The Music Program offers a broad range of opportunities to experience and explore the field of music. A great variety of subjects is offered, ranging from Fundamentals of Music to Senior Seminar for Music Majors. The subjects are arranged into six categories: introductory, history/literature, theory/composition, performance, special topics/advanced subjects, and music/media. Most students begin with introductory subjects, but anyone with musical training is encouraged to begin with history/literature or theory/composition subjects, which constitute the nucleus of the program. Graduate credit is available for some performance and special topics/advanced subjects.
The symphony orchestra, choral groups, wind and jazz ensembles, chamber music groups, and gamelan and rambax ensembles are an integral part of MIT's cultural life, and any student is welcome to audition for one or more of them. Auditions are held at the beginning of each term. Academic credit is available for some performance groups and private study.
Twenty-three professors and lecturers who specialize in composition, performance, music theory, and music history offer a wide variety of classes, which form our Music Program.
The undergraduate program leading to the degree of Bachelor of Science in Music is concerned with a confluence of three basic areas: a thorough grounding in the harmony and counterpoint of Western music; in-depth studies in the history and repertoire of Western and World music; and performing experience in small and/or large ensembles. Six required subjects (one of which consists of two terms of performance) and four electives (which must include subjects from three different areas) form the core of the program, which can be supplemented by eight unrestricted electives (for 96 additional units). This program is analogous to that for music majors at leading liberal arts colleges and universities, and it prepares a student in many ways for graduate study in the field. Students who declare music as their major must ordinarily demonstrate proficiency in instrumental or vocal performance by participating in a performance subject and in harmony/counterpoint by obtaining a grade of B or better in 21M.301.
The Minor in Music requires six subjects that will give students experience within the three main branches of musical activity: performance, composition, and history. The four subjects in Tiers I and II are at the introductory or intermediate level. Those in Tier III provide depth in one of the three branches.
| Tier I | One subject, typically chosen from the following: | |
| 21M.011 | Introduction to Western Music | |
| 21M.030 | Introduction to World Music | |
| 21M.051 | Fundamentals of Music | |
| Students with sufficient musical knowledge
or experience may substitute a subject from Tier II or III for the subject in Tier I. Please discuss this possibility with the minor advisor. |
||
| Tier II | Three subjects, one from each of the following areas: | |
| History/Literature: 21M.226, 21M.201–299 | ||
| Theory/Composition: 21M.301 | ||
| Performance (two terms): 21M.401–499 |
||
| Tier III | Two subjects from one of the following areas of specialization: | |
| |
History/Literature: 21M.201–299, 21M.500 | |
| Theory/Composition: 21M.302–399 | ||
| |
Performance (four terms): 21M.401–499 |
For students interested in combining the study of engineering or science with music, a joint major in the 21E or 21S degree program provides an opportunity to study both fields. The joint major requires four subjects (21M.220, 21M.301, 21M.302, and 21M.500), two terms of performance subjects, electives in two musical fields (usually composition and history), a 12-unit elective in any musical field (composition, history, or two terms of performance), and six elective subjects in an engineering or science curriculum.
NB: Joint as well as full majors may, with faculty approval, substitute three full years of Advanced Musical Performance (21M.480) and a senior recital for the two required terms of performance subjects and two electives.
Students wishing to enroll in any of these degree programs should consult the major advisor in music no later than the first term of their junior year.
Subjects in music are described in the online MIT Subject Listing & Schedule, http://student.mit.edu/catalog/index.cgi. Further information on subjects and programs may be obtained from the Music Section Office, Room 4-246, 617-253-3210.
The Program in Theater Arts offers the opportunity for an imaginative and rigorous engagement with the arts and disciplines of theater: acting, directing, playwriting, design, technical work, dance, and scholarship. The program combines work in the classroom, in the studio, and on the stage. Performance is the testing ground for what is learned in the classroom and the experiences, from student-generated workshops to fully-mounted productions by Dramashop and Playwrights-in-Performance. All these activities are guided by a professional faculty and staff, often with the enriching participation of guest artists. A degree is offered under Course 21; see the Department of Humanities section for details.
