requirements below. 

Accompanists should provide 10 minutes of music that showcases your ability to accompany either a solo singer or a solo string performer. Your programme should be comprising of either 

• A movement from a Classical or Romantic sonata and a contrasting piece written before 1950,
• or
• Three songs of contrasting styles and periods

Répétiteurs*

You should prepare a short scene (including at least two characters) from each of two contrasting operas, and perform them, singing the vocal lines yourself. An accompanied recitative and a short secco recitative by Mozart or Rossini should also be prepared. The two scenes and recitatives should be no more than 15 minutes in total. Sight-reading excerpts and language tests in French, German and Italian may also be given. 

Jazz and Popular Music

Shortlisted candidates will be invited to audition with a backing band or group consisting of no more than 6 other performers. Full backline will be provided by the venues; however, you must bring your own breakables. 

The Ian Fleming Musical Theatre Awards offer support to students who wish to complete their studies at certain leading UK conservatoires and performing arts colleges (listed below).

You could be awarded between £1,000 and £5,000 to go towards the cost of the final year of an undergraduate course or a postgraduate course and associated living costs and expenses. Support is available for the next academic year starting in September 2023.

To apply for our Ian Fleming Musical Theatre Awards, you must: 

• Be intending to study Musical Theatre in either your final year of your undergraduate course, or a postgraduate course at one of the UK conservatoires listed below from September 2023
• Be living in the UK
• Have the right to live and work in the UK
• Have a UK bank account
• Be in financial need and without significant backing (by this we mean not receiving significant financial backing from a private investor and not having over £16,000 in savings)
• Demonstrate that you have the musical potential and ambition to create a successful and sustainable career in music

• ArtsEd
• Guildford School of Acting
• Guildhall School of Music and Drama 
  
• Leeds Conservatoire

• London School of Musical Theatre

• Mountview Academy
• Royal Academy of Music
• Royal Birmingham Conservatoire
• Royal Central School of Speech and Drama
• Royal College of Music
• Royal Conservatoire of Scotland
• Royal Northern College of Music
• Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama
• Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance
• Urdang Academy

We are unable to support the following through these awards:

• Undergraduate courses (apart from those in their final year)
• PhDs, MPhil, DMus, Doctorates
• Non-music performance degrees such as composition, music technology, music education, music therapy, arts administration, and music business
• Study from the previous or current academic year
• Costs relating to the purchase of musical instruments (including laptops)

Wednesday 28 June
Royal Academy of Music

Your audition programme
Should you be shortlisted for audition, you must provide us with your proposed audition programme. For singers, your programme must consist of two contrasting musical theatre songs plus a short monologue. Your entire programme should not last longer than 10 minutes.

Musical Directors
You will be assessed on your rehearsing, directing, keyboard and sight-reading skills.

You will need to prepare the following from the musical West Side Story:

• Ensemble piece Gee Officer Krupkee. 
  • You will talk through how you would approach rehearsing this piece with the panel. Be prepared to demonstrate how you might direct certain sections. Please bring along additional copies of the music to ensure we are all looking at the same edition.

• An extract of no more than 2 minutes from any of the Jets and Sharks dances, to demonstrate keyboard ability

You may also be asked to sight-read a short musical theatre song provided on the day, lasting no longer than 3 minutes.

Musical Director auditions will last approximately 25 minutes.

Ian Fleming founded the Ian Fleming Charitable Trust in 1972, with an initial focus on supporting national charities in the fields of support, disease research, relief and welfare.

However, a performance of The Magic Flute by Scottish Opera gave Ian the idea of extending the support to musicians in 1980.

Ever since, outstandingly talented young musicians have been supported through the Trust with costs towards their higher education studies. 

The Sybil Tutton Opera Awards offer support to students who wish to complete their studies at certain leading UK conservatoires and performing arts colleges (listed below).

You could be awarded between £1,000 and £5,000 to go towards the cost of a postgraduate course, and associated living costs. Support is available for the next academic year starting in September 2023.

To apply for our Sybil Tutton Opera awards, you must:

• Be intending to study Opera at postgraduate level at one of the UK conservatoires listed below from September 2023
• Be living in the UK
• Have the right to live and work in the UK
• Have a UK bank account
• Be in financial need and without significant backing (by this we mean not receiving significant financial backing from a private investor and not having over £16,000 in savings)
• Demonstrate that you have the musical potential and ambition to create a successful and sustainable career in music

Our Sybil Tutton Opera awards are open to students who are studying opera at Postgraduate level at one of the following: 

• Guildhall School of Music and Drama
• National Opera Studio
• Royal Academy of Music
• Royal Birmingham Conservatoire
• Royal College of Music
• Royal Conservatoire of Scotland
• Royal Northern College of Music
• Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama
• Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance
• Welsh International Academy of Voice 

We are unable to support the following through these awards:

• Undergraduate courses
• Postgraduate vocal studies courses
• PhDs, MPhil, DMus, Doctorates
• Non-music performance degrees such as composition, music technology, music education, music therapy, arts administration, and music business
• Study from the previous or current academic year
• Costs relating to the purchase of musical instruments (including laptops)

Singers
Thursday 29 June
Royal Academy of Music

Répétiteurs
Wednesday 28 June
Royal Academy of Music

Your audition programme
Should you be shortlisted for audition, you must provide us with your proposed audition programme. 

Singers
For opera singers your programme must consist of at least two contrasting arias by different composers and your whole programme should last no longer than 10 minutes. We are able to provide an accompanist for opera auditions. Please indicate on the form if you require the services of our in-house accompanist. 

Répétiteurs
You should prepare a short scene (including at least two characters) from each of two contrasting operas, and perform them, singing the vocal lines yourself. An accompanied recitative and a short secco recitative by Mozart or Rossini should also be prepared. The two scenes and recitatives should be no more than 15 minutes in total. Sight-reading excerpts and language tests in French, German and Italian may also be given.

Sybil Tutton had a lifelong love of opera, which in later years was expressed as a passionate interest in the training of young singers.

In 1988 she used her personal funds to set up the Sybil Tutton Charitable Trust to provide financial help for the postgraduate training of outstanding young opera singers.

Sybil died peacefully on 27 November 2002 aged 96, bequeathing most of her residuary estate to the Trust.

Hundreds of singers have been helped since the awards began. Previous winners include Christopher Maltman, Alfie Boe, Ed Lyon, Kate Royal, Katherine Broderick and Karen Cargill.