Performance and Industry Opportunities

Our opera productions offer our students exceptional musical and theatrical experience, and our Chamber Choir, Chapel Choir, Chorus, and specialist vocal ensembles provide outstanding training for the profession. We are one of the few British conservatories where undergraduates and postgraduates alike can participate fully in opera training and are able to audition for all productions. 

Performance venues include the Old Royal Naval College Chapel, St Alfege Church in Greenwich, Blackheath Halls, Purcell Room (Southbank Centre), and the Barbican Centre. There are also opportunities to tour the UK and abroad. 

During my two years at Trinity Laban I had a wealth of opportunities to be involved in opera of all kinds, and all languages. That’s what I want to do – I want to be an opera singer – and Trinity Laban has definitely helped me develop the skills to go out into the professional world and get work.

William Branston, UK, BMus Performance (Voice) 

Trinity Laban Opera 

Led by Head of Vocal Studies, Jennifer Hamilton link to Jennifer’s profile, Trinity Laban Opera constantly pushes the boundaries of creative innovation. We present at least one major opera production each year, along with multiple sets of Opera Scenes. 

Undergraduate Chorus

You will have the chance of collaboration through performing with the Undergraduate Chorus. The Chorus comprises over 100 students from across the conservatoire and has a busy performance schedule throughout each year. 

Rubythroat

Rubythroat is Trinity Laban’s chamber vocal ensemble, created by ex-Swingle Singer and former Head of Vocal Studies, Linda Hurst. 

Chamber Choir 

The Trinity Laban Chamber Choir is our flagship vocal ensemble. Founded in 1990, it is one of the most active ensembles of all the London conservatoires, performing on BBC Radio, at the BBC Proms, at all the major London concert venues and touring in France, Spain, Italy, and the Netherlands. 

It provides you with exceptional training for the profession, giving you opportunities to perform a variety of repertoire, from Renaissance and Baroque to contemporary music, an area of specialism here, while being conducted by industry professionals. Regular venues include the Old Royal Naval College Chapel and St Alfege Church in Greenwich as well as Blackheath Halls. 

Chapel Choir 

The Old Royal Naval College Trinity Laban Chapel Choir is regarded as one of the most outstanding sacred music ensembles in London. We are the only conservatoire in the UK to support a collegiate Chapel Choir. The Choir comprises of around 28 accomplished singers drawn mainly from Trinity Laban and surrounding communities.  

The Old Royal Naval College Chapel and its Director of Music, Dr Ralph Allwood MBE, provide an ideal springboard for you to work in the UK’s cathedral or church choirs, or follow other choral pathways. Collaboration with orchestral and jazz musicians, historical performers and composers is a particular feature of music in worship at the Chapel. 

Choral Scholarships are available to undergraduate and postgraduate students; many are first study vocal students, but other students are eligible to apply if it is compatible with other commitments. 

The scholarships are awarded for outstanding performance ability, as demonstrated at audition. Successful candidates for scholarships will be accomplished musicians, trained singers with the ability both to blend and take significant solo roles. Good sight reading is essential, as the repertoire is broad, extensive, and demanding whilst rehearsal time is limited. They will have a love of the sacred choral repertoire and want to be a member of a closely knit team. All candidates who audition are considered for a scholarship.  

We currently offer 14 Choral Scholarships annually in conjunction with the Dame Susan Morden Trust and the trustees of the Old Royal Naval College Chapel. 

You will work with visiting artists and ensembles in masterclasses, workshops, and consultations, along with opportunities to be mentored by sponsors, entrepreneurs, and members of arts management. Recent guests include Trinity Laban Visiting Artist Barbara Hannigan, Nicky Spence, Susan Bullock, Gidon Saks, the ROH Jette Parker Young Artists, opera patron Ian Rosenblatt and composer Jonathan Dove.  

We also provide audition preparation sessions with panel members from the UK’s major opera companies and hold Q&A sessions with young professionals about the realities of working as a singer. 

