Students in the SU Conservatoire's Certificate Programme learn more than just music theory and to play an instrument – they learn how to turn their passion into a career.

A few years ago, when a student from Mdantsane in the Eastern Cape walked into Felicia Lesch's office with no musical training and only an unfinished engineering diploma to his name, there was not much hope for his success. Financially, academically and socially he was up against a hill the size of Mount Everest, compared to other students who qualify for an academic programme at Stellenbosch University (SU). But the love of music, personal determination and the structures put in place by the Music Department's Certificate Programme empowered him to climb that mountain.

Turn the clock a few years on to 2014. That same student had excelled and during a review panel interview on the Certificate Programme he is asked if he is going to become a successful choral conductor. He says it might have been his dream at some stage, but now he wants to focus on a PhD in Musicology.

This is just one of the many success stories of students whose lives have been significantly changed by the Music Department's Certificate Programme. Lesch, who holds a music degree from the University of Cape Town and is currently working towards a PhD in Musicology, has been the Certificate Programme Coordinator since 2005. She recounted this story of the student from Mdantsane in an academic paper she delivered at the South African Society for Research in Music (SASRIM) in 2014, focusing on the impact of the programme on students and communities. "The history of the programme is a story of change, and as the programme coordinator, I have not been exempted from this change," she told the delegates at SASRIM.

The possibility of a Certificate Programme in music, a bridging course for students from previously disadvantaged communities where music was not a subject in high school, was first researched in 1998 by Prof Ria Smit and Prof Hans Roosenschoon, at the time respectively the head of music education and head of the department. It was initially designed and managed by Stefné van Dyk and Tarnia van Zitters, after which Albert Engel took over in 2001. After his untimely death in 2003, the programme went through several changes, and eventually Lesch took over in 2005. It is now run as part of the Unit for Community Music. "The core function of the Certificate Programme is to prepare students for pre-graduate programmes like BMus, BA Mus or a Diploma in Practical Music. But we also want to improve their living conditions," says Lesch.

Since 2005 the programme has been presented in partnerships with other organisations, such as the South African National Defence Force, and a satellite campus has been established at the army base at Youngsfield in Wynberg, where the Certificate Programme now provides musical training to its members. The nature of the Certificate Programme is unique to South Africa.

"It is a specialised skill that we teach and there is no FET or other college offering this qualification or level of teaching. When I adjudicate at local music competitions, I see that the level of playing is rising and this is because these bands now have students and former students from this programme as members," says Lesch.

The Certificate Programme was also envisioned to fill the gap created by the education system of the past. Part of its vision is to "provide music programmes that cater for learners who have little or no access to formal music education". And although the results weren't initially favourable – few students advanced from the programme to a BMus degree – things are considerably different these days. In 2016, 71 students were part of the Certificate Programme. From the ranks of former students, nine completed a higher certificate in music, 11 were enrolled in the three-year course in practical music, 11 were busy with a four-year BMus degree, and one is enrolled in the MMus course. And these are only students who have furthered their studies at SU. Many more conduct orchestras, work at schools, play in local and internationally orchestras, and study or teach at other universities.

Trombone player Angus Petersen, a former student of the Certificate Programme, can attest to the success of the course. "The Certificate Programme gave me a foundation that I didn't previously have. It didn't only teach me how to play an instrument, but it helped me to see the realities of the music world." Currently Petersen is a freelance trombone player and trombone teacher at, among others, Bishops in Cape Town.

The instrumental ensembles at SU – from the Symphony Orchestra and the Windband to the various choirs – benefit from the talents of the Certificate Programme students. The SU Jazz Band, of which Lesch is the conductor, was specifically established as an ensemble for the Certificate Programme and has gone from strength to strength.

Lesch says she has a message that she always imparts to her students: "When I greet you and ask you how you are, I look at the knowledge shining from your eyes; I look at the changes in your facial features as you become more confident. You hold your head up higher than you did when you first walked through my door. I look and see that your eyes are no longer dull, and that you speak with authority when you answer me. When you do, I nod and walk away, thinking, 'Yes, you are on your way.' And that makes me smile."

CAPTION: Felicia Lesch conducts the SU Jazz Band. Photo: Stefan Els

• This article is published in the latest edition of the SU magazine, Matieland. Read the magazine at www.sun.ac.za/matieland. You can also register on this website to receive the magazine for free.