Course Catalog 2018-2019 [ARCHIVED CATALOG]
The Conservatory of Music
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 Return to: Conservatory of Music, Degree Programs and Requirements
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General Information
Overview. The Conservatory of Music was founded in 1865 as a private music school and two years later became part of Oberlin College. It currently has an annual enrollment of approximately 600 music students. The Conservatory provides pre-professional training in music performance, composition, music education, music technology, music theory, and musicology, supported by an education in liberal and critical studies. Students may earn the following degrees or diplomas: Bachelor of Music, Performance Diploma, Master of Music, Master of Contemporary Chamber Music, Master of Music Teaching, Artist Diploma.
The Conservatory’s programs are designed to develop the sensitivity, understanding, and insights, as well as the knowledge, skills, and technical competence essential to professional musicians. Conservatory graduates pursue music careers as performers, conductors, composers, directors, music theorists, historians, and educators. They are employed throughout the United States and abroad in major symphony orchestras, opera houses and companies, regional and municipal orchestras, jazz groups, youth orchestras, chamber music ensembles, major film studios, churches, primary and secondary schools, colleges, universities, conservatories of music, and as freelance artists.
Relation to the College of Arts and Sciences. The Conservatory of Music and the College of Arts and Sciences share the same campus. Conservatory students take courses in both the College of Arts and Sciences and the Conservatory, and can pursue majors in both divisions concurrently, earning a Bachelor of Music degree and a Bachelor of Arts degree within a five-year program (see “Double Degree” in this catalog). The College of Arts and Sciences also offers a Bachelor of Arts with a major in Musical Studies; students are referred to the Arts and Sciences section of this catalog for detailed information.
Most courses in the Conservatory are open to qualified students in the College of Arts and Sciences; indeed, many College of Arts and Sciences students pursue Conservatory coursework, applied musical study, and ensemble performance. Because many Conservatory courses and the schedules of applied music teachers become filled entirely with Conservatory students, however, Arts and Sciences students may not be able to enroll in their preferred Conservatory courses.
Concerts and Recitals. The Conservatory offers an extraordinary array of performances; more than five hundred concerts and recitals are presented annually. In 2016-17 there were 65 recitals by faculty and guest artists, 245 Senior and Junior recitals, and 200 concerts by student ensembles and other groups. The Conservatory also presents an annual series of faculty chamber music concerts.
Artist Recital Series. Over the past century, the Oberlin Artist Recital Series has brought to Oberlin an impressive array of internationally acclaimed solo performers, outstanding chamber ensembles, and major orchestras. Now in its 141st season, the Artist Recital Series continues to offer rich musical experiences to the Oberlin community.
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Learning Goals and Outcomes
The Oberlin Conservatory of Music aspires to provide its students a transformative educational experience that expands their intellectual and artistic capacities and fosters individual growth, thereby preparing them to lead fully engaged lives. As a professional school, the Conservatory offers a curriculum that embraces a variety of modalities, from the disciplined acquisition of technical skill and the academic foundations of formalized music study to the nurture of exploration, experimentation, and discovery, both creative and intellectual. In sum, study in the Conservatory is designed to inspire artistic achievement of the highest order, educate students who can shape and create the musical profession anew, and animate lifelong work of breadth, significance, and impact.
In particular, students who attend the Conservatory should:
(1) achieve a degree of professional competency in their major fields, a competency that in performance majors embraces both artistic attainment and mature technique, as well as entrepreneurial awareness.
The training of professional musicians is foundational to the Conservatory’s mission, and the attainment of a high level of vocational competency lies at the heart of much of its instruction. Though focused and often specialized, this competency is not narrow in its application, but rather reflects the requirements and opportunities of a dynamic professional world.
(2) achieve a fluency in engaging music historically, theoretically, critically, and culturally.