We have ongoing links with several professional choral ensembles and Trinity Laban singers often work with groups such as the Monteverdi Choir, Genesis Sixteen and The London Philharmonic Choir.  

Our opera students regularly work with external directors and creative teams, learning specialist skills such as Combat Techniques, Physical Expression, and Stylistic Awareness. 

String Ensemble 

String Ensemble has given many performances not only in prestigious London venues such as the Royal Festival Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall, and St. John’s Smith Square, but also on the international circuit, including performances at Slovenia’s Ljubljana Festival, Italy’s Emilia Romagna Festival and at the Dartington International Summer School. 

The group have performed with many international artists including oboist Nick Daniel, clarinettists Dimitri Ashkenazy and Darko Brlek, pianists Deniz Gelenbe and William Howard, violist Rivka Golani, organist David Titterington, saxophonist Gerard McChrystal, actor Edward Fox and jazz musician Julian Arguelles, with whom they recorded the critically acclaimed album ‘As Above So Below’. 

The ensemble has also collaborated with cross-genre artists including Barry Adamson and Nick Cave, John Cale (Velvet Underground) and jazz pianist Uri Caine in a performance of Brahms’ Handel Variations. Experienced with working in contemporary dance, the ensemble has collaborated with various choreographers including Sonia Rafferty and Henri Oguike and Lizzi Kew Ross. 

The group has an eclectic range of repertoire from standards of the genre such as the Tchaikovsky and Dvořák Serenades to the works of living composers such as John Adams, Steve Reich and Eleanor Kats-Chernin. They have also given world premieres by prominent composers such as Paval Novak, Graham Fitkin, Benjamin Ellin and David Mathews. 

Symphony Orchestra 

We are proud to have relationships with some of the world’s most talented conductors; recent visitors have included André de Ridder, Jessica Cottis, David Danzmayr, Douglas Boyd, and Martin André. 

TLSO is led by the Trinity Laban Performance Department and works closely with Jonathan Tilbrook (Head of Orchestral Studies), Andrew Dunn (Head of Wind, Brass & Percussion) and Professor Nic Pendlebury (Head of Strings). Regular performance venues include Blackheath Halls, Cadogan Hall and most recently York Hall. 

Symphonic Brass 

Brass Ensemble 

Symphonic Winds 

Percussion Ensemble 

Wind Ensemble 

Shapeshifter 

Contemporary Music Group  

Concert Orchestra 

Sinfonia Strings 

Opera Orchestra 

Musical Theatre Pit Band 

Early Music Ensembles 

In addition to larger ensemble training, chamber music is a central focus of your training here at Trinity Laban. You will receive frequent coaching led by our internationally acclaimed staff. 

Every term you will work with the Carne Trust Ensembles in Residence at Trinity Laban: the Carducci Quartet, the Linos Trio and the Smith Quartet. Regular chamber concerts, masterclasses, and coaching days form part of our core provision for Strings, Piano and Wind, Brass & Percussion students, with a wide variety of opportunities for chamber performance collaboration available across the curriculum for Composition, Jazz, and Vocal students too. 

You will gain extensive performance experience in our large ensembles, from the Big Band playing classic jazz compositions to the Jazz Orchestra, which focuses on contemporary composers and importantly on students’ original writing. 

Big Band 

The Big Band, run by Winston Rollins, is a training band for all first- and second-year students. It runs weekly and focuses on giving you the ensemble skills vital for becoming a versatile and grounded jazz musician.  

Jazz Orchestra 

The Trinity Laban Jazz Orchestra, led by renowned saxophonist and improviser Mark Lockheart, showcases final year jazz composers and improvisers making waves before they hit the wider jazz scene. 

Jazz Choir 

Jazz Choir, led by the renowned pianist and educator Pete Churchill, is an opportunity to get involved as a singer on a termly basis. Jazz Choir is open to students across all departments. 

