Bachelor of Music
Bachelor of Music (BMus)
The Bachelor of Music offers focused music studies to prepare graduates for careers or further study in many areas, including performance, composition, theory, musicology, popular musics, and more. Through experiential learning, training in music teaches poise, discipline, creativity, collaboration, empathy, and the ability to think on one’s feet. These transferable skills are excellent preparation for many career paths in and beyond the performing arts.
Upon successful completion of the second year, students in good standing (minimum overall average GPA of 2.7 [B-] in 1000 and 2000-level MUSC courses) may continue with studies in the BMus general degree or may apply for one of four concentrations: Composition, Musicology, Performance, or Popular Musics. Students wishing to pursue one of the four concentrations must apply by March 1 of the second year of study.
Common Curriculum (first and second years)
First Year
- MUSC 1801.03: Applied Study 1a OR MUSC 1213.03: Composition Studies 1a
- MUSC 1802.03: Applied Study 1b OR MUSC 1214.03: Composition Studies 1b
- MUSC 1201.03: Music Theory 1a
- MUSC 1222.03: Music Theory 1b
- MUSC 1276.03: Musicianship 1a
- MUSC 1277.03: Musicianship 1b
- PERF 1000.03: Writing About Performance
- PERF 1001.03: Writing About Music
- 3 credit hours, Arts and Social Sciences or Science elective
- MUSC 2751.015: Ensemble 1a
- MUSC 2752.015: Ensemble 1b
Second Year
- MUSC 2801.03: Applied Study 2a OR MUSC 2213.03: Composition Studies 2a*
- MUSC 2802.03: Applied Study 2b OR MUSC 2214.03: Composition Studies 2b*
- MUSC 2221.03: Music Theory 2a
- MUSC 2222.03: Music Theory 2b
- MUSC 2276.03: Musicianship 2a
- MUSC 2277.03: Musicianship 2b
- MUSC 2354.03: History of Western Music to 1750
- MUSC 2355.03: History of Western Music 1750 to the Present Day
- 3 credit hours, Arts and Social Sciences or Science electives
- MUSC 2753.015: Ensemble 2a
- MUSC 2754.015: Ensemble 2b
*See Concentration in Compositon for more details about options for study affecting course selection in years 1 and 2.
General Degree (third and fourth years)
This program choice allows for the greatest flexibility within the BMus program offerings. It will prepare students well for advanced degreees in music, including the BEd, as well as for a wide range of careers in music.
Requirements
Students in good standing (minimum overall average GPA of 2.7 [B-] in 1000 and 2000-level MUSC courses) may proceed to a BMus general degree program in their third year. This program choice allows for the greatest flexibility within the BMus program offerings. It will prepare students well for advanced degrees in Music including the Bachelor of Education, as well as for a wide range of careers in music.
Students must submit a proposal for their intended graduation project (MUSC 4599.03 or 4000-level musicology seminar) by March 1 of the third year of study, according to the Fountain School of Performing Arts guidelines. Students must achieve a minimum grade of 2.7 (B-) in this credit.
