{"id":2255,"date":"2021-07-26T14:24:06","date_gmt":"2021-07-26T13:24:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.manchester.ac.uk\/humanities-blog\/?p=2255"},"modified":"2025-03-21T16:44:23","modified_gmt":"2025-03-21T16:44:23","slug":"student-spotlight-renaldo-ramai-musm-composition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.manchester.ac.uk\/humanities-blog\/2021\/07\/26\/student-spotlight-renaldo-ramai-musm-composition\/","title":{"rendered":"Student Spotlight: Renaldo Ramai – MusM Composition"},"content":{"rendered":"

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” fullwidth=”on” next_background_color=”#000000″ global_module=”322″][et_pb_fullwidth_menu global_parent=”322″ _builder_version=”3.0.106″ menu_id=”7″ submenu_direction=”downwards” fullwidth_menu=”off” background_layout=”dark” module_class=”main-navigation” \/][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ fullwidth=”off” specialty=”on” prev_background_color=”#000000″ next_background_color=”#1d1d1d”][et_pb_column type=”2_3″ specialty_columns=”2″][et_pb_row_inner locked=”off”][et_pb_column_inner type=”4_4″ saved_specialty_column_type=”2_3″][et_pb_post_title _builder_version=”3.0.106″ title=”on” meta=”on” author=”on” date=”on” categories=”on” comments=”on” featured_image=”on” featured_placement=”above” text_color=”dark” text_background=”off” locked=”on” parent_locked=”off” \/][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.17.6″ background_layout=”light” parent_locked=”off”]<\/p>\n

Renaldo Ramai, a student of MusM Composition<\/a> shares with us some insights into his time at Manchester.<\/p>\n

What were you doing before your Master’s programme?<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

Before attending the MusM programme, I did many notable things: I\u00a0<\/span>achiev<\/span>ed<\/span>\u00a0the world record for\u00a0<\/span>f<\/span>astest piano arpeggios and<\/span>\u00a0pending approval for<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>breaking the<\/span>\u00a0world record for longest marathon playing bass.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>I won the national guitar competition \u2018Guitar Wars\u2019<\/span>\u00a0with an original composition and pioneered music of its kind in my count<\/span>ry<\/span>\u00a0being the<\/span>\u00a0first<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>on Trinidad\u2019s number one television channel<\/span>\u00a0\u2018TV6\u2019\u00a0<\/span>at prime time performing a nine-minute virtuosic solo. Workwise<\/span>, I have been employed with several music education institutes obtaining fifteen years of teaching experience and I have<\/span>\u00a0composed music for the TV show \u2018Diversification Not Just Talk\u2019.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>During undergraduate study<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0I composed innovative musical pieces such as\u00a0<\/span>\u2018The Journey\u2019 where a melody appears to move infinitely upward<\/span>, and \u2018<\/span>The Infinite Accelerando\u2019 where a<\/span>\u00a0repeating rhythmic pattern<\/span>\u00a0appears to\u00a0<\/span>infinitely<\/span>\u00a0increase in tempo without arriving at a higher tempo.<\/span>\u00a0All these activities lead me to study at the University of Manchester for the Mus.M. programme.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Why did you choose to study this course at\u00a0<\/span>T<\/span>he<\/span>\u00a0University of Manchester<\/span>?<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

T<\/span>he MusM in Musi<\/span>c<\/span>\u00a0Composition at the University of Manchester<\/span>\u00a0was my number one choice of study<\/span>\u00a0for\u00a0<\/span>a combination of\u00a0<\/span>four<\/span>\u00a0reasons<\/span>:<\/span>\u00a0Firstly,\u00a0<\/span>I<\/span>\u00a0listened to<\/span>\u00a0all<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>available<\/span>\u00a0music<\/span>\u00a0recordings<\/span>\u00a0of\u00a0<\/span>professors and senior lecturers,\u00a0<\/span>who belong to the music\u00a0<\/span>departments of the top fifty universities in the world<\/span>;<\/span>\u00a0and found the faculty at\u00a0<\/span>the University of Manchester to be<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0by far<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0the strongest.\u00a0<\/span>Most notably, compositions by Richard Whalley<\/span>,\u00a0<\/span>Camden Reeves, Philip Grange, David\u00a0<\/span>Berezan<\/span>\u00a0and Kevin Malone<\/span>, stood out to me<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>This battle, of\u00a0<\/span>the\u00a0<\/span>music itself, among the leading composition professors of the world<\/span>, was my prime factor in choosing the University of Manchester. Secondly, I compared master<\/span>\u2019<\/span>s degree programmes of these top fifty universitie<\/span>s<\/span>\u00a0and was impressed with the Mus.M. programme at the University of Manchester for its strong focus on composing and\u00a0<\/span>focus on\u00a0<\/span>the quality of music being composed, as opposed to other universit<\/span>y<\/span>\u00a0programmes<\/span>\u00a0which\u00a0<\/span>contain clutter.<\/span>\u00a0This attitude towards valuing the music itself sold me on the<\/span>\u00a0Mus.M. programme at the<\/span>\u00a0University of Manchester.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>The<\/span>\u00a0third factor<\/span>\u00a0in my choice was the incent<\/span>ive<\/span>\u00a0that students will have\u00a0<\/span>had\u00a0<\/span>several of their pieces recorded during workshop performances.<\/span>\u00a0This\u00a0<\/span>was<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>a\u00a0<\/span>golden opportunity for young composers and one that I could not resist.\u00a0<\/span>Lastly, the university\u2019s website being more revealing<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>transparent,<\/span>\u00a0and easy to\u00a0<\/span>manoeuvre than other university websites<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0played a notable role in my choice of the University of Manchester and the Mus<\/span><\/span>M programme.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

