Folk Music

Nordic Master in Folk Music (NoFo) is a joint study program
between four Nordic music academies:

• Royal College of Music, Stockholm, Sweden
• Danish National Academy of Music, Esbjerg, Denmark
• Sibelius Academy of the University of the Arts Helsinki, Finland
• Ole Bull Academy, Voss, Norway

The NoFo students will experience a unique artistic journey, studying at all of these high-level academies. They will get an insight into folk music traditions in four different countries and a great possibility to prepare for a Nordic career. Offering a lot of mobility, Nordic networking and intensive ensemble work, this is an opportunity that ordinary folk music master degree programs cannot match.

The program provides a great framework to develop and deepen one’s own artistic profile as a soloist though regular individual lessons with top-level teachers at each institute.

The NoFo students form a study group that works together for two academic years, spending three full semesters together studying at the participating academies. During the fourth semester, students study at their home institutions, as well as participating in an intensive course period at the Ole Bull Academy.

Ensemble playing has a strong emphasis during the studies. The ensemble, consisting of all the NoFo-students provides a possibility for every individual student to develop new music, ideas and expressions within the field of Nordic Folk Music. There is also room for solo projects and ensemble playing in different constellations within the NoFo-group as well as with the students at the different schools. You will perform with the other NoFo-students at different venues in all of the participating countries. A tour through all of the Nordic countries is organized as part of the final examination.

Structure of studies

• Semester 1: Royal College of Music, Stockholm
• Semester 2: Danish National Academy of Music, Esbjerg, Denmark
• Semester 3: Sibelius Academy of the University of the Arts Helsinki, Finland
• Semester 4: An intensive period (4 to 6 weeks) at Ole Bull Academy, Voss. After that, students return to their home academies to finish their degrees.
• Semester 5: for Finnish students, at their home academy

ECTS value of the programme

120 (in Finland 150).

Duration

2 academic years (in Finland 2,5).

The Nordic Master in Folk Music (NoFo) is a joint study programme offered in collaboration between higher education music academies in four countries: Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Finland. The programme leads to a Master degree according to each institution’s regulations and national legislation. This means that each institution has its own curriculum for their NoFo students.

The programme prepares the students for a career as international professionals, and contains a high level of mobility and interaction. It will add a broader Nordic dimension to the students’ previous folk music education, providing them with an innovative education that combines the best features of each institution. The students will gain extraordinary insights into the Nordic folk music traditions. The focus of the studies is on developing each student’s individual artistry.

The curriculum includes: Instrumental studies, Ensemble playing, Composition/arranging, Folk music analysis, Folk music seminar, Music management, Artistic research and Master Degree Project . In addition, optional courses can be chosen from each organization’s curriculum, including subjects such as secondary instrumental studies, dancing, instrument making and improvisation.

The next possibility to apply for this program will be in January-Februry 2019. If you have finished your bachelor studies in music or will complete it at the latest in June 2019, it's possible for you to apply for this program.

The application period varies between the institutions. Please check the websites and contact the coordinators for more details.

The next auditions will be in March or April, after week 10 of 2019.

Examinations

Sibelius Academy checks the applicants' eligibility after the application period has ended. The ones deemed eligible will get an invitation via e-mail no later than 2-3 weeks before the entrance examinations. In some programmes only a part of the applicants will be invited to take part in the actual entrance ecamination, based on their pre-examination assignments. The ones who are not invited will be informed via e-mail ca. one month before the entrance examination date.

The applicants must attend the entrance examination in person and they are responsible for any travel expenses that accompany the entrance examination. Each applicant is given a set time for the entrance examination. The timeslot cannot be changed. The applicant must notify Sibelius Academy Admissions Office if he or she will not be able to attend the entrance examination.

A tuition fee is applicable to students who are not citizens of countries of the European Union (EU) or the European Economic Area (EEA) or Switzerland. The amount of the annual tuition fee will be 5,000 euros. The amount of the fee will stay the same for the duration of a particular student’s studies.

Exemption from tuition fees

You are exempted from paying tuition fees if you have one of the following documents:

• Passport or identity card to indicate the citizenship of EU/EEA/Switzerland
• EU Blue Card in Finland
• Continuous residence permit card in Finland, Type A permit
• EU Family Member's Residence Card in Finland
• Permanent residence permit card in Finland, Type P permit
• EU residence permit for third-country citizens with long-term residence permit card in Finland (Type P-EU)

The University of the Arts Helsinki will introduce a scholarship programme in the form of tuition fee waivers, which aims to promote student recruitment and provide financial support for students who need it. Applicants should note that the University does not offer any scholarships for living expenses. Applicants who are liable for payment must also state on the application form if they want to apply for a scholarship from the University of the Arts Helsinki to cover the annual tuition fee if they get accepted. The scholarships are granted for one academic year at a time to some of the students based on their applications. The amount of the scholarship is 2,500 or 5,000 euros.