In addition to the orchestral and ensemble activity timetabled by the Performance Department, you are encouraged to develop your own ensembles, and you are supported and encouraged in this endeavour by teaching staff and faculty resources. With many concert opportunities in Greenwich and across London, your self-led ensembles can start from scratch here at Trinity Laban and help develop your professional profile.

Collaboration is at the centre of Trinity Laban’s life and ethos. Our partnerships with leading artistic organisations ensure that you will benefit from rich performance experiences and close networks with the profession. 

Our popular Side by Side projects with major orchestras – such as the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, the Philharmonia Orchestra and BBC Symphony Orchestra – and collaborations with the likes of the Royal Opera House’s Jette Parker Young Artists Programme, the Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival and the Kronos and Smith Quartets allow you to learn directly from, and share your work with, professionals at the top of their game. 

We have an ever-growing list of professional and artistic partnerships including: 

• BBC Concert Orchestra 

• Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra 

• City of London Sinfonia 

• English National Opera 

• London Philharmonic Orchestra 

• Southbank Centre 

• Sound Connections 

You will also have the opportunity to collaborate with students across the conservatoire in festivals including CoLab. Additionally, there are opportunities to take part in external festivals such as the Royal Greenwich International Early Music Festival, London Handel Festival, The Greenwich Guitar Festival, The Brandenburg Choral Festival of London, London Jazz Festival, Spitalfields Festival and BBC Proms. 

You will take part in a number of competitions annually. From large scale internal competitions to intercollegiate competitions. 

Internal Competitions 

• The Soloists’ Competition (All Instrument and Voice) 

• Daryl Runswick Composition Competition (Composition) 

• The John Longmire Competition (Solo Piano) 

• The Alison Stephens Competition for Plucked and Fretted Instruments (Not including Harp) 

• The Philip Jones Competition (Brass) 

• The John Barbirolli Competition (String quartet) 

• The Vernon Elliot Competition (Bassoon) 

• The John Halford Competition (Piano and Composition) 

• The Harold Clarke Competition (Woodwind) 

• The Historically Informed Performance Competition (All) 

• The Gladys Puttick Improvisation Competition (All) 

• The Elisabeth Schumann Lieder Competition (Voice and Piano) 

• The Leonard Smith & Felicity Young competition (String and Piano) 

• The Evelyn Rothwell Competition for Solo Oboe 

• The Wilfred Hambleton Competition (Clarinet) 

• The Lillian Ash French Song Competition 

• The Alfred Kitchin Competition 

• The Vera Kantrovitch Prize (solo strings) 

• The English Song Competition (Voice and Piano) 

• The Vivian joseph Classical Concerto Competition (Bowed Strings) 

External Competitions 

• Jaques Samuel Piano Competition 

• The Kathleen Ferrier Awards 

• CAVATINA Intercollegiate Chamber Music Competition 

• Camac Competition 

As a student in our Popular Music department, you will have many opportunities to perform at events across London. Each year, we hold a festival at Blackheath Halls showcasing your work, as well as smaller gigs in venues including The Fox and Firkin in Lewisham, and the Theatreship moored in Canary Wharf.  

You will have numerous recording opportunities in our studio at King Charles Court and other professional studios across the city, where you will get to work with highly skilled producers and engineers. Recording sessions have recently taken place at Abbey Road Studios in partnership with Warner Music Group, and students have visited USC’s studios in California as part of our ongoing collaboration with their Popular Music department. 

In South East London, you are surrounded by venues hosting open mic nights and jams, and there are lots of opportunities for you to put on your own gigs and have your music heard. 

Solo performance is a key part of life as a student at Trinity Laban. Performance skills learned in Principal Study mentoring come together to provide a springboard onto the stage and into the world of live performance. Regular solo performances give you the opportunity to hone and practise skills in preparation for the professional world. 

Regular lunchtime concert series provide opportunities for you to perform in beautiful venues including St Alfege Church and the Old Royal Naval College Chapel in Greenwich. There are also a range of exciting performances at prestigious venues throughout the city of London including Wigmore Hall, St James’s Piccadilly, St Martin-in-the-Fields and Steinway Hall.