Institute of Contemporary Music Performance
| Type | Higher Education & Further Education Contemporary Music College |
|---|---|
| Established | 1986 |
Officer in charge | Paul Kirkham (CEO) |
| Students | 900 |
| Location | , |
| Campus | Urban |
| Website | www |
The Institute of Contemporary Music Performance (ICMP) is a specialist music and creative business school in the United Kingdom. There are four campuses – two in London, one in Leeds and one in Liverpool.
The ICMP has been developing and delivering music degrees and contemporary music courses for over 40 years.[1]
History
Founded in 1986,[2] by session guitarist Alan Limbrick, the Institute was originally known as The Guitar Institute[3] & BassTech, and was focused exclusively on training and developing guitarists and bassists.
The school rebranded to The Institute of Contemporary Music Performance in 2006 and now also offers courses in drums, vocals, song writing, music production, audio engineering, music business and digital marketing.[4]
In 2021, ICMP was granted full degree awarding powers by the Office for Students (OFS), affording the institution the authority to award certificates, diplomas and degrees up to and including Master’s level qualifications from September 2022.[5]
In 2023 ICMP became part of the AD Education Group.[6] AD Education includes a group of 21 creative colleges.[7]
In 2025 the ICMP launched new sites in Liverpool and Leeds in partnership with SAE Institute UK.[8]
Locations
London
ICMP has campuses in Kilburn[9] and Queen's Park.[10]
Leeds
The Leeds campus is situated in the Electric Press building.[11]
Liverpool
The Liverpool campus is located in the city centre.[12]
Notable alumni
Notable alumni include:[13]
- Ben Sargeant (The Script)
- Cathy Dennis
- Charlie Brown and Jules Konieczny (APRE)[14]
- Daughter
- Ed O'Brien (Radiohead)
- Etta Bond
- Foxes
- Fraser T Smith (producer)
- Hannah Montrose (Drummer) - Lizzo, Emeli Sandé
- Julia Lamb (Tom Grennan)
- Luke Patterson (Clean Bandit)
- Matty Brown (Drummer) - Stormzy, Olly Murs
- Ny Oh (multi-instrumentalist) - Neon Gru, Harry Styles
- Rob Chapman
- Sandy Beales (Bass) - One Direction
- Tim Scott, instrumental recording artist,[15]
- Nectar Woode
References
- ^ "Institute of Contemporary Music Performance | UCAS". www.ucas.com. Retrieved 22 October 2025.
- ^ "UK University Search- Institute of Contemporary Music Performance". UK University Search. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
- ^ "THE FERAMONES - Bio". theferamones.com. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
- ^ "History and Heritage". ICMP. 15 December 2016. Archived from the original on 1 May 2025. Retrieved 22 October 2025.
- ^ "The Institute of Contemporary Music Performance (ICMP)". Independent Higher Education. Retrieved 22 October 2025.
- ^ "AD Education joins forces with ICMP". ICMP. 17 May 2023. Archived from the original on 22 January 2025. Retrieved 22 October 2025.
- ^ "Schools". en.ad-education.com. Retrieved 22 October 2025.
- ^ Keighley, Tom (7 January 2025). "Music educators partner for multimillion-pound investment into North of England". Business Live. Retrieved 22 October 2025.
- ^ "Institute Of Contemporary Music Performance". The Kolberg Partnership - AllinLondon. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
- ^ "ICMP | Queen's Park - Opening Times, Contacts - Educational institution in London". hampsteadvillagelondon.com. 29 October 2023. Retrieved 9 November 2025.
- ^ "Independent music school plans first Northern England campus at Leeds' Electric Press". Yorkshire Evening Post. 26 February 2025. Retrieved 22 October 2025.
- ^ Greer, Jamie (19 February 2024). "New school to hunt for 'next generation' of Liverpool artists". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 22 October 2025.
- ^ "Student Success Stories". www.icmp.ac.uk. Retrieved 7 November 2025.
- ^ "ICMP Spotlight: APRE". www.icmp.ac.uk. 29 May 2018. Retrieved 3 January 2019.
- ^ Taylor, Paul (15 February 2007). "Tim Scott's on the write track". Manchester Evening News. Reach plc. Retrieved 8 October 2023.