SCHOOL OF MUSIC

Program Links: Performance, Conducting, Musicology, Composition, Course Descriptions

The School of Music offers the Master of Music degree with areas of emphasis/tracks in Performance, Conducting, Musicology, and Composition.

Admission Requirements

Students seeking admission to the graduate program in music must submit the Graduate Studies Application for Admission with the one-time application fee to the Office of Graduate Studies, official transcripts of all college-level work (including the transcript that shows the date the undergraduate degree was conferred), and official GRE scores. In addition, the following are required:

  1. Students must submit all required School of Music application materials, including three letters of recommendation. The School of Music application materials are available from the School of Music.
  2. Students seeking admission as Performance or Conducting majors must pass an entrance audition administered by the appropriate faculty member or group of faculty members in the area of study. Students seeking admission for majors in Kodály Pedagogy, Theory/Composition, or Musicology must complete an admission interview with the appropriate faculty member or group of faculty members in the area of study.
  3. A submission of scores from the Graduate Record Exam (GRE) is required (including scores for the Graduate Music Diagnostic Exam – see below). For a final admissions decision, GRE scores do not constitute the sole criterion for consideration of the applicant, nor do GRE scores constitute the primary criterion to end consideration of an applicant. The applicant’s test scores will be compared with those of other applicants from similar socioeconomic backgrounds to the extent that those backgrounds can be properly determined and identified by the School of Music’s admissions process.
  4. Transcripts from all previous college level academic work are required and should be submitted to the Office of Graduate Studies. A bachelor’s degree in music or a demonstrated equivalent level of accomplishment is required. Students not possessing a bachelor’s degree in music which is accredited by the National Association of Schools of Music will be evaluated through the Graduate Music Diagnostic Exam.
  5. A final admissions decision is based upon an aggregate evaluation of all application components. No specific weight is assigned to any one factor.

General Degree Requirements

  1. All students pursuing graduate degree programs must take and satisfy the Graduate Music Diagnostic Exam. Included in this exam are questions in music history, music theory, and aural skills. The purpose of the Graduate Music Diagnostic Exam is to evaluate each students general musical knowledge, identify deficiencies, and determine the potential for successful academic completion of the desired graduate music degree program.
  2. Leveling coursework (if necessary) will be determined by the Graduate Advisor on the basis of the Graduate Music Diagnostic Exam.
  3. Graduate Ensemble enrollment is required each semester in which a full load is carried and/or a student is in residence.
  4. The Master of Music degree program requires a minimum of 30 hours beyond the undergraduate degree. An emphasis in Kodály Pedagogy does not require a thesis. A thesis is required for the emphases in Musicology and Theory/Composition. Once enrolled in a thesis class, a student must be continually enrolled until graduation.
  5. The emphasis in Performance is offered in piano, voice, and all orchestral instruments, including saxophone and euphonium.
  6. Students specializing in vocal performance within Performance emphasis must be proficient in Italian, German, and French diction.
  7. Students in the Theory/Composition emphasis must be able to demonstrate piano competence.
  8. The emphasis in Conducting is available with concentrations in Choral, Orchestral, and Wind emphases.
  9. Successful completion of a comprehensive oral examination is required for graduation. This exam is administered by a committee of three Music faculty. Oral examination committees are appointed by the Graduate Advisor in consultation with the student. Students must be enrolled the semester in which they take comprehensive examinations.

Specific Track Requirements

Performance Track, 30 hours

MUS 530 - Analytical Techniques (3 hrs.)
MUS 698 - Research Techniques (3 hrs.)
Additional course from either Music History, Music Theory, or Music Education (3 hrs.)
MUS 681X - Recital I (3 hrs.)
MUS 682X - Recital II (3 hrs.)
MUS 501X - Applied Music (4 hours)
MUS 588X - Applied Literature (3-6 hours)
MUS 598X - Applied Pedagogy (3 hours)
ENS 512 - Graduate Ensemble (2 hours)
Electives - from Music History, Music Theory, Music Education, or other approved course (0-3 hours)

Conducting Track, 30 hours

MUS 530 - Analytical Techniques (3 hrs.)
MUS 698 - Research Techniques (3 hrs.)
Additional course from either Music History, Music Theory, or Music Education (3 hrs.)
MUS 681X - Recital I (3 hrs.)
MUS 682X - Recital II (3 hrs.)
CND 501X - Applied Conducting (4 hours)
MUS 588X - Applied Literature (3-6 hours)
MUS 598X - Applied Pedagogy (3 hours)
ENS 512 - Graduate Ensemble (2 hrs.)
Electives - in Music History, Music Theory, or Music Education (0-3 hrs.)

Composition Track, 30 hours

(Students in the Theory/Composition track must choose either a Theory emphasis or Composition emphasis.)
MUS 530 - Analytical Techniques (3 hrs.)
MUS 698 - Research Techniques (3 hrs.)
MUS 563 - Pedagogy of Theory (3 hrs.)
MUS 567 - Score Reading (3 hrs.)
CMP 501X - Applied Composition (2 hrs.)
One additional 3 hr. graduate course in Music History (3 hrs.)
Electives - Music courses other than Theory/Composition (4 hrs.)
Additional Courses depending on emphasis - see below (9 hrs.)

Additional Courses for Theory emphasis:
Two additional 3 hr. graduate courses in Music Theory (6 hrs.)
MUS 699 - Thesis (3 hrs.)
Additional Courses for Composition emphasis:
Six (6) additional hours of CMP 501X
MUS 681X - Graduate Recital (3 hrs.)

Up to 9 hrs. of upper division (400-level) undergraduate courses may be taken to satisfy graduate degree requirements if similar courses were not completed in undergraduate studies. These courses include:
MUS 464 Seminar in Composition
MUS 474 Twentieth-Century Musical Styles
MUS 465 Counterpoint and Analysis

 

Course Descriptions: