Music Major: Music Liberal Studies Option (B.A.)

Students enrolling in the B.A. music liberal studies program — a program that stresses the development of skills in analysis, writing and critical thinking about a wide variety of musics and the larger connection with history, culture and society — are required to submit a writing sample and interview with one of the music liberal studies program faculty members. The writing sample should be non-fiction, preferably an assignment for a course in English, history or a similar subject, 500 words or more in length.

Degree Requirements

All Major, Option and Elective Requirements as indicated.
*Major GPA requirements as indicated.

Major Requirements

The Discovery Program capstone requirement is fulfilled by a final project or a public performance given during the senior year. For students in the music liberal studies option, there is a choice of completing a half recital or comparable final project.

Candidates for a degree must satisfy all of the University Discovery Program requirements in addition to satisfying the requirements of each individual major program. Bachelor of arts candidates must also satisfy the foreign language proficiency requirement.

Major department courses may not be used to satisfy Discovery category requirements except in the case of a second major. B.A. in music majors may use MUSI 502 Musics in Context (a required core course for the major) to satisfy the Inquiry Discovery requirement.

Music requirements must receive a grade of C- or better.

¹

Students will be given the opportunity to test out of MUSI 471 Theory I, MUSI 475 Functional Piano I, MUSI 476 Functional Piano I and MUSI 575 Functional Piano II, MUSI 576 Functional Piano II.

²

A maximum of 8 ensemble credits may count toward graduation for all bachelor of arts in music students.

Music Liberal Studies Option Requirements

Degree program has final approval from the National Association of Schools of Music.

¹

Any combination of advanced theory and history (12 credits) in addition to the core curriculum.

²

Any combination of performance and/or ensemble study (8 credits total).

³

MUSI 701 Topics in Music History is a rotational topics course and can be repeated.

Sample Degree Plan

This sample degree plan serves as a general guide; students collaborate with their academic advisor to develop a personalized degree plan to meet their academic goals and program requirements.

¹

The BA degree has a language requirement.

²

Any combination of lessons and ensembles fulfills the requirement.

Program Learning Outcomes

• Demonstrate the ability to perform a specialization instrument or voice at an appropriate solo level and/or in small ensemble and large ensemble.
• Aurally identify, analyze, and work conceptually with the elements of music in a variety of musical styles.
• Students will demonstrate familiarity with musical literature from the formal concert repertory and from musical traditions outside of that repertory.
• Demonstrate the ability to develop and defend musical judgments in writing and in oral presentation.
• Demonstrate collegiate-level skills in the English language, competence in written and oral communication in English, and fluency in communicating and synthesizing musical, historical and analytical concepts in writing.
• Demonstrate the ability to conduct original research on music with faculty mentoring and independently.
• Demonstrate in writing the ability to integrate concepts from adjacent disciplines—history, aesthetics, sociology, cultural studies—with musical and stylistic analysis.