Historical and Contemporary Compositional Technique, B.Mus.
The Historical and Contemporary Compositional Technique course, abbreviated “HiZeiTo” (for Historisch-Zeitgenössischer Tonsatz) offers comprehensive and flexible training for young musicians who wish to better understand historical and contemporary musical languages, styles and handwritings, to either pass these on to others or to incorporate and implement this practiced and reflective knowledge as part of an overarching project (applied music).
Programme facts
| Degree | Bachelor of Music (B.Mus.) |
|---|---|
| Duration | 8 semesters, 240 ECTS |
| Language of instruction | German |
| Required German | B2 |
| Study mode | Full-Time |
| Start | Summer semester, winter semester |
| Application | Directly to the university, winter semester until 15.04, summer semester until 15.11 |
| Admission | Admission restriction (NC): a competition of school grades |
| Tuition fee | €0 per semester for international students |
| Semester contribution | €304.89 per semester |
What the tuition fee consists of
Will I get in
The programme has an admission restriction: the average grade of your certificate, converted to the German scale, decides. The cut-off changes every year — last year's value shows the order of magnitude, not a promise.
How the selection works and how strong the competition is — we go through it against your certificate when we select programmes for you.
Programme selection →What you study
For both these directions, a focal area is definable during the course of study. The first of these is the educational focus, which concentrates on the established theoretical knowledge and the competence to pass this on along with the necessary creative operational know-how. The second option is the focus on composition/arrangement, which emphasizes above all the creative operational know-how – the ability to quickly and confidently integrate learned musical languages into an overall concept.
As opposed to a major in composition/arrangement within the the HiZeiTo course, there is also a composition course which is aimed at young musicians seeking to develop their own independent musical language on the basis of their understanding and internalization of traditional music and particularly the music of the 20th and 21st centuries.
The full curriculum and the programme's parameters are part of programme selection: we compare them with your profile.
Pick programmesCost of study
| Tuition fee of the federal state (Berlin), international students | €0 |
|---|---|
| Semester contribution | €304.89 |
Requirements and application
| Previous education | A school certificate that gives access to university in Germany — directly or after a Studienkolleg. |
|---|---|
| Language | German B2 — confirmed by a certificate when you apply |
| Application | Directly to the university, winter semester until 15.04, summer semester until 15.11 |
The procedure and the set of documents depend on your certificate. We check the university's requirements against your documents and give you a list: what to submit, how to certify and translate it, where and when to apply.
Check the requirementsHow to get into this programme
- 1Check your certificate and its recognitionDirect admission, a year at a university at home, or Studienkolleg first — this decides the whole plan.
- 2German up to B2 and a certificateDSH or TestDaF has to be passed before you apply.
- 3Documents and translationsCertified translations of the certificate and transcript, an APS if required. 3–4 weeks.
- 4Application directly to the university until 15.11Send the documents well before the deadline — an incomplete application cannot be completed after it.
- 5Admission, visa, movingPlan 2–3 months for the visa and the blocked account in parallel.
How to apply
You can submit the application yourself or with our help — the university decides on admission in both cases.
Applications go through the university's portal or uni-assist. Typical mistakes:
- ×incorrectly made certified copies and translations
- ×a wrong set of documents
- ×the application submitted the wrong way
- ×errors or gaps in the application form
- ×the application submitted at the wrong time — too early or too late
An incomplete or incorrectly prepared application is excluded from the selection — it can no longer be corrected after the deadline.
StudyInFocus does not represent the university and does not influence the admission decision. We do not sell study places and do not guarantee admission — this is a service for preparing and submitting documents on the applicant's side.
If your level is not enough yet
The two most common stoppers are a language level below the requirement and a certificate without direct admission. Both can be solved, but they take months — plan them now, not after a rejection.
Questions about this programme
How much does the programme cost?
What language level do I need?
When do I need to apply?
Don't postpone the application
The deadline is 15.11.2026 (32 days left). Language, translations and the document check take months, not weeks. In 30 minutes we will build a plan backwards from the deadline and tell you honestly whether you can make it.