Major
Study: Composition
Course
Requirements Recommended Course
Distribution
| Hrs. |
|
Fresh |
Soph |
Junior |
Senior |
|
12 |
COMP
102, 103, 202, 203 |
|
|
|
(Composition
Class I-IV) |
3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
|
- |
- |
|
- |
- |
|
16 |
Principal
Private Study (Composition) |
- |
- |
- |
- |
|
4 |
4 |
|
4 |
4 |
|
4 |
Secondary
Private Study (Piano) |
2 |
2 |
- |
- |
|
- |
- |
|
- |
- |
|
4 |
Ensemble
electives |
- |
- |
- |
- |
|
1 |
1 |
|
1 |
1 |
|
12 |
MUTH
131, 132, 231, 232 (Music Theory) |
3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
|
- |
- |
|
- |
- |
|
5 |
MUTH
101, 102, 201, 202, 301 (Aural Skills) |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
|
- |
1 |
|
- |
- |
|
6 |
COMP
210 (Composition Seminar) |
- |
- |
3 |
3 |
|
- |
- |
|
- |
- |
|
4 |
COMP
300, 301 (Orchestration) |
- |
- |
- |
- |
|
2 |
2 |
|
- |
- |
|
3 |
CNTP
310 (New Music Workshop) |
|
|
|
|
|
- |
3 |
|
- |
- |
|
3 |
TECH
100 (Intro to Music Tech I) |
- |
- |
3 |
- |
|
- |
- |
|
- |
- |
|
3 |
TECH
150 (Studio Skills for Composers)1 |
- |
- |
- |
3 |
|
- |
- |
|
- |
- |
|
9 |
Upper-Division
Music Theory electives2,3 |
- |
- |
- |
- |
|
3 |
3 |
|
3 |
- |
|
4 |
MHST 101 (Intro
to the History and |
|
|
|
Literature
of Music)4 |
4 |
- |
- |
- |
|
- |
- |
|
- |
- |
|
3 |
MHST
275 (Music in the 20th Century) |
- |
- |
- |
3 |
|
- |
- |
|
- |
- |
|
3 |
Music
History elective |
- |
- |
- |
- |
|
- |
- |
|
3 |
- |
|
24 |
Liberal
Arts electives |
3 |
3 |
3 |
- |
|
3 |
3 |
|
3 |
6 |
|
|
9 |
Free
electives |
- |
3 |
- |
- |
|
3 |
- |
|
- |
3 |
|
124 |
|
16 |
15 |
16 |
16 |
|
16 |
17 |
|
15 |
14 |
Non-Course
Requirements
Private
Study Committee Exams:
| First
Major Committee |
- |
ˆ |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
| Second
Major Committee |
- |
- |
- |
ˆ |
- |
- |
- |
- |
Composition
Requirement:
| Sophomore/Junior
Requirement |
- |
- |
- |
- |
(ˆ) |
(ˆ) |
- |
- |
| Senior
Requirement5 |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
(ˆ) |
(ˆ) |
1 Or any other studio
course in the Timara Department.
2 Two courses are required, to include
one chosen from among the following:
MUTH 370 (Music
of the 20th Century)
MUTH 374 (Trends
in Contemporary Music)
MUTH 477 (The
Music of Schoenberg)
3 One upper-division counterpoint
course is required, to be chosen from the following:
MUTH 323
(Two-Part and Three-Part Renaissance
Counterpoint)
MUTH 325
(Counterpoint in Composition)
MUTH 435
(Eighteenth-Century Counterpoint)
If a student has
already taken the counterpoint module as part of
the Composition Class sequence, either MUTH 325 or
MUTH 435 must be chosen instead of MUTH
323.
4 May be waived by placement examination
when the student enters Oberlin.
5 The Extended Piece requirement
and the Senior Thesis may be completed during the first or second
semester.
Music Theory
and Aural Skills Requirement. Students are
expected to register for Music Theory and Aural
Skills courses each semester until they have
completed the requirements. Part or all of these
requirements may be waived by placement examination
when the student enters Oberlin. If the minimum
passing scores are not achieved for placement in
Music Theory I (MUTH 131) and Aural Skills I (MUTH
101), a student must first take Introduction to
Music Theory (MUTH 120) and/or Introduction to
Aural Skills (MUTH 100). If a student exempts Aural
Skills I, II, III, or IV, then Aural Skills V (MUTH
301) becomes the terminal course in the
sequence.
Music Theory I-IV
and Aural Skills I-IV must be taken concurrently,
e.g., a student will register for Music Theory I
and Aural Skills I in the same semester. Under
certain circumstances, with the permission of the
appropriate division director and the Music Theory
division director, students will be allowed to take
Aural Skills IV and Music Theory IV separately. A
student's aural skills requirement must be
completed before the senior recital can be
scheduled. Double-degree students will resolve any
conflicts with these expectations in consultation
with their advisors.
Electives.
A student should select electives based on the
following: a minimum of 76 hours of Conservatory
courses is required; a minimum of 24 hours of
liberal arts is required.
Major
Status. Freshman Major Status is attained upon
being accepted in the Conservatory as a composition
major.
Sophomore Major
Status is attained upon completion of COMP 103
(Composition Class II) and the First Major
Committee Examination.
Junior Major
Status is attained upon completion of COMP 203
(Composition Class IV) and the Second Major
Committee Examination.
Senior Major
Status is attained upon completion of PVST VI
(Principal Composition Study) and the
Sophomore/Junior Composition
requirement.
Aims. One
of the aims of the major in composition is to
provide aspiring young composers with the means to
extend their musical imagination by studying with
an experienced composer, by close examination of
masterpieces of all eras, and by a thorough
knowledge of contemporary musical
expression.
Another aim,
closely interwoven with the first, is to provide
the means for the effective transmission of musical
ideas to performers and audiences by the crafts of
composition, i.e., notation, orchestration, and the
balance of musical form and content.
Since most majors
who finish their degrees at Oberlin choose to
continue their education, yet another aim is to
prepare the student for the graduate school
environment and to facilitate placement in the
institution of the student's choice.
Expository
Writing Proficiency. Students with an SAT
verbal score below 580 or an ACT score below 24, or
a TOEFL score below 600 must complete one course
chosen from the EXWR 111-119 series.
Composition
Requirements. The Sophomore/Junior Composition
requirement consists of the composition of a
minimum of three original pieces. The performance
of these must be approved by the department and
presented on departmental recitals, unless the
composition will be performed in a reading or in a
public performance by one of the following
ensembles: Contemporary Music Ensemble, Oberlin
Wind Ensemble, Oberlin College Choir, Oberlin
Orchestra. This requirement cannot be replaced by a
Junior, Senior, or studio class recital. Pieces
composed during the freshman year may not be
included.
The Senior
Composition requirement is to complete two separate
works:
1. The Senior
Thesis must be a composition for a large ensemble
such as orchestra or wind ensemble. The duration is
not defined.
2. An extended
piece having a minimum duration of ten minutes or
more is also required. The ensemble is not
defined.
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