Master of Arts in Music

The University of Idaho Lionel Hampton School of Music, accredited by the National Association of Schools of Music, offers a Master of Arts (M.A.) in Music, with a concentration in music history. Considered the scholarly degree in music, the intensive graduate program is designed to prepare you to pursue a doctorate degree in music.

As a student in the general M.A. Music program, you’ll engage in the advanced study of music across a range of disciplines and topics. You’ll develop broad musical knowledge, including an in-depth understanding of music history and theory. You’ll learn from the best, with both seminar-sized courses and personal mentorship from first-class music professors who are recognized worldwide as accomplished soloists, chamber and orchestral musicians, conductors, composers and teachers. Candidates for the M.A. Music are required to complete a written thesis and an oral presentation.

Performance is an integral part of student life in the Lionel Hampton School of Music. You will be encouraged to participate in at least one of the school’s outstanding ensembles and performance groups.

Additionally, the annual University of Idaho Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival and performances by other guest artists give you the opportunity to rub shoulders with, and perhaps perform alongside, some of the greatest professional musicians in the world.

Prepare for Success

The intensive graduate program at the University of Idaho Lionel Hampton School of Music requires a baccalaureate degree in music (or equivalent) from an accredited institution. If you lack this prerequisite, you may take courses that will fulfill this deficiency.

Admission into the program requires a baccalaureate degree in music (or equivalent) from an accredited institution and a sample of the applicant’s scholarly writing. Entering students also will complete two diagnostic examinations – one in music theory and one in music history and literature. A reading competency in one foreign language is also required.

Please review the Graduate Handbook for additional application and admission information.

Your First Year

The master’s degree program requires completion of 30 semester hours of graduate credit, of which at least 18 must be taken in 500-level courses. You will also complete a seminar in either music history or music theory.

Following admission into the program, you and your major professor will nominate a supervisory committee to help guide you through the program. During your first semester, you will develop a study plan, which will be reviewed and approved by your selected committee.

Master of Arts in Music students are required to complete a thesis or practicum. Oral examinations are required for all master’s candidates.

Degree plans

What You Can Do

The Master of Arts in Music is designed for students who want to pursue a doctoral degree in music. The degree lays the necessary foundation for a future career in academia as a professor and researcher at the university level. Students with this degree may also pursue diverse careers in music journalism, music business, arts law, museum curatorship and other fields.

Opportunities

A master’s degree from the renowned Lionel Hampton School of Music at the University of Idaho will greatly enhance your professional career and educational opportunities in music. The degree prepares you to take your next steps in your career as a music educator or scholar. Many high-level teaching positions require at least a master’s degree. The degree is designed as preparation for a doctoral degree, the required level of education to be a professor of music at the university level.

A degree in music, however, also prepares you to succeed in many other fields. When you study music, you develop valuable transferable skills – creativity, leadership, analytical and critical thinking, attention to detail, discipline, perseverance – all of which are highly desired in business, law and other professions.

Most importantly, an advanced degree in music gives you the ability to effectively communicate. You’ll graduate empowered to use your talent to make a positive impact on others.

Current Research

University of Idaho faculty members in the Lionel Hampton School of Music are recognized worldwide as accomplished soloists, chamber and orchestral musicians, conductors, composers, and teachers. They are leading experts in education, piano, voice, guitar, and orchestra and band instruments, with extensive experience performing professionally in classical, jazz, operatic and popular ensembles. Current faculty research interests and areas of expertise include:

• Pedagogy, 19th century chamber music and the music of Francis Poulenc
• 19th and 20th century American music, including historiography, criticism and the community band movement in the West
• Pedagogical works of Godowsky, the transcriptions of Franz Liszt
• Music of Abel Carlevaro, Maximo Diego Pujol and Bryan Johanson
• Music of the 19th century virtuoso-composer Johann Kaspar Mertz
• Theory, history and criticism of film music
• Theory pedagogy and analysis
• Compositions and arrangements for symphonic bands, wind ensembles, orchestral winds, choirs, jazz bands, symphony orchestras and marching bands
• Composition of music for video documentaries and interactive CD ROM educational software and chamber music
• Effects of instrumental music participation on middle and high school students and on senior adults
• Jazz performance and education
• Piano teaching and performance
• Stages of growth of new teachers, music education in one-room schools, vocal physiology and Byzantine music notation
• Neurological and physical bases for human finger independence
• Mental skills training and presentation techniques
• Music entrepreneurship

Activities

Sigma Alpha Iota (SAI): Sigma Zeta Chapter, the international fraternity for women in music
Phi Mu Alpha: A music fraternity for men
Collegiate Music Educators' National Conference (CMENC), University of Idaho Chapter
Pi Kappa Lambda: Honorary music society
Student Advisory Board: Acts as liaison between students and music administration

Hands-On Experience

• Final Project (Thesis/Practicum): The Master of Arts requires a written thesis in which you will explore a unique subject resulting in new contributions to knowledge in a specific area. Or, your final project may be in the form of a practicum, the development of an educational theory resulting in teaching materials.
• Assistantships: Opportunities are competitively available in studio teaching (all instruments and voice), classroom teaching (such as assisting with music history and music theory classes) and assisting major ensemble directors.
• Performance Opportunities:
• Ensembles : We have musical organizations to fit the interests of almost everyone, including the university choirs, Vandal Marching Band, concert band, symphony orchestra, jazz ensembles, and many other performing groups.
• Auditorium Chamber Music Series : The series presents some of the world's finest chamber ensembles in concert and in local venues. Through this program, these extraordinary musicians perform in university settings, public school classrooms, and in community centers throughout our region.
• Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival : This widely popular, four-day event draws hundreds of top jazz artists and spectators from around the world to the University of Idaho each year. Visiting professionals and students in the Lionel Hampton School of Music give evening concert performances and conduct clinics for elementary, junior high, and high school students. Lionel Hampton School of Music students perform throughout the event.
• Dancers, Drummers and Dreamers: This spring performance is presented in collaboration with the University of Idaho Department of Dance. All dances are performed to original, live music composed by faculty and students in the Lionel Hampton School of Music.
• Community Performances: The region’s active arts community creates many opportunities for students to perform in a variety of venues.

Facilities

The Music Building houses the Schuldt Music Library, faculty studios, ensemble rehearsal areas, classrooms, an electronic music lab, a music education materials center, a listening center and a recital hall. Individual practice rooms are available in nearby Ridenbaugh Hall. Recording, radio-television, language listening lab and computer facilities on the campus are also available to music students.

In addition to organ, harpsichord, harp and piano practice instruments, the school maintains two performance pipe organs, three concert grand pianos and a concert harpsichord.