College of Music

Main Office
Music Building, Room 247

Mailing address:
1155 Union Circle #311367
Denton, TX 76203-5017
940-565-2791

Office of Graduate Studies
Music Building, Room 216A
940-565-3721

Web site: music.unt.edu

James C. Scott, Dean

Warren Henry, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs
Jon C. Nelson, Associate Dean for Operations
John C. Scott, Associate Dean for Admissions
Benjamin Brand, Director of Graduate Studies
Steven Harlos, Chair, Division of Keyboard Studies
Frank Heidlberger, Chair, Division of Music History, Theory and Ethnomusicology
John Holt, Chair, Division of Instrumental Studies
Joseph Klein, Chair, Division of Composition Studies
John Murphy, Chair, Division of Jazz Studies
Debbie Rohwer, Chair, Division of Music Education
Stephen Austin, Chair, Division of Vocal Studies
Richard Sparks, Chair, Division of Conducting and Ensembles

Faculty

The College of Music offers to aspiring performers, composers, scholars and music educators a diversity of graduate programs in all aspects of the musical arts leading to the following degrees:

Master of Music with a major in performance
Master of Music with a major in jazz studies
Master of Music Education with a major in music education
Master of Arts with a major in music and concentrations in composition, music theory, musicology and ethnomusicology
Doctor of Musical Arts with a major in performance
Doctor of Philosophy with a major in music and concentrations in composition, music theory and musicology
Doctor of Philosophy with a major in music education

It is the purpose of these programs to develop and nurture the artistry, creativity, scholarship and professional competence that will provide musical leadership and standards of excellence in the various areas of musical activity in our society: cultural, pedagogical and commercial. The variety of possible majors within these degree programs and the comprehensive program of instruction in all areas of the College of Music provide a richly textured musical environment in which the musical experience of the student will be broadened as the area of specialization is pursued.

All degree programs are accredited by the National Association of Schools of Music (11250 Roger Bacon Drive, Suite 21, Reston, VA 20190; 703-437-0700, fax: 703-437-6312).

Graduate work in the College of Music is under the guidance of the director of graduate studies and appropriate committees.

Facilities

The Music Library, one of the largest in the United States, holds more than 120,000 items of music books, periodicals, scores, parts and microforms. It also owns complete works of more than 200 composers, among them new editions of the works of Bach, Handel, Berlioz, Mozart and Schoenberg, together with well over 100 historical collections.

Other noteworthy materials in the Music Library include the manuscript collection of the letters and early compositions of Arnold Schoenberg; the library of Lloyd Hibberd, distinguished North Texas musicologist, containing about 10,000 volumes especially strong in French baroque first editions and manuscripts; the Reinhard Oppel Memorial Collection encompassing approximately 10,000 pages of musical manuscripts, rare musical editions and books on music; sets of Hofmeister’s Handbuch der Musikalischen Literatur, Pazdirek’s Universal-Handbuch der Musikliteratur and the Dictionary Catalog of the New York Public Library Music Division; a collection of more than 1,000 Duke Ellington discs, tapes and transcriptions, ranging from his earliest recordings in the 1920s through the 1960s; the Stan Kenton Collection of more than 1,600 original (manuscript) scores and parts used by the Stan Kenton bands and left by Kenton to the university libraries in 1962 and 1979; and an archive of scores and recordings of works composed by distinguished North Texas alumni Don Gillis and Julia Smith.

The Center for Experimental Music and Intermedia (CEMI) provides extensive instructional, research and performance facilities for composers, researchers, and presenters of computer music and intermedia compositions. CEMI presents an annual concert series featuring computer music and intermedia works created at the University of North Texas and at other computer music studios throughout the world, and hosts professional composers who work in residence in the CEMI facilities. The CEMI studios are utilized for electroacoustic composition, sound diffusion, real-time interactive system design, intermedia composition, software synthesis, digital signal processing, algorithmic composition, computer video production, and other computer media applications.

Adjacent to the Music Library is the Audio Center, containing more than 150,000 musical recordings. The Audio Center provides modern facilities for both group and individual listening.

The College of Music also houses the Texas Center for Music and Medicine, a joint program with the UNT Health Science Center at Fort Worth. It includes a research lab equipped with state-of-the-art technologies for the study of the physiology of music performance.

Research

Research in the College of Music is conducted in the areas of musicology, music theory, music education, music medicine, ethnomusicology, composition and performance practice. Independent investigation and creative problem solving also play significant roles in the processes of composition and performance study, where the products of research are musical compositions and performance interpretations.

Within the College of Music, Theoria, a scholarly journal, emanates from the division of music history, theory and ethnomusicology. The Center for Schenkerian Studies publishes The Journal of Schenkerian Studies. In addition, Harmonia is edited and published by the Graduate Association of Musicologists and Theorists. Research funding is received from the National Endowment for the Arts, the National Endowment for the Humanities and faculty research grants.

