Recommended Course of Study
Information for First Year
Included in the University's Core Curriculum is one course in the Arts (Fine Arts, Music, or Theatre). MU 066 Introduction to Music, and MU 070 Fundamentals of Music Theory, and MU 033 History of Rock and Roll & Popular Musics in the U.S. are the Music Department's Core offerings. They are designed for the non-musician as well as the student who has studied music. Prospective music majors and minors should reference the Recommended Course of Study listed below. Students with advanced musical backgrounds and interests should speak to the Director of the Undergraduate Program in Music regarding appropriate upper-level courses. The department offers MU 301 Introduction to World Music as an option for the Cultural Diversity requirement of the Core.
Freshman Year
All students declaring the music major should try as freshmen to take or test out of MU 070 Fundamentals of Music Theory, a course covering the notation of music and fundamental ear-training. Freshmen who feel they may wish to consider majoring in music (or wish to fulfill the Core requirement in Fine Arts by taking a music course) should take MU 005 The Musical Experience or MU 066 Introduction to Music. Either of these courses is a general introduction to the field and its various methodologies, and a student may receive retroactive credit for the major if passed with a B+ or higher.
Sophomore Year
Harmony and Chromatic Harmony should be taken in sequence along with MU 081-082, Ear Training/Sight Singing Labs. Two history courses in Western Music (selected from Medieval-Renaissance, Baroque Music, Music of the Classical Era, Music of the Romantic Era, Music of the Twentieth Century, or a composer or genre course) or one history course and one cross-cultural course should be taken. The first year's required Listening Repertoire should be mastered. Some performance experience (Orchestra, Chorale, Band, Chamber Music, non-Western performance, and/or private lessons) should be started and pursued throughout the rest of the major.
Junior Year
Counterpoint and a choice of Jazz Harmony, Form and Analysis, Orchestration or Composition and a second or third history course and/or a cross-cultural course should be taken. The second year of the required Listening Repertoire should be mastered.
Senior Year
Any advanced courses in the department relevant to the particular emphasis the student has chosen--performance, composition, history, or cross-cultural--and the Senior Seminar, which will help the student synthesize previous course work, should be taken. The final year of the required Listening Repertoire should be mastered.