Working better together
Our relationships help us provide the highest quality education and facilities to students and members of the public.
Accreditations & Memberships
Leeds Conservatoire is a founding member of Black Lives in Music.
Black Lives in Music is made up of a number of partners who are all working towards the same goal: to dismantle structural racism in our industry. Together we aim to support the industry in providing better professional opportunities. We also want to achieve equality for Black, Asian and Ethnically Diverse professionals at all levels and in all areas of the UK Jazz and Classical industry.
Leeds Conservatoire is a Platinum corporate member of the ISM.
The Independent Society of Musicians (ISM) is the UK’s professional body for musicians and largest subject association for music. Supporting over 6,000 music professionals and students studying music; the ISM provides hundreds of discounts, unparalleled legal and tax support, free insurance, expert professional advice, professional development and more.
Spotlight connects performers with roles in theatre, television and film productions. Casting professionals choose Spotlight to cast their projects because performers on Spotlight are recognised as the industry’s best.
Our performing arts courses are professionally recognised, which allows graduates to gain full Spotlight membership.
Leeds Conservatoire is one of UK Music's Music Academic Partners (MAP). MAP is a ground-breaking collaboration between educational institutions and the membership of UK Music. Its focus is on linking industry and academia more effectively to: nurture collaborative projects such as research and careers events; inform and engage with the next generation of industry professionals; develop expert knowledge-base to feed into education & skills policy work, and; provide individuals who want to build careers out of their passion for music with extra opportunities.
Education Network & Partners
Leeds Conservatoire is a partner of the Association of European Conservatoires (AEC).
The Association Européenne des Conservatoires, Académies de Musique et Musikhochschulen (AEC) is a European cultural and educational network with around 300 member institutions for professional music training in 57 countries.
Leeds Conservatoire is an original member of Conservatoires UK, the umbrella organisation that represents the collective views of, and lobbies on behalf of, music and training across eleven major UK conservatoires.
Leeds Conservatoire is a member of Go Higher West Yorkshire, a group of West Yorkshire based HE institutions working to ensure that higher education in is open to all who can benefit, regardless of background, improving access and representation for those from under-represented groups. We have a dedicated member of staff to help us achieve these aims.
Go Higher West Yorkshire is part of Uni Connect, managed by the Office for Students.
Find out more about Go Higher West Yorkshire here.
GuildHE is one of the two recognised representative bodies for Higher Education in the UK and has over 40 members.
It is a Company Limited by Guarantee and a Charity. It was founded in 1967 as the Standing Conference of Principals, registered as a company in 1992 and became GuildHE in 2006.
Many member institutions share key characteristics, specialist mission or subject focus, being smaller than the average university in the UK but including some major providers in professional subject areas including art & design, music & the performing arts; agriculture; education, health and sports.
Leeds Conservatoire is a member of the Luminate Education Group. The group includes Leeds City College, one of the largest colleges in the country and Leeds Conservatoire's alliance with it offers many mutual benefits in terms of the services that the Conservatoire can offer.
Leeds Conservatoire’s degree courses are now validated by the University of Hull.
The conservatoire and the University have teaching and research links, and are working closely to provide enhanced opportunities for students studying at undergraduate and postgraduate level at both institutions.
The University has launched its new School of Drama, Music and Screen and is planning further investment in music provision in auditoria, theatre space and media environment. The music partnership with Leeds Conservatoire offers an extra dimension to music students.
Forward-thinking, modern and student-oriented – and with a firm commitment to celebrating diversity – the University of Hull’s ethos is well-matched with the conservatoire’s own.
Leeds Conservatoire is a member of Yorkshire Universities.
Yorkshire Universities is an action-oriented regional partnership of Higher Education Institutions. It is driven by a passion and belief in the power and potential of Yorkshire and its global connections and aspirations.
Industry Partners
Come Play With Me is a non-profit music development organisation that specialises in supporting people from marginalised communities to further their careers in music.
Its mission is to fight for an equitable, inclusive and diverse music industry. Come Play With Me provides tailored career development for individuals through its events, label, mentoring, podcast, magazine and workshops.
Leeds Conservatoire and Come Play With Me have a strong track record of working together, which resulted in a joint recognition of the potential benefits of a more structured, long-term partnership. Read the partnership announcement.
The Leeds International Piano Competition is one of the world’s foremost music competitions. They seek not only to discover the finest young pianists, but to nurture and equip them for the swiftly changing world we are living in.
Find our more about the Leeds International Piano Competition here.
Leeds Conservatoire and Leeds Playhouse work in partnership to create and deliver collaborative activity of academic and artistic value regionally and nationally. The partnership strengthens the status of Leeds as a centre for artistic excellence, contributes to the training and retention of a diverse talent pool and boosts the resilience of the cultural and higher education sectors in the region.
Students on the MA Dramaturgy programme work closely with the team at Leeds Playhouse, especially the Artistic Planning department and the Furnace Artistic Development programme, to develop their theoretical understanding of theatre-making and the role of the dramaturg in practice.
Find out more about our partnership with Leeds Playhouse here.