Third Year
- MUSC 3801.03: Applied Study 3a
- MUSC 3802.03: Applied Study 3b
- MUSC 3283.03: Modal Counterpoint OR MUSC 3284.03: Tonal Counterpoint
- MUSC 3221.03: Form and Analysis: The Second Viennese School to the Present Day
- 3 credit hours in music history beyond the 2000-level chosen from: MUSC 3066.03, MUSC 3314.03, MUSC 3360.03, MUSC 3370.03, MUSC 4353.03, MUSC 4354.03, MUSC 4355.03, MUSC 4356.03, MUSC 4358/MUSC 4359.03, MUSC 4361/MUSC 4365.03, MUSC 4362.03, MUSC 4363/MUSC 4367.03, MUSC 4380/MUSC 4381.03
- 6 credit hours of Music electives
- 6 credit hours of Arts and Social Sciences or Science electives
- MUSC 3751.015: Ensemble 3a
- MUSC 3752.015: Ensemble 3b
Fourth Year
- MUSC 4801.03: Applied Study 4a
- MUSC 4802.03: Applied Study 4b
- MUSC 3282.03: Orchestration
- MUSC 4599.03: Graduation Project or 4000-level Musicology seminar (see 4. Concentration in Musicology for the list of seminars)
- 9 credit hours of Music electives
- 6 credit hours of Arts and Social Sciences or Science electives
- MUSC 4751.015: Ensemble 4a
- MUSC 4752.015: Ensemble 4b
NOTE: Those students who are interested in pursuing a career in classroom teaching of music must complete an undergraduate degree in Music and then complete a Bachelor of Education (BEd) degree at another institution. Students are advised to consult provincial regulations for teacher certification and entrance requirements for their institution of choice, and to meet with the Undergraduate Advisor, in order to ensure optimal course selection within the BMus
Concentration in Composition
Students selected for this concentration will demonstrate outstanding abilities and potential as composers. Contact the Fountain School for further details concerning admission procedures.
Pursuing a career in composition today is both demanding and highly stimulating. Dalhousie University's undergraduate program in Composition prepares students to the challenges of such a career by providing them with a rigorous and balanced training. This includes traditional crafts, such as counterpoint and orchestration, as well as an exposure to new approaches in musical composition, including the use of aleatoric procedures, recent developments in music notation, music technology, etc.
In order to enter this Area of Concentration, students must first audition for the BMus program OR submit a portfolio or origiinal compositions and follow the first two years of the common curriculum in one of two options for composition study. This rigorous program culminates with a final Composition Recital, featuring the student's music performed by Dalhousie students. This concert is always a highlight of the Fountain School's season.
After completion of a BMus in Composition, students may choose to pursue graduate studies in the same field or to work as freelance composers.
With its strong commitment to the presentation of new music and its vibrant musical life, the Fountain School of Performing Arts offers many opportunities for students to pursue this aspect of their creativity and to have their music performed on a regular basis during their degree. Additionally, several professional concert series and organizations such as Upstream Music Association, suddenlyLISTEN, Symphony Nova Scotia, and the Scotia Festival of Music, to name only a few, help make metropolitan Halifax a centre for new music activity in the Maritimes.
Requirements
There are two possible options for students pursuing the concentration in Composiiton.
Option A: For students who wish to take Applied Study (voice or instrument) in Years 1 and 2
With this option, students audition to take instrumental or vocal applied lessons in the first two years and begin composition lessons in year 3. These students will normally take MUSC 2210: Introduction to Composition in the Fall semester of their second year, requiring deferral of their three credit hours Arts and Social Sciences or Sciences elective to another year. MUSC 2210 will be counted as a MUSC elective.
Students in good standing (minimum overall average GPA of 2.7 [B-] in 1000 and 2000-level MUSC and PERF courses), along with a minimum overall average GPA of 3.3 (B+) in their Music Theory and Composition courses (MUSC 1201, MUSC 1222, MUSC 2221 and MUSC 2210) must submit a portfolio of original music by March 1 of the second year to apply for admission to this concentration.
Students who are accepted in this concentration must achieve a minimum grade of 3.3 (B+) in Composition 1a and 1b (MUSC 3211 and MUSC 3212) in order to remain in the concentration. Students must achieve a minimum grade of 2.7 (B-) in each of MUSC 4211, 4212 and MUSC 4299.
Option B: For students who wish to take Composition lessons in years 1 and 2
With this option, students submit a portfolio of original compositions to apply to the program. If accepted, they take composition lessons starting in year 1.
After the first two years, students in good standing (minimum overall average GPA of 2.7 [B-] in 1000 and 2000-level MUSC and PERF courses), along with a minimum overall average GPA of 3.3 (B+) in their Music Theory courses (MUSC 1201, MUSC 1222, MUSC 2221) will bre accepted in the Concentration, provided their overall GPA average for first and second year Composition Studies classes (MUSC 1213, 1214, 2213, 2214) is not lower than 3.3 (B+).