How much time do you spend in classes and private study?<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

Official classes may only take up about four hours per week; however, I spend over twelve hours per day on private study and still struggle to meet deadlines. On many occasions I have worked on compositions for<\/span>\u00a0over\u00a0<\/span>twenty-four hours without sleep and on\u00a0<\/span>rare<\/span>\u00a0occasion<\/span>s<\/span>\u00a0well over thirty-six hours\u00a0<\/span>straight<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>It is important to note that these struggles are\u00a0<\/span>due to high standards that I had set for myself;\u00a0<\/span>not due to a workload set by the University of Manchester<\/span>. T<\/span>he courses require\u00a0<\/span>projects<\/span>\u00a0that\u00a0<\/span>are<\/span>\u00a0flexible<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0in such that the students set their own goals<\/span>\u00a0within a project,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>and therefore their own workload.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What has been the highlight of your course so far?<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

The process of having one on one sessions from the best composition professors in the world helping me to sculp my compositions, then g<\/span>etting workshop recordings of\u00a0<\/span>those\u00a0<\/span>compositions<\/span>,\u00a0<\/span>surely was the highlight of my course.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What has been the most challenging part of your course so far?<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

The most challenging part of my course was finishing projects on time<\/span>\u00a0while meeting the high standards that I set out for the projects.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Regarding<\/span>\u00a0course content, writing an analytical paper at the standard that I set out for that paper, proved to be quite a challenge.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Have you undertaken any fieldwork as part of your course?<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

The closest thing<\/span>s<\/span>\u00a0to field work that I have done for my course<\/span>\u00a0were to attend music performance concerts and rehearsals. A particular highlight was attending rehearsals by the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra. This was part of our orchestration course and was a rare, valuable, and unforgettable experience.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

How would you describe your student experience so far?<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

My student experience thus far has been<\/span>\u00a0nothing less than amazing, life changing and unforgettable.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What is the best thing about living and studying in the city of Manchester?<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

For me, the best thing about living and studying in the city of Manchester is\u00a0<\/span>the active contemporary classical music scene. T<\/span>here are numerous music performance concerts taking place, sometimes more than one per week, and some of these concerts feature new music<\/span>\u00a0and new composers.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What kind of accommodation do you live in?\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

I live in the University of Manchester\u2019s halls of residence student accommodation. The main advantage to this is the\u00a0<\/span>close proximity<\/span>\u00a0to<\/span>\u00a0university buildings and having support services by the university such as security and IT related services.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

How is your international student experience at the\u00a0<\/span>University of Manchester<\/span>?<\/span><\/h2>\n

As an international student, my experience at the University of Manchester was much better than expected<\/span>;\u00a0<\/span>well beyond<\/span>\u00a0what was advertised to international students in brochures. I was welcomed and accommodated with everything that a student should have and much more, from study related support to numerous things unrelated to study.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Do you ha<\/span>ve any tips for future students?<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

A tip that I can give to\u00a0<\/span>future\u00a0<\/span>students, particularly international students, is to not arrive in Manchester too early before<\/span>\u00a0the start of the course; that is, before<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>the welcoming support and events. For me, arriving in early August (due to visa and flight issues) proved to be a terrible experience that could have been avoided and I would likely have had a great experience arriving in\u00a0<\/span>September. It is likely that this might<\/span>\u00a0apply to more than just myself.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What are your plans for life after graduation?\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

On finishing the MusM in Composition, I will be pursuing a PhD at the University of Manchester. My time at Manchester will more than help my future;<\/span>\u00a0in many ways,<\/span>\u00a0the life that I want is crucially dependant<\/span>\u00a0on it.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>My\u00a0<\/span>training with the University of Manchester<\/span>\u00a0will result in the production of substantial work that\u00a0<\/span>aims to<\/span>\u00a0be a benefit to academia and the field of music<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>This will lead to an output of publications putting me in a position\u00a0<\/span>to potentially<\/span>\u00a0be seen as an expert within my specialization and\u00a0<\/span>play a paramount role in helping to\u00a0<\/span>secure my dream career in becoming a professor of music composition at a university.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Anything else to add?<\/h2>\n

I grew up<\/span>\u00a0humble\u00a0<\/span>and virtuous<\/span>\u00a0surrounded by poverty and crime<\/span>, unsafe<\/span>\u00a0in a country that is number seven in the world for most\u00a0<\/span>intentional homicides<\/span>. I have faced many challenges<\/span>\u00a0and worked hard to<\/span>wards a better life<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>I did not have many\u00a0<\/span>opportunities,<\/span>\u00a0but I never stopped searching for the opportunity that would change my life<\/span>; and I found it<\/span>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>The\u00a0<\/span>U<\/span>niversity of Manchester has afforded me the chance to make\u00a0<\/span>the life that I want for<\/span>\u00a0myself, to provide a better life for my loved ones, and to make a significant contribution to my field and to the world<\/span>.<\/span>\u00a0The university has supported me financially,\u00a0<\/span>mentally,\u00a0<\/span>academically<\/span>,\u00a0<\/span>and has made possible so much that was not previously possible for me<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>My deepest thanks and sincere gratitude go out to the University of Manchester for making my dreams come true<\/span>; and\u00a0<\/span>I urge prospective students to consider my story and trust that the University of Manchester will go above and beyond for them as the university has for me.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

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