The goal is to produce a resourceful, imaginative musician who will feel at ease with many kinds of music. Care is taken to keep technical work and musical understanding closely related at each stage of development.

Private-study lessons or master classes are taken with a resident faculty member or with a teaching artist selected by agreement of the student, the teacher, and the director of the Conservatory of Music. Guidance in the choice of teacher is available from the resident faculty, in particular the head of the student’s undergraduate major or graduate area of concentration. Each student must complete a course of lessons or master classes and receive an evaluation of satisfactory technical and musical progress from the private teacher each semester.

The Conservatory of Music offers 13 private-study lessons per semester to students in performance and composition. Studio composition and production students receive 13 master classes (small-group study) per semester. Private-study lessons or master classes may not exceed eight semesters for undergraduates and four semesters for graduate students. For students enrolled in other programs, undergraduate credit is available (at additional cost) in MPE 4350, with permission of the director of the Conservatory of Music.

Required Course Fee

There is a required course fee ($1,219.87 per semester) for these private-study lessons and master classes. Please note that this fee is subject to annual increases.