The paths towards understanding music are varied, and the cultivation of this understanding has traditionally been an important aspiration for students, both professionally and personally. Accordingly, the Conservatory curriculum grounds students in diverse historical, theoretical, and critical approaches to music to broaden perspective, foster creative and analytical thinking, and inspire and enable dialogue. Effective written and oral discourse is essential, and the development of this fluency a robust aspect of the curriculum. Historical, theoretical, and critical work in part involves exploring a diverse range of music in different stylistic, geographic, and social contexts. This not only dramatically shapes perspective, but also increases professional flexibility.
(3) achieve a mature perspective on music’s place in the world and develop a reflective consideration of their role in this cultural matrix.
The complexity and fluidity of today’s musical world requires perhaps more than ever before an openness to possibility, a re-evaluation of traditional roles, and a reflective capacity to guide one’s path to societal and personal fulfillment and to professional viability. While not rooted in any one experience or course of study, the perspective necessary to discern and enact one’s role is formed in the cumulative experience of study and the broader experiences of Oberlin itself.
The Conservatory of Music thus envisions its graduates as creative and imaginative individuals of high professional attainment and personal depth. A multi-faceted curriculum helps shepherd students toward these outcomes. And, it is in the intertwining of these curricular strands-their counterpoint one with the other-that the richness of the study becomes most distinctively Oberlinian.
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Facilities
The Conservatory is housed in three contiguous buildings designed by Minoru Yamasaki-Bibbins Hall, Central Unit, and Robertson Hall-and the Bertram and Judith Kohl Building. The Conservatory Annex provides additional office space.
Bibbins Hall-the teaching building-contains 46 studios, 13 classrooms, a recital hall, and 15 offices. Private instruction, ensemble coaching, and classroom instruction take place in this building. The building also houses the Office of the Dean of the Conservatory, a distance learning room, and the TIMARA (Technology in Music and the Related Arts) complex, which includes a recording studio.
Central houses two concert halls, the orchestra rehearsal room, the choral rehearsal room, two small ensemble rehearsal rooms, the percussion teaching studio, the Audio Services office and recording facilities, and the student lounge.
The Conservatory Library, one of the largest academic music libraries in the country, adjoins the Conservatory’s central building. In 1988, the Conservatory Library opened a new wing that nearly tripled the library’s space, and the entire library was renovated and expanded in 2000. In addition to sound recordings, scores, and writings on music, the Conservatory Library provides access to:
- Electronic Resource Center enabling access to the library’s catalog (OBIS), subscription products such as Grove Music Online, and all internet resources;
- listening stations equipped to play CDs, LPs, digital audio tapes (DAT), and other audio cassettes;
- listening/viewing rooms accommodating up to four people each and equipped to play DVDs, video cassettes, laser discs, reel-to-reel tapes, and LPs;
- study carrels;
- conference room;
and
- Special Collections Reading Room for the study of rare and unique music items.
Robertson Hall, the practice building, contains 182 rooms, including 150 practice rooms, the Otto B. Schoepfle Vocal Arts Center, the Professional Development Office, the Creativity & Leadership Office, the Kulas Organ Center, reedmaking rooms, a computing lab, faculty studios, and staff offices.
The Conservatory Annex is located east of Bibbins Hall, on the second floor of the Oberlin Bookstore. The Annex houses offices for Conservatory Admissions, Conservatory Communications, the Assistant Dean for Technology and Facilities, the International Outreach Coordinator, and the Business Manager. Two meeting rooms with media resources are available for use by the Conservatory community.
The Bertram and Judith Kohl Building, which opened in Spring 2010, houses Oberlin’s Jazz Studies program, as well as faculty in Musicology, Music Theory, Composition, and Music Education. The Kohl Building includes three rehearsal rooms, teaching studios, practice rooms, a computing lab, and features Clonick Hall, a state-of-the-art recording studio, as well as storage areas for significant collections, among them the Selch Collection of American Music History, the Jim and Susan Neumann Jazz Collection, the Lawrence McDonald Clarinet Collection, the Frank Kuchirchuk Collection of Jazz Photography, and Milton J. and Mona C. Hinton Papers.
