Music (BA)

This program is offered by the Leigh Gerdine College of Fine Arts/Department of Music and is only available at the St. Louis main campus.

Program Description

The bachelor of arts (BA) degree with a major in music is designed for a broad understanding of the music discipline through the study of performance, music theory and music literature. The BA program allows a student to investigate diverse areas of music within a flexible curricular framework.

All students in the BA music degree program must complete a senior thesis.

The bachelor of arts in music conforms to the guidelines specified by the National Association of Schools of Music for accreditation. Webster University is a full member of the National Association of Schools of Music (NASM).

Learning Objectives

Students with a bachelor of arts in music will

• Perform and improvise music from a variety of cultures on a primary and secondary instrument at a level appropriate to the student’s needs and interests. 
• Articulate through writing, speaking, and other media an understanding of the theoretical, historical, and aesthetic frameworks of a variety of musics and musical cultures.
• Apply and integrate aural skills, analysis, and sociohistorical knowledge to the study and interpretation of various musics.
• Demonstrate technological competency necessary to support a career in music.
• Recognize power relations and biases within the arts and society and work actively to promote equity and justice through music.

Admission and Audition Requirements

To be admitted as an undergraduate music major or music minor, applicants must complete an in-person audition/interview with the music faculty and complete various diagnostic examinations. Auditions are arranged through the Office of Undergraduate Admissions. Specific information on the audition requirements for each music degree program is available from the department’s website. Priority consideration for performance scholarships is given to students who complete all admission requirements before February 28 of the application year.

Degree Requirements

For information on the general requirements for a degree, see Baccalaureate Degree Requirements under the Academic Policies and Information section of this catalog.

• 58-61 required credit hours
• Applicable University Global Citizenship Program hours
• Electives

Required Courses

Core Music Courses

• MUSC 1010 Music Theory and Aural Skills I (4 hours)
• MUSC 1020 Music Theory II (3 hours)
• MUSC 1820 Aural Skills II (2 hours)
• A minimum of 6 credit hours chosen from the following:
  • MUSC 1370 Jazz Keyboard Theory I (3 hours)
  • MUSC 2050 Songwriting Theory (3 hours)
  • MUSC 3060 Topics in Music Analysis (2-3 hours)
  • MUSC 3065 Topics in Music Analysis (2-3 hours)
  • MUSC 4030 Eighteenth-Century Counterpoint (3 hours)
• MUSC 2060 Social and Cultural Approaches to Music (3 hours)
• MUSC 2070 Music in Western Culture (3 hours)
• A minimum of 4 credit hours chosen from the following:
  • MUSC 3160 Topics in Musicology (1-3 hours)
  • MUSC 3165 Topics in Musicology (1-3 hours)
  • MUSC 3170 Jazz History (3 hours) 
  • MUSC 3520 History of Popular Styles (3 hours)
  • MUSC 4040 Music of the Twentieth Century (3 hours)
• MUSC 4700 Advanced Topics in Music (2-3 hours) (taken in junior or senior year only)
• MUSC 0200 Candidacy Examination (0 hours)
• MUSC 0500 Senior Overview (0 hours)

Performance Courses

• MUSC 0890 Recital Attendance (six semesters required) (0 hours)
• MUSC 2601, MUSC 2602, MUSC 2603, MUSC 2604, MUSC 2605, MUSC 3001, MUSC 3002, MUSC 3003, MUSC 3004, MUSC 3005 Applied Music (six semesters required) (12 hours)
• MUSC 1080, MUSC 1085, MUSC 2001, MUSC 2501 Class or Applied Piano (2-4 hours)
  (minimum two semesters required)

Major Ensemble
6 hours over 8 semesters, as approved by advisor, to be selected from:

• MUSC 4900 Webster University Chorale (1 hour per semester)
• MUSC 4910 Webster University Chamber Singers (1 hour per semester)
• MUSC 4920 Webster University Aurelia (1 hour per semester)
• MUSC 4940 Webster University Orchestra (1 hour per semester)
• MUSC 4955 Webster University Jazz Singers (1 hour per semester)
• MUSC 4960 Webster University Jazz Combos (1 hour per semester)
• MUSC 4980 Webster University Wind Ensemble (1 hour per semester)

Supportive Courses

• MUSC 4611 Senior Thesis (2 hours)
• MUSC 4612 Writing About Music (1 hour)
• MUSC 4613 Speaking About Music (1 hour)
• MUSC 4614 Music Research (1 hour)

A minimum of 6 credit hours selected from:

• MUSC 2200 Introduction to Music Education (2 hours)
• MUSC 3001, MUSC 3002, MUSC 3003, MUSC 3004, MUSC 3005 Applied Music (2 hours)
• MUSC 3010 Fundamentals of Composition (3 hours)
• MUSC 3020 Techniques of the Contemporary Composer (3 hours)
• MUSC 3070 Orchestration I (3 hours)
• MUSC 3170 Jazz History (3 hours) (unless used for musicology requirement above)
• MUSC 3410 Conducting I (3 hours)
• MUSC 3510 Arranging for Popular Styles (3 hours)
• MUSC 3520 History of Popular Styles (3 hours) (unless used for musicology requirement above)
• MUSC 3530 Lyric Writing (3 hours)
• MUSC 4030 Eighteenth-Century Counterpoint (3 hours) (unless used for music theory requirement above)
• MUSC 4070 Choral Arranging (2 hours)
• MUSC 4150 The Art Song (3 hours)
• MUSC 4160 Operatic Literature (3 hours)
• MUSC 4170 Piano Literature I (2 hours)
• MUSC 4190 Orchestral Literature (3 hours)
• MUSC 4250 Voice Pedagogy I (2 hours)
• MUSC 4255 Voice Pedagogy II (2 hours)
• MUSC 4260 Piano Pedagogy I (2 hours)
• MUSC 4270 Piano Pedagogy II (2 hours)
• MUSC 4370 Advanced Topics in Music Entrepreneurship (3 hours)
• MUSC 3000 Music Entrepreneurship (3 hours)
• MUSC 4370 Advanced Topics in Music Entrepreneurship (3 hours)
• MUSC 4705 The Vienna Musical Experience (3 hours)
• MUSC 4750 Vienna: Language of Lieder (3 hours)