Students who are accepted in this concentration must achieve a minimum grade of 3.3 (B+) in Composition Studies 3a and 3b (MUSC 3213 and MUSC 3214) in order to remain in the concentration. Students must achieve a minimum grade of 2.7 (B-) in each of MUSC 4213, 4214 and MUSC 4299.
Concentration in Musicology
The connection of historical and theoretical studies and performance is especially important at Dalhousie. Faculty members in the Musicology field are active researchers, writers and lecturers. History classes in the first two years of the program cover Western music from the Middle Ages to the present, with ample opportunity to delve into the intricacies of individual works, examine the cultural contexts in which these works emerge, and consider analytical approaches appropriate to specific genres or periods.
Students selected for this concentration will demonstrate outstanding abilities and potential as musicologists. At the third and fourth-year levels, students can choose from a number of elective seminars which focus on such areas as opera, chamber music, piano or vocal literature, music and gender, popular music analysis, narrative strategies in music, early music analysis, chromaticism in music, or the works of individual composers. Students who concentrate in musicology work under the supervision of a faculty member in their fourth year and produce an undergraduate thesis.
Requirements
Students in good standing (minimum overall average GPA of 2.7 [B-] in 1000 and 2000-level MUSC classes) must submit two writing samples by March 1 of the second year to apply for admission to this concentration.
Students selected for this concentration will demonstrate outstanding abilities and potential as musicologists.
Students who are accepted in this concentration must achieve a minimum grade of 2.7 (B-) in the graduation requirement MUSC 4399.03.
Concentration in Performance
Performance is an important and vibrant component of all Dalhousie Music programs. Our outstanding applied faculty members bring the experience of their active performing careers to their studio teaching, ensemble direction and idiom-specific courses.
During the first two common years, in addition to core courses, all BMus students will have private lessons and performance classes weekly, and will participate in noon-hour recitals and ensembles specific to their idiom. Students can audition for other performance opportunities such as Opera Workshop and Concerto Night.
The Concentration in Performance is designed for the student who demonstrates the potential for a career as a professional singer or instrumenttalist. During the third and fourth years of study, students accepted for this concentration will take academic courses specific to their idiom, such as vocal or piano literature, pedagogy, or chamber music, and will present a junior and senior recital.
Requirements
Acceptance to the Performance Concentration requires a written application, audition, and permission of the Fountain School of Performing Arts. Students in good standing (minimum overall average GPA of 2.7 [B-] in 1000 and 2000 level MUSC and PERF courses), along with a minimum grade of 3.3 (B+) in their 1000 and 2000 level Applied Study, may audition at the end of second year to apply for admission to this concentration.
Students selected for this concentration will demonstrate outstanding abilities and potential as performers. See the Fountain School of Performing Arts for further details concerning admission procedures.
Students who are accepted in this concentration must achieve a minimum grade of 3.3 (B+) in third year Performance Concentration Applied Study (MUSC 3811.03 and MUSC 3812.03) and in the third year performance recital (MUSC 3199.03) in order to remain in the concentration. Students must achieve a minimum grade of 2.7 [B-] in their fourth year Performance Concentration Applied Study (MUSC 4811.03 and MUSC 4812.03) and in their fourth year performance recital (MUSC 4199.03).
Concentration in Popular Musics
The Concentration in Popular Musics is designed for students interested in the performance, creation, and/or study of popular music styles such as pop, jazz, soul, rock, and more.
Requirements
Students in good standing (minimum overall average GPA of 2.7 [B-] in 1000 and 2000 level MUSC classes) must submit a one-page Statement of Intent by March 1 of the second year to apply for admission to this concentration.
Students must submit a proposal for their intended Graduation Project by March 1 of the third year of study, according to the Fountain School of Performing Arts guidelines. Students must achieve a minimum grade of 2.7 (B-) in this credit.