"I would rather write 10,000 notes than a single letter of the alphabet."
- Ludwig Van Beethoven
This is one of the most popular quotes from Beethoven - The world's best composer, also known as The German Mozart. While it is unfair to compare these two music mega mammoths, it is fair to say that Beethoven is one of the best musicians the world has ever seen. And yes he was from Germany. This just goes to show that Germany has always been a great place to nurture great musicians - even back in the 18th century. The situation is not so different in modern times either. It has some of the best music colleges in Germany and is one of the best educational destinations as well.
And along with this, Germany is home to some of the best modern musicians like Casada and ATB. Now when we include the rich history of Germany in music, the influence of Beethoven, and the current era of musicians, we can safely say it is a rather good decision to study music in Germany. And if you are someone who is deeply involved in music and want to learn more, German is one of the educational destinations that you should consider.
But how do study Music in Germany?
Regardless of what you do, as long as it is done systematically, there are some procedures that you should fulfill. You cannot get anywhere unless you are willing to follow a systematic procedure, even if the thing you are pursuing is something creative. Someone once said that an artist needs to learn how to find order in chaos if s/he wants to grow. Music is a form of art. So needless to say, you need to find order in chaos and follow some procedures, especially when it comes to pursuing music in the form of formal education.
And in order to study Music in Germany, you need to fulfill a few requirements as well as follow a procedure as well. The procedure is rather simple though. All you need to do is:
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Find a university of your choice
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Apply For Admission
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Get the Student Visa
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Find a place to stay and get enrolled.
Before you start this procedure, there are a few requirements that you need to fulfill.
Requirements to study Music in Germany
Similar to how there is a systematic and procedural way to do anything, there are requirements as well. As sad as it may seem, the reality is that there are some that people are eligible for and some they are eligible at. Music is no different from this chain as well.
While scientifically, anyone can learn music, it differs in reality as the concept of music is itself hard to grasp. People cannot learn music half-heartedly. Due to this, you need to fulfill certain eligibility criteria if you want to study music in Germany. These criteria are made to ensure that only those who are dedicated to music pursue it to its inner depth. After all, it is better to be disqualified when you haven't dedicated your entire heart to an art than to dive blindly and get lost in the middle of nowhere in the path of music.
Coming back to reality, the eligibility criteria that you need to fulfill to pursue the story of Music in Germany are:
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Get good aptitude test results
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Do well in Written tests and/ or Audition
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Fulfill both English and German Language requirements
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Get Recognition of Earlier Foreign Certifications/Qualifications
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Get the required documents i.e Visa, residence permit, Proof of financial resources
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Have a basic practical and theoretical knowledge of the specific field of study in music
Besides these, it would be extremely helpful for you if you have a good grasp of one or more musical instruments.
And this brings us to another one of the frequently asked questions.
What is life like for those who study Music in Germany?
The short answer to this is - your life would be extremely busy. While you will be given a lot of choices and freedom, your mind and time would be consistently consumed by music.
The first thing that you should know as a music student in Germany is that you will have a ton of choices when it comes to choosing your course. You can either choose a fixed stream of education or change as you become specialized in one aspect. While this way of life will depend on the university you choose, you will indeed have freedom when it comes to what you want to pursue.
At the same time, you will not be required to focus entirely on theory either. Half of your time will be spent perfecting your craft. The other half would be spent attending lectures, seminars, performances, and seminars. A lot of the universities offer exchange programs to expand their student's horizons and help them in building international connections as well. And if you manage to balance your time between perfecting your craft and networking through these activities, you will have a great start to a bright future.
On the flip side, you can become a hermit as well and perfect your craft in silence and attend only the necessary classes as long as you devote yourself to the music and produce results. After all, the ones looking after you will be eccentric personalities as well. If you show promise, dedication and fulfill the expectation of these eccentric personalities, you can dedicate your entire time to honing your craft - as long as you meet the basic requirements from these universities.
As it is said, nothing is free. To become a great musician and get the best results from studying music in Germany, you will need to pay with your time and energy. And since we are talking about cost, let's get to know
What is the tuition fee for music in Germany?
The simple answer to this question will be: it depends on the university. Along with this, the tuition fee for music in Germany will also depend on the type of University as well.
In General, Public Universities will charge around 100 € to 300 € per semester, which is around 13,661 Npr to 40,984 Npr. The only exception to this condition is the universities in the state of Baden-Württemberg. There the Public Universities have re-introduced the system of tuition fees. There the students from outside the EU (European Union) will be asked to pay around 3000€ per year which is equivalent to around 4,09,845 Npr.
Now it should be noted that public universities in Germany are the cheapest form of education available. The private ones are much more expensive since the tuition fees for studying music in them can range from 8000 € to 20,000 € per year or 10,92,920 Npr to 27,32,301 Npr.
5 Best Music University in Germany
With the basic information on the topic of "How to study Music in Germany ?" out of the way, let's talk about the universities now. As you may know, Germany is one of the worlds leading figures in education. And as you can expect, it has some of the best universities in this field of education.
Here we have ranked some of the best Music Universities in Germany based on the recent information about the internal university rankings of Germany. Let's move on to the lists now.
