Music
Course Designations
Course offerings in the Music Department are lettered and numbered to reflect the content and sequence of courses.
MUS: History and literature, theory, orchestration, conducting, performance not by audition.
MUSP: Performance courses requiring an audition. Auditions are held the first week of classes each semester. If accepted, the student adds the course at a special registration held in the Music Department during the second week of classes.
The department views the grade of D as passing but unsatisfactory. Therefore, a course in which a grade of D was received may not be used to fulfill the requirements for the major or minor in music. No course taken Pass/Fail counts toward the minimum requirements for the major or minor, with the exception of ensembles.
Music Major BA Degree
Students who wish to become music majors in the BA program should make an appointment with the undergraduate director for advising and formal declaration after completing MUS 215 and 216. The department urges all prospective BA majors to begin the major core as early as possible during their college residence to permit sufficient time for the sequence of courses.
The BA degree in music requires the following courses as the basis for a liberal arts program in music:
Theory and Musicianship (to be taken in sequence)
1. MUS 215. Theory I, and MUS 216. Musicianship I
2. MUS 217. Theory II, and MUS 218. Musicianship II
3. MUS 315. Theory III, and MUS 316. Musicianship III
4. MUS 317. Theory IV, and MUS 318. Musicianship IV
History and Literature (to be taken in sequence)
1. MUS 301. History of Music: Antiquity through Renaissance
2. MUS 302. History of Music: Baroque and Classical
3. MUS 303. History of Music: Romantic and 20th-Century
4. MUS 304. Introduction to Ethnomusicology (may be taken at any time after first year of theory)
Music Electives
A total of eight credits from among the following courses: MUS 323, 325, 331, 427, 428, 443 and 497 and other courses approved by the undergraduate director. Composition may be used only once to satisfy one music elective. A total of four credits of music electives is required for double majors.
Performance
Music majors in the BA program are required to participate for at least four semesters in any of the collaborative music-making activities, such as vocal and instrumental ensembles or accompanying. Students are placed by the director(s) of the appropriate ensemble program(s).
Music majors are also required to complete four semesters of studio instruction in their chosen instrument or voice.
Music Major BMus Degree
Students who wish to become music majors in the BMus program should first consult the undergraduate director during their freshman year to ensure that the appropriate courses are taken during the first year of study. Admission to the BMus program is open only to students who demonstrate excellence in music performance; acceptance to the program is based on an audition at the end of the freshman year or the beginning of the sophomore year, which is heard by a music faculty committee.
For music majors pursuing the BMus degree, the department prescribes a core of 86 credit hours in music:
Theory/Musicianship/Conducting
MUS 215. Theory I, and MUS 216. Musicianship I
MUS 217. Theory II, and MUS 218. Musicianship II
MUS 315. Theory III, and MUS 316. Musicianship III
MUS 317. Theory IV, and MUS 318. Musicianship IV
MUS 427. Conducting I
History and Literature (to be taken in sequence)
1. MUS 301. History of Music: Antiquity through Renaissance
2. MUS 302. History of Music: Baroque and Classical
3. MUS 303. History of Music: Romantic and 20th-Century
4. MUS 304. Introduction to Ethnomusicology (may be taken at any time after first year of theory)
Performance Courses
Primary concentration (eight semesters/28 credits)
Secondary concentration (two semesters/two credits)
Ensemble participation (eight semesters/no credits)
MUSP 394. Junior Recital (two credits)
MUSP 494. Senior Recital or
MUSP 498. Senior Honors Recital (four credits)
Music Electives
Two additional 300- or 400-level courses, designated specifically for music major credit. Composition may be used only once to satisfy one music elective (eight credits)
Two additional performance/applied courses (four credits), including the study of pedagogy and literature
Music Minor
Students who wish to minor in music should first make an appointment with the undergraduate director for advising and formal declaration of the minor after completing MUS 215 and MUS 216. Studio instruction is encouraged but may not substitute for any of the required courses:
Theory and Musicianship
MUS 215. Theory I and MUS 216. Musicianship I
MUS 217. Theory II and MUS 218. Musicianship II
Students choice, one of the following:
MUS 315. Theory III and MUS 316. Musicianship III
MUS 323. Counterpoint
History and Literature
MUS 304. Introduction to Ethnomusicology (may be taken at any time after first year of Theory)
Students choice, two of the following:
MUS 301. History of Music: Antiquity through Renaissance
MUS 302. History of Music: Baroque and Classical
MUS 303. History of Music: Romantic and 20th-Century
Performance
Music minors are required to participate for at least two semesters in any of the collaborative music-making activities provided by the department, such as vocal and instrumental ensembles or accompanying. Students are placed by the director(s) of the appropriate program(s).
Honors (BA Degree)
To register for a senior honors project (MUS 499, maximum total of four credits) a student must have declared a music major or music minor, have a 3.5 grade-point average in music courses and be recommended by the person who agrees to serve as the faculty adviser (studio teacher, history/theory teacher or composition teacher). The recommendation must include evidence of appropriate accomplishment in the field of the proposed project: in performance, an evaluation by the prospective adviser and one other faculty member of a performance by the student in a Thursday department recital in the semester preceding that of the proposed project; in research and composition, an evaluation and/or an example of written work from a previous or current course. With the supporting documentation, a petition to register for honors, including the specific proposal, must be submitted to the director of undergraduate studies during the semester preceding that of the initiation of the proposed project, and is subject to approval by the undergraduate committee.
Prior to the middle of the semester of a performance project, the student must perform in a Thursday department recital for approval, by the adviser and one other faculty member, to proceed on the honors track.
When the final performance has been given or the written project completed, a committee consisting of the adviser and two other full-time faculty members decides if the project meets expected standards. If so, a grade of A is assigned with honors, high honors or highest honors designated; if not, the course registration reverts to independent study and the course grade is given by the adviser. Faculty committee members are selected by the student.
A checklist for the student considering an honors recital and the appropriate forms for the submission of the program to the undergraduate committee for approval, as well as for the evaluation of both the mid-day recital and the final performance, are available from the undergraduate director.
Honors (BMus)
The BMus student may use the senior recital as a senior honors project under the following conditions:
The student must have a 3.5 average in music courses.
The student must be recommended by the primary concentration faculty member.
The repertoire to be performed must be of sufficient difficulty to merit the honors designation. The program requires the approval of the undergraduate committee at least two months preceding the performance. Any changes in the program, once approved, also require approval by the committee.
The performance is held to an extremely high standard, with at least two members of the undergraduate committee serving on the jury (in addition to the students principal adviser.)
Recitals in voice and keyboard instruments, in which the custom is to perform from memory, are memorized. Recitalists on other instruments, whose tradition may not include memorization, are required to perform at least one quarter of the program from memory.
The BMus student pursuing honors should register for MUSP 498 for four credits rather than MUSP 494. The grade of A must be received to qualify for honors; if not, the registration reverts to MUSP 494, Senior Recital.
A checklist for the student considering an honors recital and the appropriate forms for the submission of the program to the undergraduate committee for approval, as well as for the evaluation of the final performance, are available from the undergraduate director.