Degrees

Degree Programs

The department offers a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in Music program that includes studies in music theory, music history and literature, and musical performance. Music majors also take individual lessons in instrumental and vocal performance and participate in musical ensembles. Advanced placement is available for qualified students, and any of the programs described below can be modified to suit the needs of individual students, as circumstances warrant.

The Bachelor of Arts in Vocal Performance (B.A.) is intended for singers who want to pursue a performance-oriented, more intensive course of musical training. Admission to the Performance track is by audition. This concentration provides eight semesters of professional vocal instruction and ensemble experience, and offers students a choice between traditional, classical study (including, Diction, Vocal Pedagogy and Opera) and contemporary music (including Music Technology, Practical Musicianship, and Contemporary Ensemble experience).

Students contemplating a career in music education may pursue either a Bachelor of Science in Music Education- PreK-12 Initial Certification or a Dual Major in Music/Childhood Education and Students with Disabilities (Grades 1-6). This major combines a program in Music with training in Education and opportunities for student teaching. Those who graduate with a major in Music Education may need to continue study after graduation in order to attain full teaching certification.

Students interested in arts management or music business may pursue a major in Arts Administration with a concentration in Music. This program pairs music requirements with training in business and arts management.

The department also offers a minor in Music for students who wish to receive recognition for their serious study of music while pursuing a different major. As in the Music major, students create their own programs from a variety of offerings in music theory, history, and performance.

The Music Department offers a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) program that includes studies in music history and repertory as well as a grounding in music theory and music technology.  Music theory includes music notation, harmony, and other technical aspects of music; music history and repertory encompass not only music of the past but recent and contemporary styles and genres, popular as well as classical. Music majors also take individual lessons in the following areas: vocal, instrumental, composition, as well as participate in musical ensembles. Advanced placement is available for qualified students, and any of the programs described below can be modified to suit the needs of individual students.

Required Courses:

REQUIREMENTS FOR THE MAJOR IN MUSIC (B.A.) Music Studies Track

Music majors are required to take 12 units within the department as listed below. Students must attain a grade of C- or higher in each of these courses to count them toward the Music major. In addition, majors may take individual lessons and participate in ensembles and other activities of the Music Department.

Music Theory and Musicianship—5 units as follows:

MU 111, 111L, 112, 116, 215, 216. Note: MU 111L is a zero-unit lab course that must be taken concurrently with MU 111; MU 116 is a co-requisite and must be taken concurrently with MU112. MU 215, and MU 216 are Musicianship courses that further develop sight singing, keyboard and dictation skills. Students excused from any of these courses on the basis of tests given by the Music faculty must take an equivalent number of units from the electives listed below.

Music History and Repertory—2 units as follows:

MU 102, 306

Senior Learning Community—2 units as follows:

MU 400, 491

Electives—3 units as follows:

Any other Music courses numbered 200 or higher, or any ensembles, with a maximum of one unit in Music ensembles. Students who are excused from any requirements listed above may substitute additional elective courses, but no more than one unit in ensembles.

Performance Hour

Music majors enrolled in individual music lessons must also concurrently take MU 020 (Performance Hour).

Performance Juries

Music majors enrolled in individual music lessons must perform before a departmental jury at the end of each semester. These juried performances serve as final examinations for the semester’s lessons. Non-Music majors wishing to perform recitals must also pass a jury audition during the semester prior to the recital.

Concert Attendance

A number of Music courses require students to attend concerts in the New York City area. In some courses the class as a whole attends several concerts; some of these courses require an additional concert fee, as noted below.

The Vocal Performance program at Wagner College accepts talented singers and fosters their development as human beings while providing intensive training in vocal music. The program is a blended performance program, rooted in traditional studies while focusing on a variety of repertoire including Classical, Theatre, Jazz and Contemporary vocal music. The liberal arts dimension of the program provides a foundation for lifelong learning, awakening intellectual curiosity, developing critical thinking, aesthetic appreciation, and building character. 

The primary focus of the Vocal Performance program is to develop a solid technique that will sustain a lifetime of healthy vocal production and lead to ascending levels of mastery in a variety of styles. The instruction in Theory, Musicianship, Music History and Literature and Music Technology helps students achieve the level of competency expected of a young professional.

Vocalists who want to pursue a performance-oriented, more intensive course of musical training may audition for the Vocal Performance track. This concentration provides up to eight semesters of professional vocal instruction and ensemble experience. It also includes Diction, Vocal Pedagogy, Opera, Music Technology and Jazz ensemble. Like the Music Studies track, this program includes music theory, and music history, and repertory. Training in the weekly Performance Hour class, in studio recitals, and in shared recitals culminates in a junior recital and a full-length senior recital.

Students who wish to pursue vocal performance while exploring a contemporary path are encouraged to take MUE020 – Composition and MU217 Introduction to Music Technology.

Requirements for the Vocal Performance Major In Music(B.A.)

Vocal Performance Majors are required to take 15 units within the department as listed below. Students must attain a grade of C- or higher in each of these courses to count them toward the Music major. Each semester, majors take individual lessons and participate in ensembles and other activities of the Music Department.