Research projects in music education range from empirical description and experimentation to historical and philosophical inquiries. Faculty research activities include investigating musical perception and attitudes, preferences, abilities, aptitude, skill development, teacher behavior in classroom and rehearsal, and aspects of professional socialization. Music education faculty hold national and international offices in prestigious professional organizations and serve as editorial readers for leading refereed journals in the field. Ongoing research is supported by faculty research grants and sponsorship of professional organizations.

In music medicine, projects focus on the study of bio-mechanics of performance, hearing-loss prevention and mental health issues, and are funded in part by grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences.

In composition, creative projects are supported by faculty research funds and other sources, including commissions and awards from a variety of private and public agencies and foundations. The activities of the faculty and students encompass virtually every aspect of contemporary music. Grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and UNT faculty research funds provide optimal real-time computer systems in the Center for Experimental Music and Intermedia. Orchestral, wind, choral and chamber music by faculty and students is performed by UNT ensembles, as well as music involving the integration of computer music into intermedia composition.

In music theory, technological resources play an important role, and faculty and graduate students alike recognize the relevance of these applications to the field. Proficiency with the latest music notation software is a basic element in a broader array of emerging music software choices. These options include various digital multi-media players and media library applications capable of playing and cataloging aural and visual resources. The UNT music academic unit also has at its disposal various music applications that serve a variety of purposes, including pedagogy, performance and practice. Graduate and undergraduate music students help operate the Music Computer Lab. The lab serves to reinforce the concepts and skills presented in theory classes as well as to facilitate other professional-level music performance needs. Pedagogical applications, such as ear training packages, are found in this lab, along with digital audio recording and editing, digital transcription and production tools, and one application in which a graphical development environment was designed especially for the interface of various forms of media.

The Clarinet (quarterly journal of the International Clarinet Society) is edited by a faculty member in the College of Music.

Application procedure

Applicants for all graduate degrees in the College of Music must submit an application to the Toulouse Graduate School (www.applytexas.org) as well as to the College of Music for the specific degree they intend to pursue (music.unt.edu/admissions/graduate).

Admission requirements

Applicants for any graduate degree program must meet the requirements for the preceding degree in the same major field as listed in the Undergraduate Catalog. Applicants may be required to take specified courses to remove deficiencies as determined by the transcript evaluation. Students may enroll in courses to remove deficiencies concurrently with those graduate degree courses for which they are eligible. Deficiencies may be removed only by (1) enrolling in and passing an equivalent course at UNT or another accredited university, (2) submitting evidence of achievement, or (3) passing a proficiency examination, approved by the program area. To prepare for such examinations, students may audit courses, subject to university regulations (see Undergraduate Catalog). The auditing of a course alone cannot be the basis for removing a deficiency. In addition, the College of Music may request the applicant to validate any course work or skill by examination or performance.

For all MM and PhD students majoring in composition, musicology or theory; for all MM, MME and PhD students majoring in music education; and for all MM and DMA students majoring in performance, a grade of B or better must be earned in each undergraduate or graduate course assigned as a deficiency, including both transcript deficiency courses and Graduate Placement Examination (GPE) deficiency courses. For MM students majoring in jazz studies, all transcript deficiency course work must be passed with a grade of B or better and all Graduate Placement Examination (GPE) deficiency courses must be passed with a grade of C or better.

Graduate Placement Examination

All new College of Music graduate students must take the Graduate Placement Examination (GPE) or sign a waiver stating that they will complete the courses for each examination waived. The GPE covers academic communication skills, musical traditions, and musicianship skills and analysis. The examination is given each long semester during the week of registration and orientation. The GPE may be retaken only one time and only by master’s students who have failed any individual exam by 5 points or less. If remedial course work is assigned based on the results of the GPE, the student must enroll in these courses in the first semester the specified courses are offered. Description, schedule and information concerning the use of test results are available in the Office of Graduate Studies in Music.

New graduate students in piano also must take a placement examination in piano literature. The results are used for advisory and remedial purposes.

Transfer credit

Use of transfer credit toward graduate degrees is subject to policies stated in the Master’s Degree Requirements and Doctoral Degree Requirements sections of this catalog and must be approved by the appropriate graduate music committee and the dean of the Toulouse Graduate School.

Exceptions to policies

Exceptions to stated policies may be made only when approved by the appropriate graduate committee, the dean of the College of Music and, where appropriate, the dean of the Graduate School.

Tuition and fees

See the Financial Information section of this catalog or visit www.unt.edu/tuition.

Degree plan

By the completion of 12 hours of study, the graduate student is expected to select an advisory committee (at least three members) and file a degree plan. The degree plan, listing all courses to be required for the degree, must be approved by the student’s major professor and submitted to the director of graduate studies in music. Forms for this purpose are available at music.unt.edu/advising/graduate.php.

All changes in the degree plan must be submitted in writing, approved by the major professor and the degree committee chair, and filed with the graduate studies office. Degree requirements are determined by the Graduate Catalog in force at the time the degree plan is approved by the graduate dean. Degree plans may not be filed in the term/semester a student plans to graduate.

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