Popular Music (ages 12 - 18)

When completing your online booking form, please provide a 2-3 minute video submission of you playing or singing, or a recording of any music you may have produced.

Students should come to the course expecting to work hard, be challenged and enjoy contributing to the creative process.

The course will consist of a mixture of practical workshops, writing and recording sessions, group rehearsals, individual lessons and discussion sessions.

The group will dictate what the outcome of the course will be – whether this is a recording or an informal sharing at the end of the week.

Details of the informal sharing will be confirmed nearer the course start date.

Graeme Smillie

Graeme’s musical career has involved extensive worldwide touring and recording playing bass guitar and keyboards. He has played for Arab Strap (Rock Action/Chemikal Underground), The Vaselines (Sub Pop), The Delgados (Chemikal Underground), Kathryn Williams and Withered Hand (One Little Indie), Emma Pollock (4AD/Chemikal Underground), The Unwinding Hours (Chemikal Underground), A Mote of Dust (Babi Yaga), Karine Polwart (Proper Music), Sons & Daughters (Domino), Idlewild (Cooking Vinyl/Parlophone), Da Fishing Hands (FIMETI), The Fruit Tree Foundation (SMHAFF) and many others, incorporating many broadcast performances on BBC Radio 1, BBC Radio 2, BBC 6 Music, BBC Alba, WDR Fernsehen, Rockpalast, Baeblemusic, Pitchfork, KEXP, Spin, Sky Arts and Channel 4.

He has played for a number of projects in the worlds of theatre, film and dance with Sigma Films, National Theatre of Scotland, Scottish Opera, The Marc Brew Company and Random Accomplice.

He is also an instrumental tutor, a co-author and tutor for the ‘Get Started in Music’ programme for the Princes Trust in partnership with Beatroute Arts, and has worked with Chem 19’s YMI funded SoundLab and Demo Fund initiatives for a number of years.

He also worked with live music promoter DF Concerts in a production and artist liaison capacity, which involved technical advancing and operational management at T in The Park, Connect Festival and the Edinburgh Festival.

Graeme is a graduate of the University of Strathclyde’s BA Applied Music and has an MLitt in Popular Music Studies from the University of Glasgow. He is currently working towards a PhD at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and the University of St Andrews.

• Plan and prepare to attend all classes.
• Dress comfortably in clothes which are suitable for the activity you are taking part in.
• Bring a notepad and pen/pencil in case you wish to make notes.
• Please bring a bottle of water to stay hydrated during your class.

Summer Accommodation

We are pleased to welcome students from across the world to our Summer Schools. Our course fees do not include accommodation or food, and these should be organised by the student. Our campus is located in Glasgow city centre, and you can find the addresses below.

We recommend Base Glasgow, as purpose-built accommodation for Conservatoire students, with Rehearsal Rooms, Practice spaces and Dance Studios. Base Glasgow is perfectly suited for our summer school students; both safe and secure, with 24/7 staff presence and only 3 mins walk from our main Renfrew Street building, keeping travel costs to a minimum.

Classic En-Suite rooms come with a 3/4 bed, en-suite bathroom, ample storage, mirror, study desk and chair. The shared area includes a spacious lounge and kitchen area.

Please note that Short Courses staff are not affiliated with BASE or on site outwith the summer school teaching hours, and therefore cannot take responsibility for students outside of these hours.

For more information about booking accommodation at BASE Glasgow you can contact them directly via website BASE – Student Accommodation in Glasgow or email baseglasgow@herestudents.com.

Alternatively, there are plenty of hotels, hostels, and b’n’b options available. We are located close to transport links should you wish to stay outside the city centre. If you are travelling to Glasgow for a course, we strongly recommend purchasing travel insurance that covers course fees, travel, accommodation, and cancellations due to COVID-19 – as RCS will not refund in this circumstance. You can view the Cancellations and Refund policy for full information.

For students under 18 years old, we strongly advise travelling with a responsible adult should any emergency situations arise during class. Students are only monitored by staff during class times.

Renfrew Street Campus: 100 Renfrew Street, Glasgow, G2 3DB
Wallace Studios Campus: 210 Garscube Road, Glasgow, G4 9RR