Concert Halls. Warner Concert Hall seats 645. Kulas Recital Hall, which seats 144, is especially suited to chamber music concerts. The David H. Stull Recital Hall, a flexible 130-seat performing space, was added in Fall 2013 as part of the renovation of Bibbins Hall, and the William and Helen Birenbaum Innovation and Performance Space (“The Birenbaum”), which seats 114, opened in the basement of the Hotel at Oberlin in February 2017. Artist recitals, orchestra, and other large ensemble concerts are performed in Finney Chapel, which seats 1200. Hall Auditorium, seating 499, is used for Opera performances and Fairchild Chapel, seating 150, is used for a variety of small concerts, especially in Historical Performance and Organ. The Jazz Studies program also uses the Cat in the Cream Coffeehouse for many solo and small ensemble performances.
Electro-Acoustic Music. Six acoustically isolated and optimized electronic and computer music studios are located in the Conservatory. The Technology in Music and the Related Arts (TIMARA) complex is equipped with a wide selection of state-of-the-art hardware and software, including a recording studio and control room with a Digidesign Icon board, a networked lab of Macintosh computers, and a multimedia room with special focus on video and DVD production. Additionally, the studios are outfitted with historical analog synthesizers, a wide variety of microphones and signal processing gear, performance instruments like the Yamaha MIDI Grand Piano and Zeta String Quartet, interactive devices like the Lemur and iPad, and original technology built by the studio engineer.
The Otto B. Schoepfle Vocal Arts Center is the first of its kind to be incorporated into a program of vocal instruction in the United States. Named for a long-time supporter of the Conservatory, this laboratory includes KayPentax Multi-Speech software applications that transform the phonations of the voice into electrical signals, displaying them spectrographically on a computer screen in either real time or playback Also under current use is the software application VoceVista, as well as an electroglottograph. The laboratory also houses stroboscopic and fiber-optic instrumentation that displays the vocal fold movement of an individual while singing or speaking (employed under the supervision of visiting medical personnel). Carefully trained student assistants help other singers to interpret displays. Of primary interest to the singer is the easy observation and affirmation of vibrancy, vowel definition, tonal balance, and legato.
Students may use the sophisticated audio and video equipment to record, play back, and analyze their own lessons or performances. Pedagogic and artistic values are not limited to the study of an individual’s own instrument, however. OBSVAC’s ability to analyze the techniques and artistry from recorded performances on DVD and video of great singing artists by vocal category (soprano, mezzo-soprano, tenor, baritone, and bass) offers the singing student, as well as visitors from around the world, a powerful resource for study.
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Instrument Collection
Pianos. As Steinway Piano’s oldest continual customer, Oberlin has a superb collection of pianos. Warner Concert Hall, Kulas Recital Hall, Clonick Hall, classrooms, and teaching studios are all equipped with Steinway grand pianos, as are most of the practice rooms in Robertson Hall, the Kohl Building, and the rehearsal rooms in Central. Of the 262 pianos in the Conservatory, 234 are Steinway pianos. The remainder of the collection includes acoustical vertical pianos, historical pianos, a Yamaha Disklavier, and two Electronic Piano Labs. Warner Concert Hall, Finney Chapel, and Clonick Hall each feature Steinway Model D Concert Grands (one from New York and one from Hamburg in each hall).
Orchestral Instruments. Students have access to the Conservatory’s large collection of orchestral instruments, including all stringed and wind instruments, and six Lyon and Healy harps. Through the generosity of the Kulas Foundation, Oberlin owns two Gagliano violins and other performance-quality stringed instruments.
Organs. The Kulas Organ Center, located in the Robertson Hall practice building, is composed of practice rooms equipped with organs of various designs, both mechanical action and electro-pneumatic. Of the mechanical action tracker organs, six are Flentrops, one is a Brombaugh, and two are Noacks. Three electro-pneumatic organs are Holtkamps.
