Music Performance (B.Mus.)
Prepare for a professional career in studio teaching and/or performance with our Bachelor of Music program. The program will also prepare you for success in graduate study.
As a music performance major, you'll receive extensive private instruction in your area of specialization, including one-hour lessons each semester you are enrolled. Solo recitals will enhance your performing skills, and you will take special courses related to your performance area. For example, vocalists will take classes in diction and language, while keyboard players may take classes in pedagogy. Pedagogy courses are highly recommended for all students.
The Department of Music's Common Hour allows for flexibility and scheduling of seminars, master classes and student performances three days a week, giving you intensive study of performance, literature and other areas of interest.
Your involvement in our music groups, as well as your own recitals, is an integral part of your education. Many of our groups tour nationally and internationally, giving you a multitude of performance experience before you graduate. You will also participate in regional solo competitions, workshops and master classes, on-campus weekly professional development classes, visiting artists' master classes/workshops, studio performance classes, and regional and/or national workshops and clinics.
The University's prime location affords you a multitude of arts experiences and performance opportunities. The city boasts the Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra, the Dayton Opera, several ballet companies, the Bach Society of Dayton and numerous churches with large music ministry programs. Artists who appear with the philharmonic or opera often present on-campus master classes and clinics. We have recently welcomed renowned visitors such as Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, Christian Lindberg, Barry Tuckwell, Richard Stolzman and Frederica von Stade.
The music department is a fully accredited member of the National Association of Schools of Music.
Career Opportunities
Vocalists may pursue careers in art song, gospel, jazz, musical theater, opera, oratorio and popular music. For instrumentalists, careers are available in fields such as chamber music, jazz, musical theater, orchestral performance, popular theater and recording studio session work. To have a successful career as either a solo vocalist or instrumentalist, you must possess a unique combination of skill, dedication, enthusiasm, knowledge of the field, and the ability to create and recognize opportunities.