Music

The Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) degree program provides students with a broad foundation in music studies, and its flexibility is especially well-suited for students who wish to pursue a second major, study abroad, or other curricular options.

All B.A. students complete courses in theory, history, musicianship, keyboard skills, performance, composition/improvisation, and technology. In addition, B.A. students complete course requirements and a B.A. project in an area of emphasis, choosing from two options; 1) History and Theory of Music; or 2) Integrated Composition, Improvisation, and Technology. Through upper-division emphasis courses, which are often major-restricted with small enrollments, and through designing their original capstone B.A. project, students have opportunities to develop their individual research and creative interests while working closely with faculty.

Requirements

All students must meet University Requirements.

School Requirements: None.

Departmental Requirements—Common Curriculum for all music majors:

1. MUSIC 15 is a repeatable course students must take starting at the beginning of their major studies. At the end of the course, there is a Musicianship Proficiency Exam, which students must pass within six quarters of entering the major.
2. Courses may not be used to simultaneously fill both the elective requirements and an emphasis requirement.

All B.A. students must also complete 24 additional units of required courses and a B.A. Project in one of the following two emphases:

Additional Requirements

Emphasis in History and Theory of Music

Emphasis in Integrated Composition, Improvisation, and Technology

B.A. Project Requirement

All B.A. students must complete a B.A. Project focused in their area of emphasis (History and Theory of Music [HTM] or Integrated Composition, Improvisation, and Technology [ICIT]). The B.A. Project consists of original creative work that is designed and completed by the student under the supervision of a faculty member. The project may grow out of an emphasis course, such as ICIT Workshop or an upper-division HTM elective seminar.

Proposed projects, along with the name of the Senate faculty member who has agreed to supervise it, must be submitted to the Music Department Undergraduate Director by November 1 of the academic year in which graduation is expected. Upon approval of the project proposal, the student may register with the supervising faculty member for MUSIC 199 Independent Study in which to complete the project.

Honors Program

Departmental Honors Program in Music and Culture

The Honors Program in Music and Culture is designed to challenge superior students in the B.A. or B.Mus. program beyond the academic requirements of the Music major. It provides them with the opportunity to advance their knowledge in the scholarly fields of music while developing their writing, analytical, and research skills. The honors program is ideally suited for students who wish to study music at the graduate level, but not in performance, and who may be preparing for graduate work in arts criticism, the humanities, the social sciences, and the law.

Eligibility requirements are (1) completion of the core requirements for the major; (2) an overall GPA of 3.5 or higher; and (3) completion of the eligibility form (available for download through the Departmental website).

Admission to the Honors Program in Music and Culture is competitive. Students must apply no later than the spring quarter of their junior year. The application should be accompanied by two substantial writing samples. These may represent work done for courses at UCI. Only truly exceptional students may undertake Honors projects.

Students who are admitted to the Honors Program, regardless of whether they are in the B.A. or B.Mus. program, are required to complete three additional courses in categories 1 and 2 under Additional Requirements for the Bachelor of Arts Degree beyond those taken in fulfillment of the core requirement; all three must be upper-division courses (numbered 100 or higher). Relevant upper-division courses in other departments may be taken to fulfill this requirement by approval of the Department Honors Committee.

The capstone project is a senior thesis, an extended original research project prepared under the supervision of the faculty advisor on a topic chosen by the student in consultation with that advisor. The thesis topic must be approved by the Departmental Honors Committee prior to the end of the fall quarter of the senior year. Students develop their topic during an ensuing two-quarter sequence of Senior Thesis (MUSIC 195A-MUSIC 195B). Upon successful completion of the thesis, a single grade is applied for both quarters and 4 units (total) are posted to the student’s record (2 units each for and MUSIC 195B).