The teaching studios in Bibbins Hall contain Flentrop organs. Warner Concert Hall houses a splendid three-manual Flentrop organ of forty-four stops. Built entirely in classical North European style, this instrument was installed in 1974. Finney Chapel houses a Fisk Opus 116 organ. This magnificent instrument, a symphonic organ in the romantic tradition, complements the Flentrop in Warner. Three continuo organs, two by Flentrop and one by Byrd, are also available for use in the performing halls. A positiv organ by Flentrop is located in the front of Fairchild Chapel, and a two-manual Brombaugh organ in mean-tone temperament was installed in the gallery of Fairchild Chapel in 1981. In addition, an organ in the style of Silbermann by Bozeman-Gibson is housed in the Peace Church.
Harpsichords. The collection of harpsichords available for instruction, practice, and concerts includes: four French doubles (one by Hill, one by Dowd, one by Kingston, and one by Lake); four Italian singles (by Dowd, Dupree, Clark, and Sutherland); a German double by Hill; a Gräbner model German double harpsichord, JPH (John Phillips Harpsichords) opus 112; a Flemish double by Zuckerman; a Flemish single and a Flemish virginal by Martin; a a pedal clavichord by Spearstra; and a clavichord by Gough.
Other Instruments. The Conservatory owns four fortepianos: five-octave instruments by McNulty, Wolf, and Hester, and a six-and-one-half octave by McCobb. Oberlin’s collection also includes a mid-19th-century Erard grand piano that was completely rebuilt by David Winston in 1993.
The Conservatory owns a large collection of viols for use by its Baroque ensembles and viol consorts. Oberlin’s Baroque instruments are sufficient to form a large Baroque orchestra: twelve Baroque violins, two Baroque violas, three Baroque cellos, and a violone, as well as Baroque flutes, recorders, oboes, bassoon, baroque guitar, baroque trumpets, and natural horns. Also included in the collection are various earlier instruments including vihuela, shawms, krummhorns, vielles, harps, and cornetti.
Oberlin has a Javanese gamelan (complete with both slendro and pelog tuning systems), a large collection of Gambian Mandinka koras and xylophones from West Africa, and a representative selection of classical instruments from China, Japan, Korea, Turkey, and India.
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Degree and Diploma Programs
General. The Conservatory offers the following degree and diploma programs of undergraduate and graduate study: Bachelor of Music, Performance Diploma, Master of Music, Master of Contemporary Chamber Music, and Artist Diploma. The College of Arts and Sciences offers a Bachelor of Arts with a major in Musical Studies for students who wish to major in music at Oberlin without the professional orientation of a Conservatory major. The B.A. in music is described under “Musical Studies Program” in the College of Arts and Sciences section of this catalog.
Bachelor of Music Degree (BM). Majors within the Bachelor of Music are offered in:
Performance-piano, organ, voice, strings (violin, viola, cello, double bass, guitar, harp), woodwinds (flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon), brass (trumpet, horn, trombone, tuba), percussion, early instruments (harpsichord, recorder, Baroque flute, Baroque oboe, Baroque violin, Baroque cello/viola da gamba);
Composition;
Jazz Studies (Composition or Performance);
Musicology;
Piano Performance and Vocal Accompanying (double major);
Technology in Music and Related Arts.
An Individual Major leading to a Bachelor of Music degree may be designed with a concentration in a single Conservatory department or among two or more Conservatory departments. In some cases Arts and Sciences courses may be an integral part of a student’s major. Examples of possible concentrations include African-American music, liturgical music, Suzuki violin pedagogy, fortepiano, and arts management. Programs of study for an Individual Major must be based on teaching and course resources available at Oberlin or at other schools with courses transferable to Oberlin. Private reading courses may not be planned for key areas of the major and only a small amount of course-credit central to the major may be earned away from Oberlin. For guidelines and policy, see the Conservatory Individual Major’s Handbook (available from the Conservatory’s Office of the Associate Deans).