Sound City captures the vibrancy of the city with an unforgettable 3-day festival that sees established names perform alongside a constant stream of local, national and international emerging talent. The ongoing partnership with Sound City sees bands and artists performing at the festival alongside opportunities for internships and work placements.
Find out more about out our recent student performers at Sound City here.
Long Division Festival is an award-winning metropolitan festival that places the best emerging grassroots artists alongside legends of Indie and DIY. The Festival is about more than gigs in venues. It celebrates community and are dedicated to supporting the vibrant grassroots in Wakefield and beyond. Leeds Conservatoire works closely with the festival on several exciting initiatives.
Find out more about our recent student performers at Long Division Festival here.
MediaTracks is a long-established independent production label, supplying authentic and innovative music for TV, film and advertising. They produce high quality tracks covering choral and vocal, pop and dance and world music. Committed to developing diverse talent through their collaborations and mentoring schemes, MediaTracks seeks to promote music and artists currently underrepresented in the music industry.
Already working with students and alumni from the conservatoire through the MT Apprentice scheme, MediaTracks and Leeds Conservatoire share the aim of supporting talent development in this sector and highlighting Library Music as a potential career path for student composers and artists.
Core to this partnership, Leeds Conservatoire are creating an online music library platform for student and alumni music. Utilising MediaTracks’ expertise and experience to support its development, the platform will provide an opportunity for the conservatoire’s composers to gain direct insight into music publishing industry and, for successful submissions, the chance to gain income through commercial release of their music.
The partnership between Leeds Conservatoire and Opera North began in 2019 in a bid to formalise how the region’s leading opera company could support the next generation of performers in training at Leeds Conservatoire, enhancing the conservatoire’s student experience and contributing to the city’s collaborative cultural activity.
Students on the conservatoire’s Classical programme have the opportunity to work with industry professionals in a number of ways, including performing side-by-side with members of the company; having one-to-one conversations with company members about how to take their careers further; taking part in Opera North’s In Harmony Community Music initiative; and working on a composition project, which has seen third year composers have their pieces workshopped by an ensemble from Opera North.
This partnership with Opera North is part of the conservatoire’s commitment to put student experience at the heart of what we do. The access students have to Opera North and all the team creates a dialogue between the next generation of artists and makers which can help both organisations in supporting the future of Classical music.
Orchestras Live believes orchestras are for everyone. They are a national producer and create projects where music and creativity can thrive. The partnership between Leeds Conservatoire and Orchestras Live sets out the shared commitment to promote and support professional orchestral skills development programmes for Leeds Conservatoire students.
Rhodes is an iconic, electro-mechanical, tine piano that has invariably changed the course of musical history, defined genres and given rise to a number of musical icons. 2021 saw the creation of the MK8. This new model, built in a new factory in Leeds, uses the highest quality parts and most advanced manufacturing processes to breath new life into Harold Rhodes’ original vision.
Leeds Junior Conservatoire Partners
Leeds Conservatoire is part of the Leeds Music Education Partnership, a coherent and comprehensible offer for the children and young people of Leeds, joining up the breadth of first access in all its forms to the diversity of excellence that the city offers.
Find out more about the Leeds Music Education Partnership here.
Music Mark are the UK’s subject association for music education, with a membership made up of organisations and people from across the whole music education sector.
This innovative scheme provides training for gifted and talented children in the Yorkshire and Humber region.
Local Community Partners
Leeds Conservatoire is a key supporter of the Diocese of Leeds Music programmes. The partnership allows the Conservatoire to fulfil part of its commitment to widening participation in a way that is consistent with its mission for excellence in music education.
Find out more about the Diocese of Leeds Music programmes here.
The Geraldine Connor Foundation was established in 2012 to continue the work and vision of Geraldine Connor by bringing people together through arts and culture. They provide global perspectives across many artforms including music, theatre, dance, spoken word poetry and visual arts, reaching around 800 young people every year through projects that include workshops, performances and mentoring programmes.
Find out more about our partnership with the Geraldine Connor Foundation here.
Leeds Conservatoire runs programmes in partnership with Student Hubs to enhance student experience, develop employability and improve retention through practical volunteering, skilled placements, in-curriculum projects and project incubation.
Supporters & Corporate Partners
Leeds Conservatoire is a regional 'Hub' for The Ivors Academy. The Ivors Academy exists to support, protect and celebrate music creators in the UK. They are the independent professional association representing songwriters and composers in all genres, whether they create song, symphony or sync.
The Ivors Academy was previously known as BASCA.
Find out more about the Ivors Academy here.
Leeds Conservatoire is proud to be a Roland Academy in association with Roland UK. Roland is a world leader in the design, manufacture and distribution of musical instruments including pianos, keyboards and synthesizers, guitar products, electronic percussion kits, digital recording equipment, amplifiers and audio processing devices
In September 2011, Leeds Conservatoire became an All-Steinway School, internationally joining the likes of Yale University's School of Music and the Juilliard School, New York.
As the first English conservatoire to hold the coveted All-Steinway School status – meaning 90% of its pianos are from the Steinway family – Leeds Conservatoire demonstrates a commitment to excellence by providing its students with the best equipment possible for the study of music.