Music Theory and Musicianship—5 units as follows:

MU 111, 111L, 112, 116, 215, 216. Note: MU 111L is a zero-unit lab course that must be taken concurrently with MU 111; MU 116 is a one-unit lab course that must be taken concurrently with MU 112. MU 215 and MU 216 are the continuation of the Musicianship and Keyboard area of Music Theory. (Harmonic and formal analysis are included in MU102 and continue in MU208, MU227 Vocal Literature and Popular Song, MU481.) 

Music History and Repertory—3 units as follows:

MU 102, 306, 227

MU237, MU240 Vocal Pedagogy

Foreign Language 

1 semester of foreign language at Wagner College

Music Technology

MU217 Introduction to Music Technology

Applied Music – 4.0 units as follows:

MUA030, MU020 and MU060 or MU064 – eight semesters

Classical Performance Option (0 unit co-requisite)

MU063 – minimum 2 semesters

Contemporary Performance Option (0 unit co-requisite)

MU062 – – minimum 2 semesters

Senior Learning Community—2 units as follows:

MU 400, 491

Performance Juries

Vocal Performance Majors must perform before a faculty jury at the end of each semester. These juried performances serve as final examinations for the semester’s lessons. A junior or senior recital may substitute for a juried performance if attended by at least two faculty members who submit a written evaluation of the student’s performance.

Concert Attendance

A number of Music courses require students to attend concerts in the New York City area. In some courses the class as a whole attends several concerts; some of these courses require an additional concert fee, as noted below.

Performance Hour

Vocal Performance Majors are required to take MU 020 (Performance Hour) every semester.

In addition to the 15 units of Music courses listed above, Vocal Performance Majors take 3 units in performance-related courses. These may include additional Music Theory or Music History and Literature courses Music Technology, Composition, Dance, Film and more (MU205, MU209, MU211, MU212, MU245, MU246, MU308, MU317), or courses in Theatre, Dance, Film or Foreign Languages (DA191, DA192, FM210, SPC203, TH103, TH106, TH204, TH235, TH250, TH255, FM210, FM222).

Required Classroom Courses:

Music Theory and Musicianship

  • MU111 + MU111L (Music Theory I & lab)
  • MU112 + MU112L (Music Theory II & lab)
  • MU211 + MU211L (Music Theory III & lab)
  • MU212 + MU212L (Music Theory IV & lab)

Two Music History and Literature Courses

This would include MU102 (Introduction to Music History) and one additional course from the following:

  • MU205 (Music Cultures of the World)
  • MU209 (Jazz and Blues)
  • MU306 (Music History of the Renaissance and Baroque) or
  • MU308 (Music Since 1900)

MU322: Conducting/Orchestration

MU491: Senior Seminar in Music

1 Elective Music Course of a 200 level or higher

8 semesters of 45-minute lessons in primary instrument/voice

8 semester of ensemble related to primary lessons

2 semesters of choir, MU060

Education Content (12 Units)

The following courses are need to meet institutional and state certification requirements;

  • ED312 (Learning Environments for Students with Disabilities)
  • ED326 & 326L (Teaching & Learning for the Inclusive Setting)
  • ED405 (Human Development of the Whole Child PreK-12 Grade)
  • ED411 (Inclusive Methods III: Students with Exceptionalities)
  • ED425 (Theories in Language Acquisition & Literary Development)
  • ED426 (Language Acquisition and Literacy Development)
  • ED551A/B (Student Teaching: Inclusive/Childhood Grades 1-3/4-6)
  • ED561A/B (Student Teaching: Inclusive/Childhood Grades 7-12)
  • ED580 (School, Diversity & Society)
  • ED218M (Music Technology for Music Educators)
  • ED331M or ED332M (Teaching Methods: Voice or Instrumental)
  • ED403: Music Education for Elementary School
  • ED404: Music Education for Middle Schools/High Schools

Instrumental Method courses as follows:

  • ED010M – Percussion Methods for PreK-12 Music educators
  • ED011M – Brass Methods for PreK-12 Music educators
  • ED012M – String Methods for PreK-12 educators
  • ED013M – Woodwind Methods for PreK-12 educators
  • ED014M – Keyboard Methods 1 for PreK-12 educators
  • ED015M – Keyboard Methods 2 for PreK-12 educators

Required Classroom Courses:

Music Theory and Musicianship – 3 units as follows:

MU 111 and 111L, 112, 116

Music History and Literature – 2 units as follows:

MU 102 and one other course selected from the following: MU 205, 207, 208, 209, 241, 242, 243, 291, 307, 308, 491

Music Education – 1 unit (in addition to other Education requirements)

ED 403

Electives – 3 units from any other Music courses, including ensembles, with a maximum of one unit in Music ensembles

Other Requirements:

Performance Hour

Dual majors enrolled in individual lessons are required to attend Performance Hour (MU 020) for two semesters.

Arts administration majors concentrating in music must earn 7 units in Music courses, with a maximum of one unit in music ensembles. In addition, two semesters of Performance Hour (MU 020) are required of students taking individual lessons. Note: MU 211 is a prerequisite for a number of music courses above the 100 level.

Students in the music minor take six units in Music courses, with a maximum of one unit in ensembles. Two semesters of Performance Hour (MU 020) are required of students taking individual lessons. Note: MU 211 is a prerequisite for many Music courses above the 100 level.