1)Ludwig Maximilian University
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Location: Geschwister-Scholl-Platz 1, 80539 München, Germany
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Global Ranking: 44
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German Ranking: 1
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University type: Public
As the number one university in Germany, Ludwig Maximillian University is one of the most prestigious ones to study music out there. Although this university is primarily known for its research, it still has adequate manpower to have a dedicated, experienced, and eccentric personality for its music and art curriculums.
With more than 300 degree programs in various subjects, they offer you tons of choices. And as long as meet the requirements, then you can take in virtually any one of these 300-degree programs including different music courses.
This university promotes creative thinking among its music students, with a belief that "only through creativity can one create perfection". And to promote this, they have reduced educational costs as well. If you take a music course with less than 5 hours of course per week, then you can get it by paying as little as 100 € per semester. That being said, you will be expected to spend the rest of the time either following your education or perfecting your craft with a free and stress-free mind.
2) Heidelberg University
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Location: Grabengasse 1, 69117 Heidelberg, Germany
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Global Ranking: 70
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German Ranking: 4
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University type: Public
Heidelberg University is one of the oldest universities in Germany. First established in the late 14th century, this university has lasted through the changing time and tides. This university which was established at the time when thoughts were slowly shifting from classic medieval to renaissance, has seen the transition of music from being all about the gods to thoughts to emotions.
With such a wide history and experience, Heidelberg University is more than qualified to become one of the best music Universities in Germany. After all, this university has lasted through a majority of German history and has first had the experience of it. Apart from its history, it is also known for its quality education and experienced personnel in modern times.
It is among the top 100 global universities after all. And it credits this reputation to its qualified staff, dedicated students, and its motto to never stop moving forward. In a recent survey conducted by the German Academic Exchange Service, it is found that thus Heidelberg University is one of the most popular educational institutes among the students as well as teachers as well.
Needless to say, Heidelberg University is one of the best universities to study Music in Germany.
3) University of Freiburg
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Location: Fahnenbergplatz, 79085 Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany
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Global Ranking: 122
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German Ranking: 8
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University type: Public
Similar to Heidelberg University, the University of Freiburg is old. These two universities are separated by just around 75 years which is not a long time in the context of historical events. Similar to the previous university, this one too has seen the change of time from the medieval era to the modern era, making this one of the few universities that can show off its rich history.
With rich history comes rich experience and these are required to produce qualified and dedicated personnel in Music. With names like Wilibald Gurlitt, Klaus Huber, Hans Zender, Conradin Kreutzer affiliated with this university, one can easily see that the University of Freiburg not only has a rich history but also results to back up its expertise in music.
But besides music, this university is also well known for its proficiency in Medicine, Business, Philosophy, Engineering, Nursing, Biotechnology, and Psychology as well. This just goes to show that this is not just a place for musicians but all professionals.
4) Westfälische Wilhelms Universität Münster (University of Muenster)
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Location: Schlosspl. 2, 48149 Münster, Germany
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Global Ranking: 193
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German Ranking: 13
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University type: Public
Westfälische Wilhelms Universität Münster is one of those universities whose name bears the last name of an emperor- the last German Emperor Frederick William Victor Albert. But trivial aside, Westfälische Wilhelms Universität Münster is one of the best and larger universities in Germany.
With the impressive list of 280 bachelor's curricula, along with master's and doctoral degrees in 120 fields of education, it has some of the largest choices of the curriculum. Along with this, they are well known for tons of visiting researchers and lecturers.
All of this when combined with their free and open environment, promises the best of minds and creative results. This is the exact reason why Westfälische Wilhelms Universität Münster is one of the best universities to study Music in Germany. As someone once said a cramped can't create creativity and this university knows it well. They offer complete freedom to their students as long as their students fulfill their duty and show promise.
With over 550 partnerships with universities from all around the world, the students can make full use of their free time to grow their skills and network as well. And when a university has all of these factors under its belt, it would be a surprise if it wasn't one of the best places for education.
5) University of Wuerzburg (Julius-Maximilians-University)
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Location: Sanderring 2, 97070 Würzburg, Germany
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Global Ranking: 165
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German Ranking: 16
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University type: Public
University of Wuerzburg or Julius-Maximilians-University is the third one on this list that is old and experienced. Similar to the previous universities that have a rich history, this university that was started back in the early 15thcenturay has seen it all. The transition from medieval to the renaissance was happening as this university was being built.
So needless to say this university is well stacked in history, experience, and qualifications to be one of the best places to study music in Germany. This university offers 250-degree programs among which music is one of the popular ones. And with the sleuth of experienced musicians and lecturers sharing their knowledge this place is indeed heaven for music.
This is further supplemented by their well-designed course and the freedom they give to their students - especially those who are involved in art. After all, with such an extensive history, how could they not know that freedom of thought and freedom of stimulus is the door to creativity.
In the end,
There are tons of other universities that provide music in their curriculum. But among those, these 5 music universities in Germany stand out as exceptionally good. But that being said, while universities are indeed the best, they may not be what you need. So be sure to do your independent research. Besides this, after reading this, you should be able to know what you need to do as well as what to expect if you want to study music in Germany.
If you found this helpful, why not follow this with some more articles linked below. And if you have any queries with regards to education in Germany, you can contact us by following our link here.
