Bachelor of Arts Program
Program Code: BA-AS
Major Code: MUS

Music Department
Rockwell Hall 203
(716) 878-6401
music.buffalostate.edu

Accredited by National Association of Schools of Music (NASM)

The Bachelor of Arts in Music degree is designed to provided candidates with broad musical knowledge and applied experiences in a liberal arts context, offering opportunities to integrate music into a variety of disciplines.  All Music Department faculty participate in varied instructional aspects of the BA degree, teaching courses in music theory, history, literature, and aural perception, leading instrumental and vocal ensembles, and offering applied studio instruction. 

Program Requirements

Students will demonstrate:

1. the ability to hear, identify, and work conceptually with the elements of music - rhythm, melody, harmony, structure, timbre, texture
2. an understanding of and the ability to read and realize musical notation
3. an understanding of compositional processes, aesthetic properties of style, and the ways these shape and are shaped by artistic and cultural forces
4. an acquaintance with a wide selection of musical literature, the principal eras, genres, and cultural sources
5. the ability to develop and defend musical judgments
6. ability in performing areas at levels consistent with the goals and objectives of the specific liberal arts degree option being followed
7. understanding of procedures for realizing a variety of musical styles
8. knowledge and/or skills in one or more areas of music beyond basic musicianship appropriate to the individual's needs and interests, and consistent with the purposes of the specific liberal arts degree option being followed
9. the ability to read at sight with fluency demonstrating both general musicianship and, in the major performance area, a level of skill relevant to professional standards appropriate for the particular music concentration
10. a rudimentary capacity to create derivative or original music both extemporaneously and in written form