The School of Music offers five majors in music composition:

• Bachelor of Music in composition — harp/guitar/bass emphasis
• Bachelor of Music in composition — keyboard emphasis
• Bachelor of Music in composition — strings emphasis
• Bachelor of Music in composition — voice emphasis
• Bachelor of Music in composition — winds/percussion emphasis

Program Requirements

A minimum total of 120 credit hours is required for the BM in composition. With the exception of the ensembles required, the degree requirements are the same for each major. Please consult an advisor to determine which ensembles are needed for a specific major. In addition to meeting the requirements of the WSU General Education Program and the requirements of the College of Fine Arts, students must meet the following requirements:

¹

Required major courses may also count towards General Education requirements. Students will need to select additional electives to reach 120 credit hours required for graduation with assistance from an advisor.

²

If piano proficiency is met prior to using the allotted 4 credits, students should pursue a second performance medium.

³

See degree check sheets for specified ensembles.

⁴

Ensembles are counted by semester.

Composition majors are required to present a capstone recital or project featuring their original compositions, representing a variety of mediums. This should represent a minimum of 25 minutes of music. Scores of these compositions, where applicable, should be submitted in PDF form by the end of week one of the recital semester. These scores must be prepared in an approved professional music notation software. Works without scores should be submitted in some other form during week one as well. Since some compositions may not be suitable for recital performance, at the discretion of the supervising faculty, the following may be counted (in whole or in part) toward the 25-minute minimum, provided that it was presented publicly on campus within the year prior to the recital:

1. Works performed by any of WSU’s large ensembles;
2. Sound installations;
3. Original compositions for media (film, game, etc.); or
4. Other projects deemed relevant to composition study and comparable to recital performance by the supervising faculty.

Note: All music majors must pass a piano proficiency examination.

Applied Learning 

Students in the Bachelor of Music in composition program are required to complete an applied learning or research experience to graduate from the program. The requirement can be met by completing a senior recital of original compositions, MUSP 400.