Minors within the Bachelor of Music are offered in:
Performance (piano, organ, voice, horn, trumpet, trombone, tuba, harpsichord, fortepiano, recorder, Baroque flute, Baroque oboe, Baroque violin, Baroque cello, viola da gamba);
Composition;
Ethnomusicology;
Music History;
Music Theory;
Piano Pedagogy;
Technology in Music and Related Arts.
Performance Diploma (PDip). This four-semester program, offered only in certain performance departments, is designed for the very small number of gifted performers who have not yet completed the Bachelor of Music or its equivalent and who are seeking a very narrowly focused program of study leading to a performance oriented career. Students in the Bachelor of Music degree program who have completed requirements for both the Bachelor of Music degree and the Performance Diploma will receive only the Bachelor of Music degree.
The Double-Degree Program. This program of study, completed withiin five years, leads to both the Bachelor of Arts and the Bachelor of Music degrees. Students must be admitted to both the Conservatory and the College of Arts and Sciences and complete a major in each. The program is described in the section of the catalog entitled “Double-Degree Program .”
Master of Music (MM) in Conducting. The MM in Conducting is available only as part of a five-year program integrated with undergraduate study at Oberlin in Performance, Composition, or Music History.
Master of Music (MM) in Performance on Historical Instruments. The MM in Performance on Historical Instruments is intended for a limited number of students who have acquired skills on historical instruments and who wish to pursue practical study in performance in combination with the study of performance practice and musicology. Concentrations are offered in harpsichord, fortepiano, organ, Baroque violin, Baroque flute, recorder, Baroque cello/viola da gamba, historical keyboard instruments (harpsichord, fortepiano, and organ, combined), and historical oboes (Baroque, Classical, and other oboes). Students holding an undergraduate degree from another institution will take four semesters to complete the program. Oberlin undergraduates may audition during their junior year for a five-year program that combines the Bachelor of Music degree in a modern instrument with the MM in an historical instrument.
Master of Contemporary Chamber Music (MCCM). The MCCM degree program is a professionally focused two-year graduate program designed to launch chamber music ensembles of exceptional artistic and creative potential. Through a curriculum of intensive coaching combined with individual applied study, coursework in theory and musicology designed to deepen analytical and stylistic perspectives, and entrepreneurship courses that develop professional support skills as well as foster an innovative approach, ensembles will develop their craft, artistry, and programming over the course of the program. Ensembles will benefit from faculty mentoring as well as support from touring, recording, and competitions and will be eligible to apply for startup funding offered through Oberlin’s Creativity & Leadership project.
Artist Diploma (ADip). This four-semester program, offered only in certain performance departments and in piano technology, is intended for a limited number of exceptionally gifted performers who normally have completed the BM or its equivalent, who have acquired extensive musical background through institutional or private studies or through unusual performing experiences, and who wish to concentrate on private applied study without additional course requirements. Oberlin Conservatory Bachelor of Music graduates may apply to the Artist Diploma program only with the recommendation of the department and approval of the Office of Associate Deans of the Conservatory. Students who enroll in and/or complete the Artist Diploma program may not transfer to the Bachelor of Music degree program.
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Requirements for Graduation
The Bachelor of Music is awarded upon completion of the following requirements:
1. Course and non-course requirements for one or more majors leading to the BM degree;
2. 168 credits, including 32 credits of Arts and Sciences courses;
3. Three Winter Term projects;
4. The residence requirement;
5. A minimum GPA of 1.67.
The Master of Music in Conducting and the Master of Music in Historical Performance combined with an undergraduate degree in performance on a modern instrument are awarded upon completion of:
1. The requirements for a specified undergraduate major;
2. The course and non-course requirements for the graduate major.
The Master of Music in Performance on Historical Instruments and Master of Contemporary Chamber Music are awarded upon completion of:
1. The course and non-course requirements for the graduate degree.
The Performance Diploma is awarded upon completion of:
1. Specified course and non-course requirements;
2. 64 credits;
3. Four semesters in residence.
The Artist Diploma is awarded upon completion of:
1. Specified course and non-course requirements;
2. 40 credits;
3. Four semesters in residence.
Residence Requirement. Undergraduate Conservatory degree students must be in residence at Oberlin or in Oberlin College programs for a minimum of six semesters.
