Course Requirements
For course requirements for the Performance Major: Piano Concentration, please see the grid .
Music Theory and Aural Skills Requirement
All BM students complete a core of music theory and aural skills classes, which includes the following: Music Theory I-II (MUTH 131 and 132), which prepares students to hear, perform, and communicate about multiple aspects of music in diverse repertoires; two additional music theory courses at the 200 level (MUTH 250-299), which include topic- and repertoire-based classes that are chosen in consultation with academic advisors; Aural Skills I-IV (MUTH 101, 102, 201, 202). Students are expected to register for one Music Theory and one Aural Skills course each semester until they have completed the core requirements.
A music theory placement test score of 80 or higher is a prerequisite for MUTH 131. Students with lower scores must successfully complete MUTH 120 before taking MUTH 131. The placement exam may be taken five times.
The First Private Study Committee Examination
This examination will consist of approximately eight minutes of solo music, prepared with the major teacher, to be performed from memory for a faculty jury composed of the entire piano department, at the end of the freshman year. Transfer students with two or more semesters of piano credit will not be required to take this examination. This examination will not be graded and is advisory in nature. Comments will be offered by the jury.
The Second Private Study Committee Examination
This examination will consist of 25
minutes of solo music, of which 12 minutes will be heard.
Repertoire must include a minimum of two contrasting styles and include
at least one work written before 1900. This
repertoire is to be prepared with the major teacher, and is to be
performed from memory for a
faculty jury composed of the entire piano department, at the end of the
sophomore year, or at the
end of the fourth semester of study. It is graded pass/fail and must be
passed by a majority of the
jury in order for the student to continue as a piano performance major.
Comments will be offered
by the jury. A failed sophomore committee may be taken a second time in
the first two weeks of
the following semester. At least one work must be new repertoire.
The Third Private Study Committee Examination
This examination will consist of one piece chosen by the student from three selected by the faculty and announced two weeks before the examination date. This examination will take place at the end of the first semester of the junior year, or at the end of the fifth semester of study. This music will be self-prepared, without help from the teacher or others, and will be memorized. This examination will be graded, and comments will be offered by the jury, which will consist of the entire piano faculty. Students who do not receive an average grade of B- or better will be required to repeat the Committee.
The Junior Recital
Two performances on a divisional or public studio recital, or on an honors recital are required before the junior recital. This will consist of solo works performed from memory. The maximum length shall be 35 minutes. Minimum length shall be 25 minutes.
The Senior Recital
This will consist of at least 50 minutes of solo repertoire performed from memory. In addition chamber works or concertos can be scheduled. A balance of repertoire is expected. Unusual or esoteric programs must be submitted to the piano department for approval. Students are required to play a pre-recital hearing (20 minutes) a minimum of two weeks before their senior recital. The senior recital may be performed during the first or second semester, or during Winter Term.
Conservatory Writing Requirement
The Conservatory Writing Requirement is designed to help students develop the ability to do the following: communicate effectively in writing, understand writing as a process, engage in writing as a form of critical thinking, demonstrate rhetorical flexibility by addressing various audiences and purposes in their writing, and demonstrate awareness of the conventions and forms of writing in particular disciplines.
As noted in the Conservatory of Music Degree Requirements section of this catalog, the writing requirement is as follows:
Students are required to complete one writing course, either Writing-Intensive (WINT) or Writing-Advanced (WADV). It is strongly advised that students complete this course by the end of the second year of study. The course must be completed at Oberlin, with the exception that transfer students may petition to count a transferred course with a comparable focus on writing toward this requirement. The petition to request transfer of credit toward the writing requirement can be accessed here. Taking a second writing course during studies at Oberlin is strongly recommended.
Courses carrying the Writing-Intensive (WINT) designation involve explicit instruction in writing, are generally limited in size to allow such instruction, and require multiple writing assignments. These courses are designed to help students develop, compose, revise, organize, and edit prose appropriate to the discipline or course. Courses carrying the Writing-Advanced (WADV) designation are associated with the major and aim at helping students develop as writers within a discipline, employing the conventions and styles appropriate to that field and demonstrating the depth and engagement with disciplinary issues and practices typical of knowledgeable practitioners.
Numerous campus resources are available to help students develop their writing skills, including Oberlin’s Writing Associates Program and the Writing Center. Conservatory students are encouraged to work closely with their Conservatory teachers to hone their music-specific writing skills as they progress through their degree requirements, with particular encouragement to engage in writing artistic statements, program notes, and grant proposals. Students enrolled in the English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) sequence will fulfill the Conservatory Writing Requirement as part of their ESOL coursework, specifically with the successful completion of ESOL 140 .
Accompanying Courses
The following courses are available to piano majors and to other qualified keyboard players interested in accompanying:
Related Programs
For a description of the major and minor in harpsichord and the minor in fortepiano, see the Historical Performance Program.
