Music (DMA)
Department website: http://www.music.utexas.edu/
The Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) degree allows for three majors: conducting, music and human learning, and music. The music program offers concentrations in composition and in performance.
Conducting (DMA)
Students in this major study the artistic, technical, physical, and leadership principles and skills required of successful conductors at the professional and postsecondary levels. Intensive coursework in conducting, score study, analysis, musicology, and theory is combined with opportunities to conduct University ensembles. Individual courses of study are tailored to prepare students for advanced careers as artists and teachers.
Music and Human Learning (DMA)
Students in this major study the fundamental principles of human learning and behavior as applied in all aspects of music activity, including performance, perception, composition, analysis, pedagogy, and the role of music in elementary and secondary schools and in higher education. Individual courses of study are uniquely designed to broaden and refine the knowledge and skills of experienced educators, preparing them for advanced careers as teachers and scholars in the various dimensions of research and professional education.
Music, Performance (DMA)
Students can pursue this concentration on brass, woodwinds, percussion, keyboard, stringed instruments, and in voice, opera, collaborative piano, and chamber music.
In addition to demonstrating the technical achievements of the artist-performer, the student is expected to exhibit a thorough knowledge of the theoretical, pedagogical, and historical aspects of the major, as well as a knowledge of the literature of the performance area.
This concentration offers the following emphases:
- opera
- collaborative piano
- jazz
- voice pedagogy
Music, Composition (DMA)
Students have the opportunity to acquire the tools to create music and convey their musical ideas through a variety of performance media. Students are expected to exhibit a thorough knowledge of the theoretical and historical basis of music and to develop strong pedagogical skills. A comprehensive general curriculum and optional emphases in various areas of specialization help to prepare students for advanced careers as composers and teachers.
This concentration offers the following emphases:
- jazz
Graduate Handbook
Graduate handbook information is updated and maintained by each program. Graduate handbooks are available within each program's office and online. Please contact the program with concerns or questions.
Admission
All applicants are required to furnish a statement of intent in graduate study and three letters of reference pertaining to their potential for graduate work in music. Graduate Record Examinations scores are not required for this program. Applicants seeking admission to degree programs with a concentration in performance typically must perform a live audition. Exceptions and detailed instructions can be found on the Butler School of Music graduate admissions website. Those seeking admission to certain areas of concentration within music must submit pre-screening videos before arranging for a live audition on campus; those planning to major in music with a concentration in composition must send scores and recordings of their music.
Diagnostic examinations in music theory and in music history and literature are required of all students before registration for the first semester of graduate work. Passing these examinations or remedying deficiencies by completing assigned courses is necessary for the completion of every degree and, in the case of doctoral students, is a prerequisite for doctoral comprehensive examinations.
Entering graduate students pursuing an emphasis in voice are expected to have taken the equivalent of one semester each of Italian, French, and German, and two semesters of diction, and are given a diagnostic examination consisting of reading in these three languages. The examination emphasizes proficiency in pronunciation and helps the student plan a program of study.
Total Hours Required: 50
Requirements
Candidates and students for this program must:
- pass a comprehensive examination.
- demonstrate outstanding professional competence, artistic maturity, and exceptional knowledge of the historical and practical aspects of their major field.
- prepare a scholarly treatise in a field appropriate to the major or complete the alternative requirements of the non-treatise degree option. Majors pursuing the composition concentration may substitute an original musical work that replaces the treatise.
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| All students must also follow the requirements and policies below | ||
| Graduate Fine Arts Requirements | ||
| Graduate University Requirements | ||
Further information about requirements in various areas of concentration is available from the graduate admissions coordinator.