Founded in 1927, Shanghai Conservatory of Music was the first music institution of higher education with self-contained system in China. Nowadays the conservatory has established a solid foundation on different subjects such as composition, performing arts, research and technology of music and consists of 15 departments，the affiliated secondary school and elementary section, and 22 undergraduate majors and offers 28 graduate programs and 21 doctoral programs including the departments of Composition, Conducting, Musicology, Voice and Opera, Piano, Orchestral Instruments, Chinese Traditional Instruments, Music Education, Music Engineering, Arts Administration, Modern Instruments & Percussion, Music Theatre, the Institute of Digital Media Art, Academic Studies and Postgraduate Office, etc. The conservatory has the authority of Bachelor, Master and Doctoral Degree granting, and two post-doctoral stations of Arts and Study of Music and Dance, thus forming a self-contained system with a complete curriculum of music and academic education. The conservatory has established many professional performing groups such as Symphony Orchestra of Shanghai Conservatory of Music, Chinese Orchestra, Mixed Choir, Female Choir, Percussion Ensemble, Shanghai Sinfonietta, New Chamber Music Ensemble and 3 art centers as Zhou Xiaoyan International Opera Center, International String Academy and International Piano Art Center. The conservatory has several art centers integrating teaching, performing and scientific research: the He Luting Concert Hall, a music research institute, a music library, the Oriental Music Instrument Museum and the Press of Shanghai Conservatory of Music.

Shanghai Conservatory of Music adheres to elite educational strategy and boasts a high-level faculty. In every phase of development, the conservatory has a lot of Chinese or world’s first-class artists and scholars teaching in each department and employed international well-known musicians as honorary professors or guest professors.

Shanghai Conservatory of Music has always maintaining close relationships and broad cooperation with the world’s first class conservatories and institutions. We have over twenty sister institutions such as London Royal Conservatory of Music, Manhattan School of Music, San Francisco Conservatory of Music, Hochschule für Music und Theater Hamburg and Sydney Conservatorium of Music. We has also successfully held international conferences and forums annually such as Zhou Xiaoyan International Opera Master Class, International piano festival and New Music Week, etc.

Shanghai Conservatory of Music has provided students lots of opportunities to perform on stage. Over one hundred concerts were held in the conservatory each year. The students have made outstanding achievements in domestic and overseas concerts and competitions such as the first prize winner of Paganini International Violin Competition and the winner of Cardiff International Vocal Competition, etc. Therefore, Shanghai Conservatory of Music is regarded as “The Cradle of Chinese Musicians”.