Music
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Program Type
Overview
The Department of Music grants a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in Music and also a minor in Music. The department is dedicated to a liberal education in the Arts and Humanities and introduces students to a wide variety of music practices in performance, music composition and technology, theoretical and creative studies, and historical and cultural studies. The curriculum is responsive to the interests of a diverse student body and offers a broad and flexible program.
The major offers pre-professional training for the student seeking a career in music, and also can provide a lasting source of enrichment for students with other career goals. A large number of double majors in the department represent such diverse fields as media studies, data science, psychology, mathematics, physics, economics, comparative literature, and business administration.
A performance audition is not required to declare the major.
Course of Study Overview
All music majors will take foundational courses that explore creative music practice and historical and cultural studies of music via the three required lower-division courses, Music 70, 80, and 90. From there, students may choose to focus their studies on performance practice, theory-composition, or on historical and cultural studies, but will still have additional training in each of the foundational practices. In the upper division courses, students will participate at least three times in a performance ensemble course, take two seminars in music history and ethnomusicology, and take two different rotating topics courses that explore music theory, analysis, composition, and sound studies within the “Making Music” electives. The rotating topics upper-division courses result in an individual course of study formed according to each student's interests. Finally, a capstone project concludes the major. Capstone projects may include performance recitals, music compositions, scholarly papers, or digital creations, among others.
Students without keyboard proficiency are invited to enroll in Elementary Piano (MUSIC 45M) in their first semesters in the major program.
Declaring the Major
No audition or placement exam is required to join the major, although auditions and placement exams may be required to join specific courses in performance, theory, analysis, and composition.
Students may apply to declare the major at any time. We recommend completing at least one course in our department before beginning the declaration process.
To declare the Music Major, prospective students must:
Review Music major requirements
Submit the Music Major Application.
Draft a program plan.
Schedule a meeting with the Undergraduate Major Advisor to finalize their program plan and finish the process of declaration.