Conservatory Writing Requirement. All entering Conservatory and Double-Degree students must complete a writing assessment, administered by the Conservatory Writing Committee. Generally, this assessment takes place during Orientation week. Students who enter the Conservatory midway through the academic year must complete this assessment by the end of the second week of classes of the Spring semester.
This assessment is graded on a Pass/No Pass basis. Students who receive a passing grade on this initial assessment will have satisfied the Writing Requirement. Students who receive a No Pass on this initial assessment must successfully complete a second writing assessment by the end of their second year. For this second assessment, students must compile and submit to the Conservatory Writing Committee a portfolio comprising two pieces of persuasive writing and one reflective piece. Types of writing that might be submitted include (but are not limited to) essays submitted for Oberlin courses (College or Conservatory), artistic statements, program notes, personal statements, and grant proposals. The Conservatory Writing Committee will award each portfolio a grade of Pass or No Pass. Students who receive a Passing grade will have successfully completed the Writing Requirement. Students who receive a No Pass on this second assessment may revise and resubmit their portfolio one more time. Students must receive a Pass upon resubmission in order to satisfy the Writing Requirement.
Students are expected to complete the Conservatory Writing Requirement by the end of their second year of study at Oberlin. Students may not schedule their Junior Recitals until they have completed the Writing Requirement. Conservatory students enrolled in degree programs that do not require Junior Recitals will not be permitted to enroll in upper-division courses (taken during the Junior year or later, according to the advising grids) until they have successfully completed the Writing Requirement.
Numerous campus resources are available to help students develop their writing skills and fulfill the Conservatory Writing Requirement. These include Oberlin’s Writing Center and writing-oriented courses offered through the College of Arts & Sciences. Additionally, it is expected that Conservatory students develop as writers as they progress through the first years of the Conservatory curriculum, in particular their musicology and music theory coursework. To this end, students are encouraged to work closely with their Conservatory teachers (during office hours and the like) to hone their writing skills as they progress through these courses. Students enrolled in the English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) sequence will prepare to fulfill the Conservatory Writing Requirement as part of their ESOL coursework.
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Major Study
General. Students in a Conservatory degree program are required to pursue full-time one or more Conservatory majors in every semester of enrollment and are expected to progress toward completion of the degree at the rate suggested by the recommended course distribution for each Conservatory major. Recommendations differ for double-degree students and are described in the double-degree section of this catalog.
Major Requirements. Requirements for each major are described in the Oberlin course catalog each year. Students are responsible for compliance with the major requirements stated in the Oberlin College Course Catalog in effect when they first matriculate at Oberlin, unless action by an appropriate faculty body specifically directs otherwise. Unless so directed by the Conservatory Faculty, the student may elect to follow either the requirements in effect when entering Oberlin or those in effect in any subsequent year; the student must follow one complete set of requirements, however. Unless the student notifies the Registrar to the contrary, the Registrar assumes that the student will follow the requirements described in the course catalog for the year the student entered Oberlin.
Any student who returns to Oberlin to complete a major after more than four semesters away is bound to follow the requirements in effect at the time the student reenters Oberlin.
The regulations governing major requirements for double-degree students differ and are described in the double-degree section of this catalog.
Major Status. In addition to Enrollment Status, which is determined by the number of credits completed towards graduation, the Conservatory recognizes Major Status, which is determined by the requirements completed towards the major in a given semester. Major Status for each major is defined in the relevant section of the catalog.
If students are denied continuation in a major by action of the Academic Standing Committee, they are permitted to enroll for the following semester without a major for the purpose of finding a new major; more than one semester of enrollment without a major is not permitted.
