Australia’s leading International School of Music
A distinctive nature and VISION of the Sir Zelman Cowen School of Music is to develop the complete 21st century musician. A musician that strives for excellence and who has a holistic approach to music. A musician that specialises with musical diversity. The diversity is the training of musicians to the highest professional standards in music of both Western and non- Western tradition, from revered past traditions through to contemporary practices in composed and improvised music.
The essence of the Sir Zelman Cowen School of Music is defined by the music of world cultures. Underpinned by the history of multiple musical cultures, our aim is to produce and research music for the present and the future through the global music community at Monash University.
The Sir Zelman Cowen School of Music at Monash is ranked among the best music schools in Australia, with a history of achieving excellence in teaching, and research. Whether it be performance and composition opportunities or researching musics of the world, the Sir Zelman Cowen School of Music’s vision is progressive in both the local and global contexts.
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Featured Events
'At Monash' seminar series Performing Arts & Music Information Night
Tue 20 Aug, 6:30 PM
The Drama Theatre, Building 68
Latest News
We have a bold vision – to create a cultural, artistic, research and musical hub with a dynamic atmosphere at our Clayton campus to benefit students, staff and the community. The centrepiece of this vision is the creation of a new, iconic, state-of-the-art building for the School of Music. The new building for the Sir Zelman ... Read more
Monash University is proud to be associated with the Melbourne International Jazz Festival as the Education Partner. Jazz Futures – Maria Schneider – Open Loose (Mark Helias – Tony Malaby – Gerald Cleaver) During the 2013 Festival, aspiring students from Monash University Jazz and Popular Studies are provided with the inimitable opportunity to rehearse and perform with leading ... Read more
What are ‘eco-musicology’ and ‘eco-ethnomusicology’ and are they useful approaches to music? The Sir Zelman Cowen School of Music proudly presents the widely published ethnomusicologist Professor Tony Seeger of the Department of Music, University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA). Professor Tony Seeger is the 2013 Sir Zelman Cowen School of Music’s Visiting Scholar in Ethnomusicology and ... Read more
More News
Why do we want our computers to improvise? The Sir Zelman Cowen School of Music proudly presents: Professor George Lewis (Columbia University - New York) Professor George Lewis is the School of Music’s distinguished Scholar for 2013 and will be artist in residence from the 11th – 19th Aug 2013. Professor Lewis will be taking workshops/masterclasses as ... Read more
Maria Schneider @ Monash Monash Univeristy (Education Partner) is proud to present Maria Schneider. Celebrating excellence in jazz education, The Sir Zelman Cowen School of Music students explore the spirit of collective improvisation with Maria Schneider and faculty members Rob Burke, Paul Williamson and Jordan Murray. Maria will alos be conducting a workshop at the School of Music on Friday 7th June 10am ... Read more
Anna Chmiel Clarinet Scholarship Awarded to Reid Davis Furlanetto Peter Tahourdin Memorial Prize Awarded to Octavian Simu Joan Earle Prize for Classical Piano Awarded to: 1st Year Classical Piano: Henry Wei 1st Year Classical Piano: James Russo 2nd Year Classical Piano: Andy Mak 3rd Year Classical Piano: Jessica Beveridge Music Lovers’ Society Jean Robinson Award Awarded to Stephanie Akaoui Ferngully Lodge Prize Awarded to: Piano: Peter Hughes Drums: Robert Mercer Saxophone: ... Read more
On 13th April, The Sir Zelman Cowen School of Music string ensemble - Monash Sinfonia joined forces with Melbourne’s Choir of Trinity College, David Berlin and Elizabeth Sellars in a unique collaboration with internationally renowned composer and conductor Eric Whitacre. Whitacre is one of the most popular and performed composers of our time, a distinguished conductor, broadcaster ... Read more
The Sir Zelman Cowen School of Music at Monash University has joined forces with the School of Music at the University of Leeds to facilitate leading transnational collaboration in music research. The Monash-Leeds Music Research Collaboration is founded upon critical synergies in research strengths between the two schools, and will allow participating musicologists to build upon ... Read more
Dr Sarah Collins, a musicologist at the Sir Zelman Cowen School of Music, has been awarded a Postdoctoral Publication Grant by the Monash University European and EU Centre for her project titled Historiographical Dispositions: internationalism and music historiography in Britain 1900-1940. The project will contribute to our understanding of European cultural history before and after WWI by ... Read more
Dr Gay Breyley, an adjunct research fellow in the Sir Zelman Cowen School of Music, has been awarded a prestigious grant from the Australian Research Council. The DECRA (Discovery Early Career Researcher Award), valued at $373,391, will fund a three-year study entitled ‘A historical study of modern Iran and its diaspora through the music, career and ... Read more
Premier Australian songwriter Eric McCusker will bring his talents as a performer, composer and teacher to the University, having accepted a position in the Sir Zelman Cowen School of Music. Mr McCusker, who has been involved in the Australian music industry for 40 years, most notably with the band Mondo Rock, will lead a new unit - Song ... Read more
Monash Art Ensemble, a new Monash ensemble made possible by the philanthropy of the Vizard Foundation, will make its debut performance at Clayton campus on Tuesday, 16 October at 8pm. The Sir Zelman Cowen School of Music and the Australian Art Orchestra (AAO) will present the performance. The ensemble has been created in collaboration with the AAO, with ... Read more
Music students in Melbourne Festival line-up Students from the Sir Zelman Cowen School of Music will feature in one of Melbourne’s premier arts events this month – the Melbourne Festival. The Festival, which runs from 11 to 27 October, is one of Australia’s flagship international arts festivals, and Monash proud to be a sponsor. Monash is sponsoring two ... Read more
