The RMA Student Committee liaises between the wider student body and the RMA, acting as a voice for students in the RMA and taking an active role in shaping and promoting student-related activities of the RMA.

Who we are

The RMA Student Committee is led by the two RMA Student Representatives. It also includes up to four Ordinary Student Members, the Membership Development Officer, the Student Liaison Officer and the Trustee.

Student members of the committee are elected at the RMA Research Students’ Conference. Members usually stand for two years.

What we do

Our work includes canvassing students for their opinions on RMA-related student matters, fielding issues raised by students, promoting the RMA in our departments and helping organise the annual Research Students’ Conference.

If you have an idea for something the RMA could do for students, or if you want to raise any other issues, please contact one of our student representatives.

Student Representatives

Will Finch (January 2018 – January 2020)

Chair of the Student Committee

Will is a doctoral student at the University of Bristol under the supervision of Dr Guido Heldt in the music department and Dr Angela Piccini in the film/TV department. His PhD project explores music in the BBC documentary series Arena – on the means by which Arena constructs ideas about music, and on the uses the series itself makes of music. Will previously studied at Royal Holloway, University of London and at the University of Cambridge, where he completed a master’s thesis on jazz in la nouvelle vague with Dr Sam Barrett. He also play the trumpet in and around the South West and fails to successfully grow courgettes most summers. You can follow Will on twitter @WillLFinch.

Patrick Huang (January 2019 – January 2021)

Patrick graduated from the University of New South Wales, Australia in 2016. He then moved to the U.K. where he currently studies ethnomusicology at SOAS, University of London and King’s College, London. His research focuses on a comparison between the historical origin and philosophical background of Graeco-Roman and Sinospheric music systems.

Because of the interdisciplinarity of research interest, Patrick’s biggest hobby is joining various study groups and discussing with scholars of different academic background. Besides this, Patrick is also a ‘for-fun’ composer and arranger; he has mainly composed soundtracks for indie games and singers.

Ordinary Student Members

Dominic Daula (January 2018 – January 2020)

Considered as one of South Africa’s leading young performing musicologists, Dominic Daula studied music at the University of Cape Town, where he was mentored by Francois du Toit and Franklin Larey (piano), Grant Brasler (harpsichord) and Emeritus Professor James May (musicology). He graduated from the university with distinction and has been employed by the same institution as tutor in music theory (2016), as well as teaching assistant and part time lecturer in piano and repertoire studies (2017).

Dominic is currently a Master’s student at the RNCM, where he was awarded a generous entrance scholarship, the Dorothy Smith piano scholarship, and study grants from the Pidem fund and the Oppenheimer Memorial Trust. At the RNCM, Dominic studies with Richard Ormrod (piano), Roger Hamilton (harpsichord), as well as Fabrice Fitch and David Horne (musicology).

Major projects which Dominic has undertaken include the performance of the Goldberg Variations (piano), music for two pianos by Messiaen and Stravinsky, and the southern hemisphere premieres of substantial works by Alan Bush, dating from the late period of his output.

Research interests include analysis, editions, the Second Viennese School, South African and British music of the twentieth century, particularly that of Alan Bush, Arnold van Wyk and Hubert du Plessis; English music of the sixteenth century, and French keyboard music of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.

Dominic’s interests outside music include reading, baking, the cinema, art history, nature, and travel.

Elizabeth Hunt (January 2019 – January 2021)

Elizabeth Hunt is a first year PhD student at University of Liverpool. Her research focuses on music from moving image media (film, television and video games) and its recontextualisation into the live concert environment. She completed her MRes studies in 2017 with Dr Giles Hooper and Dr Paul Turowski, this involved research into video game music concerts, a previously uncharted area of study.

Student Liaison Officer

Susan Bagust

Communications Officer

Ellen Falconer