Change of Major. Any student interested in changing majors or in adding a second major must initiate that request through the Office of the Associate Deans of the Conservatory. A student must audition before a committee in the department of the new major before changing performance majors or before adding a second performance major. Auditions are arranged by the Conservatory Admissions Office. An interview with the appropriate Conservatory division director is required for changes involving majors other than performance.
If students are denied continuation in a major by action of the Academic Standing Committee, they are permitted to enroll for the following semester without a major for the purpose of finding a new major; more than one semester of enrollment without a major is not permitted.
Studio Change Policy. Any student in a multi-studio department who wishes to request a change of studio must first schedule an appointment with the Conservatory’s Associate Dean for Student Academic Affairs to discuss the rationale for such a request. If a possible change seems warranted, the Associate Dean will instruct the student to meet with the current teacher to attempt to resolve any conflicts. If both the student and teacher agree that the teaching relationship cannot continue, the teacher will sign the change of studio form. The student will take the signed form to the Office of the Associate Dean for Student Academic Affairs. The Associate Dean will make every attempt to place the student in another studio on a space-available basis. Students should not approach another faculty member with a request to change into his or her studio until the above steps have been completed.
Studio changes normatively take effect at the beginning of the academic year; mid-year studio changes are not typically possible. Studio Change Requests for the next academic year must be made by June 1.
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Minor Study
Degree students in the Conservatory are eligible for a minor area of study. A student admitted to a minor program that did not exist in the year of the catalog governing her/his major requirements will follow the requirements for a minor in a subsequent catalog. The specific requirements for each minor are described in the relevant section of the catalog.
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Student Solo Concerts and Recitals
General. All solo concerts and recitals are scheduled through the Conservatory’s Office of Concert Production. All recitals will be scheduled to occur before the beginning of the reading period of each semester. See http://oberlin.edu/conpro/ for production policies and procedures governing the scheduling of performances.
Danenberg Honors Recitals. These recitals are intended to acquaint the entire student body with the highest standard of student performance. Performers are chosen by audition.
Senior Recitals. Students are expected to perform the senior recital no later than the last semester of enrollment. Students who need to give the senior recital after the last semester of enrollment must do so on campus during a period when the Conservatory is in session, either a fall or spring semester, or during a Conservatory summer school session. Students must register for private study in the semester during which they give the senior recital. They must register for hourly private-study lessons during the period leading up to the recital unless the recital is given during the first two weeks of the semester following the final semester of enrollment.
In addition, the aural skills requirement must be completed before the senior recital can be scheduled. Students who complete all of the requirements for graduation (with the exception of the senior recital) in December of a given year, or who are eligible to enroll part-time in their final semester, and who wish to continue their private study and perform their senior recital during the subsequent semester must register for a minimum of two credits of applied study at the credit-hour rate in effect that academic year.
Students not majoring in Performance or Composition may give a non-required senior recital with the approval of their private applied or composition study teacher. Two previous appearances on departmental, studio, or honors recitals are required.
See http://oberlin.edu/conpro/ for production policies and procedures relevant to the scheduling of senior recitals. A maximum of one hour and twenty minutes, including intermission, will be allotted to each senior recital.
Junior Recitals. See http://oberlin.edu/conpro/ for production policies and procedures relevant to the scheduling of junior recitals.
Division Recitals. See http://oberlin.edu/conpro/ for production policies and procedures relevant to the scheduling of recitals.
Recording. All Junior Recitals, all required and non-required Senior Recitals, and all Honors Recitals will be recorded by the Conservatory Audio Department. High-quality recording units in Kulas Recital Hall and Warner Concert Hall may be used to provide recordings of performances in division and studio recitals.
All concerts by Oberlin Conservatory organizations are recorded. These recordings are available for class work and private listening, and many are available for purchase through the Conservatory Audio Department. Oberlin Conservatory reserves the right to use these recordings to promote the school and raise money for the scholarship fund. All students who participate in performances and recordings release Oberlin Conservatory from any obligation, financial or otherwise.
