Eight people in colourful shirts sitting and standing with the Barbican Estate in the background.

LSO Conservatoire Scholarships

A programme for exceptional musicians facing financial barriers, to support their postgraduate study at the world’s leading conservatoires.

About the Scheme

The LSO Conservatoire Scholarships programme is a ground-breaking initiative that aims to ensure that musicians from all backgrounds have access to conservatoire training and reduce barriers to entering the profession.

Such barriers include high tuition and maintenance costs. These Scholarships of up to £16,000 per academic year will allow recipients to focus fully on their studies during a critical time in their education, whilst benefiting from additional support and mentoring from the LSO’s own renowned musicians.

The ground-breaking LSO Conservatoire Scholarships programme was created in partnership with renowned philanthropists and music-lovers Alex and Elena Gerko, who were inspired by the experiences of outstanding participants in the London Symphony Orchestra’s Discovery programme who faced financial barriers to post-graduate study. Alex and Elena said:

‘As music lovers and longstanding LSO supporters, we were struck by the challenges facing those taking the final steps in their study to become professional musicians. We were keen to work with the London Symphony Orchestra to launch this programme to ensure that the very best emerging instrumentalists are able to fully commit to their studies, while benefitting from the support and coaching of LSO members, including insights and guidance on how to excel in a career in music. We hope the programme will act as an inspiration to others hoping to study music at the highest level’.

Meet the Scholars

How it Works

Each year the LSO will award ten new individuals with scholarship support of up to £16,000 per academic year to contribute to living and maintenance costs while studying, lasting for the duration of their course.

The LSO will also provide support and professional development opportunities to recipients throughout the year. This may include a combination of mentoring and coaching sessions, side-by-side rehearsal and performance opportunities with members of the Orchestra, and ongoing career advice.

Eligibility

The programme is open to postgraduate instrumentalists of any age or nationality, who meet the following eligibility criteria:

Are facing financial barriers, with an overall family income of less than £60,500 per annum. (See ‘Financial Criteria’ below for full details**).
Have been awarded a scholarship place for a postgraduate course at one of the leading 10 conservatoires in the world*, focused on classical study of an orchestral instrument. For the purposes of this programme, an orchestral instrument is defined as any instrument played by full-time members of the LSO, together with piano. Eligible instruments are: violin, viola, cello, double bass, flute (including piccolo), oboe (including cor anglais), clarinet, bassoon, horn, trumpet, trombone, tuba, timpani and percussion, harp, and piano.
Have previously studied at undergraduate level at a UK conservatoire or university.

Apply

Application for the 2027/28 academic year will open on Thursday 19 November.

Anyone looking to discuss the scheme or receive guidance with their application is welcome to email Programme Manager Paul Massey at paul.massey@lso.co.uk

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* For the purposes of this programme, the LSO is using the top 10 conservatoires as ranked in the QS World University Rankings 2026 for Music: 1. The Juilliard School, USA; 2. Royal College of Music, UK; 3. Curtis Institute of Music, USA; 4. Guildhall School of Music & Drama, UK; 5. Royal Academy of Music, UK; 6. Conservatoire national supérieur de musique et de danse de Paris, France; 7. Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, UK; 8. The Royal Northern College of Music, UK; 9. Shanghai Conservatory of Music, China; 10. Moscow State Conservatory P I Tchaikovsky, Russia

**Financial Criteria

The amount of financial support awarded to successful Scholars will be graded based on parental income, as follows:

Annual Parental Income (up to and including)	Level of Scholarship Awarded
£50,000	100%
£51,000	95%
£52,000	90%
£53,000	85%
£54,000	80%
£55,000	75%
£56,000	70%
£57,500	65%
£58,500	60%
£59,500	55%
£60,500	50%

Conservatoire Scholarship FAQs

The FAQs below answer the questions we receive most frequently about eligibility, financial documentation, recording requirements, and the application process. If your question is not covered here, please contact paul.massey@lso.co.uk who will be happy to help.

We encourage all applicants to read the application guidance carefully before submitting their application. Incomplete applications or missing supporting documentation may affect our ability to assess your application fully.

Eligibility

No, all applicants must have previously studied at undergraduate level at a UK conservatoire or university.

Yes. Current scholars are welcome to apply for continued support, and applications will be considered alongside all other eligible applicants.

Yes. Previous study or time spent working does not automatically affect your eligibility. Applications are assessed on their individual merits.

Yes. Artist Diploma programmes are considered eligible postgraduate study programmes for the purposes of this scholarship.

You may still submit an application. Please provide details of the course you have applied for and update us once your place has been confirmed.

Yes. If your conservatoire scholarship decision is pending at the time of application, please indicate this on your application form. If requested, you may be asked to provide an update once the decision has been made.

No. There is no upper age limit for the scholarship. Applications are welcomed from musicians at all stages of their educational journey, including those returning to study after time away from higher education.

No. There is no minimum scholarship value required. Applicants from all eligible conservatoires may apply, regardless of the value of any scholarship they have been awarded by their institution.

Financial Documents

Please submit documentation that demonstrates the financial circumstances described in your application. This will normally include evidence of income for the person or people financially supporting your studies. Additional documents such as scholarship award letters, evidence of savings, pension statements, ta

Yes. A bank statement may be submitted as supporting evidence where it helps demonstrate your financial circumstances. However, applicants should also provide documentation that shows the source of any income, such as payslips, tax records, pension statements, or equivalent official documents where available.

We recognise that financial documentation varies between countries. Acceptable evidence may include:

Tax returns or tax assessments
Employer salary statements
Payslips
Pension statements
Government income certificates
Other official documents that clearly show annual income

If financial documents are not in English, applicants must provide a translation or a summary explaining the relevant figures.

Where possible, please provide gross annual income (before tax and deductions). If this is not available in your country, you may provide equivalent official documentation and explain how the figures are calculated.

Yes. Applicants who are genuinely financially independent from their family may submit evidence of their own income and financial circumstances. You should explain your situation clearly within your application and provide relevant supporting documentation.

Yes. If there is a significant change in your financial circumstances after you have submitted your application, please contact us as soon as possible. We may ask you to provide updated information or supporting documentation.

Recording Requirements

No. Applicants should submit a recording of up to 15 minutes in total. Material beyond the stated time limit may not be considered by the panel.

No. The 15 minutes may be divided however you wish. The panel is interested in hearing a varied and representative sample of your playing, rather than recordings of specific lengths.

No. Applicants should submit up to 15 minutes of recorded material in total, not three separate 15-minute recordings.

Yes. Recordings must have been made within six months of the application. The submissions may be compiled from different recordings within the last six months.

Yes. Existing recordings may be used provided they meet the scholarship application requirements and remain representative of your current playing.

No. Professional recording equipment or studio-quality production is not required. The panel’s primary concern is being able to hear your playing clearly.

Yes. Orchestral excerpts may be included as part of your recording submission and can be an effective way of demonstrating technical and stylistic strengths relevant to an orchestral career.

No. Accompaniment is not required for every recording. Applicants should submit recordings that best demonstrate their abilities, whether accompanied or unaccompanied as appropriate to the repertoire.

The Application Process

Due to the volume of applications received, we are unfortunately unable to offer individual feedback for all applicants.

All applicants will be contacted once the assessment process has been completed. We aim to notify applicants as soon as possible, but timelines may vary depending on the number of applications received. Please allow at least two months for your application to be processed.

If you need to update important information after submitting your application, please contact paul.massey@lso.co.uk as soon as possible. While we cannot guarantee that changes can be accommodated, we will do our best to take relevant updates into account where practical.