Shanghai Conservatory of Music President Lin Zaiyong and Colin Lawson, director of the Royal College of Music, pose for a picture after signing a cooperation agreement.

The Shanghai Conservatory of Music and the Royal College of Music in Britain signed an agreement on January 12, 2017 to establish a joint institute.

The signing took place after the fourth conference on high-level cultural exchanges between the two countries in December 2016.

Shanghai Vice Mayor Weng Tiehui, Shanghai Education Commission Deputy Director Ding Xiaodong and Xuhui District Mayor Fang Shizhong oversaw the signing of the agreement by Shanghai Conservatory of Music President Lin Zaiyong and Colin Lawson, director of the Royal College of Music in London.

The new institute will enroll students worldwide who are over 16 years old. The students can take master classes, lectures and other academic programs. The joint institute will also hold summer camps and art festivals for teachers and students from both schools.

Short-term exchanges will be arranged for students who can earn credits from each other’s school.

The Royal College of Music was founded in 1882 by King Edward VII. For the first time in its 134 years of history, this prestigious college set up a joint institute with a foreign conservatory.

The Shanghai Conservatory of Music was founded in 1927 by the famous Chinese educator Cai Yuanpei.