Good music schools in England

[dsquared]

Does anyone have recommendations for good music schools in England? This would be for a BMus degree.
I have heard of the Royal Academy, Royal College and Guildhall in London. Is it difficult to gain acceptance to these places? What about professors? Are there any teachers that really stand out?

Thanks for your help!

[JK]

There's one more in London, Trinity college of music, and one in manchester, the royal northern college. There are others but I can't remeber!

Gaining exceptance is quite difficult but is made easier in my experience if you have been to these colleges and seen them for yourself. The requirements for the auditions is usually a program of around 15-20 mins of 3 contrasting pieces. If you bear in mind that the royal college last year had over 1500 applications and Guildhall only accepts 20 pianists, this shows that you need to chose pieces carefully and make sure that you stand out. A good way of improving your chances and of getting to know teachers is to have consultation lessons. I had a consultation lesson with the head of keyboard at the royal college during the summer before the auditions in december. By having a lesson like this it gives them an oppurtunity to see what you are really like, as in an audition you are bound to be nervous! This in my opinion and experience improves your chances, if you impress them then they will know what you are capable of.

As far as teachers go they are all very good but you will again need to have consultation lessons after you've got a place so as to find the best one for you, getting the right teacher is the key to progressing well.