In between beating out rhythms on stage for Annie Lennox, Robert Plant and others, drummer Barry van Zyl usually writes music for television. During a tour this year, however, Mr van Zyl spent his spare time poring over business textbooks and scribbling notes for a 5,000-word essay on corporate strategy.

Before leaving for the 50-date trip in the US with the Johnny Clegg Band, Mr van Zyl had enrolled on an MBA. Even after graduating, he is amazed that he ever combined drumsticks with academic case studies. “As an artist I know I have to reinvent myself but I never thought that would mean going to business school,” he says.

Mr van Zyl is one of a handful of performers who have completed Henley Business School’s MBA, designed for those in the creative industry. He heard about the course from Jon Foster-Pedley, head of Henley Business School Africa, who once gave Mr van Zyl space on the Johannesburg campus to develop workshops.