Extracurricular Performances. A student must secure permission from his or her principal advisor before engaging in any extracurricular performances. This rule applies to all solo performances, special ensemble work, and accompaniments within the Conservatory, as well as outside activities. See http://oberlin.edu/conpro/ for production policies and procedures relevant to extracurricular recitals.
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Student-Taught Applied Study
Supervised Student Teaching Program. Each semester a number of students are recommended by their private-study teachers to provide private instruction to Conservatory and Arts and Sciences students who have been approved by audition for secondary applied private study. The program is administered by the Conservatory’s Office of Associate Deans. Supervised student teachers are closely mentored by their own private-study teachers or by an appointed faculty member. Students taking student-taught secondary lessons are required to register for 2 credits. The student teacher will be remunerated. (For current remuneration rates, please consult the Conservatory’s Office of the Dean.)
Supervised student teachers of piano are required to have completed (or be currently enrolled in) APST 210: Intermediate Piano Pedagogy. Supervised student teachers of voice must have completed APST 230: The Teaching of Singing.
The faculty supervisor meets with the supervised student teachers and their secondary lesson students during the first two weeks of the semester. After hearing the secondary lesson students perform, the faculty supervisor works with the supervised student teachers to establish realistic goals for the semester. Faculty supervisors are expected to hear students assigned to student teachers in their studios at least once prior to midterm. This hearing may take the form of an appearance in the regularly scheduled studio class or in a special meeting with students and student teachers. At the close of the semester, and most typically during the examination period, the students and supervised student teachers meet with the faculty supervisor to perform some material prepared during the course of the semester.
All lessons with supervised student teachers are offered for Pass/No Pass grading only. Grades for these student-taught secondary lessons are assigned by the supervised student teacher in consultation with the faculty supervisor and submitted to the Registrar by the faculty supervisor.
Approved Student Teaching Program. The Administrative Assistant in the Applied Studies Office maintains a list of students recommended by their private-study teachers as qualified to give instruction in voice or on their instruments. These students are authorized to use the Conservatory’s facilities in Robertson Hall to teach Conservatory and Arts and Sciences students or individuals not connected with Oberlin College. No credit is offered for such study. The student is expected to remunerate the student teacher directly. For current remuneration rates, please consult the Conservatory’s Office of the Dean.
Facilities for Student Teaching. Only students in the Supervised Student Teaching program or the Approved Student Teaching program are permitted to use Conservatory facilities for teaching.
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Summer Programs
The Conservatory offers a series of workshops and institutes that provide high-school and college students, teachers, and accomplished amateurs with exceptional opportunities to develop performance and teaching skills, expand repertoire, build technique, and generally enjoy music-making and performances in a supportive and collegial atmosphere. Participants will study with members of the Conservatory’s distinguished resident and guest faculty and will have full use of the Conservatory’s exceptional facilities. Participants may be eligible to receive college credit.
Previous workshops and institutes have included:
Baroque Performance Institute (Kenneth Slowik, Artistic Director)
Composition Workshop (Stephen Hartke, Director)
Cooper International Piano Competition (Robert Shannon, Director)/Violin Competition (Gregory Fulkerson, Director)
Oberlin Piano Festival
Oberlin in Italy (Daune Mahy, Artistic Director)
Oberlin Percussion Institute (Michael Rosen, Director)
Oberlin Trumpet Workshop (Roy Poper, Director)
Sonic Arts Workshop (Tom Lopez, Peter Swendsen, Co-Directors)
Vocal Academy for High School Students (Daune Mahy and Salvatore Champagne, Co-Directors)
Conservatory students interested in summer lessons should contact the Associate Dean for Student Academic Affairs for policy information.
For a brochure and information on current workshops and institutes, contact the Office for Summer Programs, Oberlin Conservatory of Music, 77 West College St, Oberlin, OH 44074. Phone: (440) 775-8044. Web address: www.oberlin.edu/con/summer.
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