Major Requirements

MAJOR

All students pursuing a Music major must complete the following courses:

In addition to these 12 units required of all Music majors, students majoring in Music must pursue one of the following tracks: Music Composition, Instrumental Performance, Vocal Performance, Ethnomusicology/Popular Music, Music History, or Music Theory & Analysis. At the present time, students interested in a Music Production track need to contact the Chair to devise their curriculum.

Music Composition

Instrumental Performance

Vocal Performance

Ethnomusicology or Popular Music

Music History or Musicology

Music Theory and Analysis

SECOND-STAGE WRITING REQUIREMENT

Students majoring in Music will satisfy the second-stage component of Occidental College's college-wide writing requirement by successfully completing a designated writing-intensive 200-level course in the sophomore or junior year with a grade of B- or better and receiving a notation of "Satisfactory" for its writing component. Students not achieving a "satisfactory" notation by either of these means will be required to undertake additional coursework in academic writing during the final two semesters of study. Students should familiarize themselves with the departmental requirement at the time of declaring the major.

COMPREHENSIVE REQUIREMENT

Senior music majors complete a senior project related to the student's area of interest. All senior projects involve both a written and an oral component. The written component (thesis; or analytic, argument-driven essay plus recital program notes) must be completed by the end of MUSC 490, which is offered in the fall semester. Each component is graded High Pass (HP), Pass (P), or Fail (F). A final grade of Pass with Distinction (PD) on the senior comprehensive will be awarded if all components (written, oral, and performance, if applicable) are graded High Pass.

In the Fall semester of their junior year, students submit a proposal for their senior project to the Music Department faculty for approval. Students pursuing tracks in Ethnomusicology/Popular Music, Music History/Musicology, or Music Theory & Analysis will propose a senior thesis of 6500 words or more in length (excluding footnotes and bibliography). Students with a particular interest in composition will prepare a portfolio of original compositions, including both acoustic and electro-acoustic music, some of which will be presented in a composition recital during the senior year. Composers will write an argument-driven analytic paper of 2500 words or more in length, focusing on the work of a composer whose work has influenced their styles. Students with a demonstrated ability in performance will propose a junior and a senior recital, and will write an argument-driven analytic paper of 2500 words or more in length on a piece or pieces of music on the senior recital. Students pursuing a music production will complete a project designed with their advisor and in consultation with the Music faculty.

All seniors will present their work in a public forum during the spring semester. If the Music faculty determines that the senior has not sufficiently prepared to complete the project in time, the senior must take a written examination in lieu of the recital or thesis submission/presentation in order to fulfill the senior comprehensive requirement. The faculty will supply questions drawn from the material of that senior’s course of music study at Occidental.

HONORS

Students who have achieved at least a 3.25 average in their music courses and have demonstrated exceptional potential their Music sub field of study (one of the tracks listed above) may apply for the Honors Program at the beginning of their junior year. For information about the Honors Program, students should consult with their Music Department faculty advisor. See the Honors Program for additional information.