The Minor in Theater Arts is designed to give students the opportunity to experiment imaginatively but constructively in the making of theater. The flexibility of the minor allows students either to explore the basic principles of several theater disciplines or to concentrate more deeply on one.
The Minor in Theater Arts consists of the equivalent of six subjects arranged in three levels of study as follows:
| Tier I | Analysis and Theory
One subject from the following: |
|
| 21M.616 | Learning from the Past: Drama, Science, Performance | |
| 21M.617 | Science and Theatrical Imagination | |
| 21M.621 | Theater and Cultural Diversity in the US | |
| 21M.670J | Traditions in American Concert Dance: Gender and Autobiography (HASS-D, CI-H) |
|
| 21M.703J | Media and Methods: Performing | |
| 21M.710 | Script Analysis (CI-H) | |
| 21M.711 | Production Seminar | |
| 21M.712 | African-American Performance | |
| 21M.713 | |
Selected Studies in Theater |
| Tier II | Practical Studies Four subjects: |
|
| 21M.600 | |
Introduction to Acting |
| 21M.603 | Design for the Theater: Projects in Making | |
| 21M.604 | Playwriting I | |
| 21M.605 | Voice and Speech for the Actor | |
| 21M.606 | Introduction to Stagecraft | |
| 21M.611 | Foundations of Theater Practice | |
| 21M.645 | Composition for Stage and Performance | |
| 21M.675 | Dance Theory and Composition | |
| 21M.704 | Musical Theater Workshop | |
| 21M.705 | The Actor and the Text | |
| 21M.714 | Selected Topics in Theater Arts (minimum of 9 units) | |
| 21M.715 | |
Topics in Technical Theater Design Exploration |
| 21M.732 | Costume Design for the Theater | |
| 21M.733 | Design for the Theater: Scenery | |
| 21M.734 | Lighting Design for the Theater | |
| 21M.735 | Technical Design: Scenery, Mechanisms, Special Effects | |
| 21M.775 | Hip-Hop | |
| 21M.785 | Playwrights' Workshop | |
| 21M.790 | The Director's Craft | |
| 21M.830 | Acting: Techniques and Style | |
| 21M.840 | Performance Media | |
| 21M.846 | Topics in Performance Studies |
|
| Tier III | Production and Performance | |
| 21M.815 | Technical Theater Practicum | |
| or | ||
| 21M.606 | |
Introduction to Stagecraft |
| and either | ||
| 21M.805 | |
Theater Practicum |
| or a minimum of 6 units from any combination of the following subjects: | ||
| 21M.820 | |
Technical Theater Special Topics |
| 21M.851 | |
Special Topics in Drama |
| 21M.863 | Advanced Topics in Theater Arts | |
| 21M.873 | IAP Theater Arts Topics |
Subjects in theater arts are described in the online MIT Subject Listing & Schedule, http://student.mit.edu/catalog/index.cgi. For further information on subjects and programs, contact the Music and Theater Arts Office, Room 4-246, 617-253-3210.
Ellen T. Harris, PhD
Class of 1949 Professor of Music
Section Head, spring
Janet Sonenberg, MFA
Professor of Theater Arts
MacVicar Faculty Fellow
Section Head, fall
(On leave, spring)
Alan Brody, PhD
Professor of Theater Arts
Peter Child, PhD
Professor of Music
MacVicar Faculty Fellow
Thomas F. DeFrantz, PhD
Class of 1948 Professor of Theater Arts
John Harbison, MFA
Professor of Music
Institute Professor
Lowell Edwin Lindgren, PhD
Professor of Music
Marcus Aurelius Thompson, DMA
Robert R. Taylor Professor of Music
(On leave, spring)
Barry Lloyd Vercoe, DMA
Professor of Media Arts and Sciences
Evan Ziporyn, PhD
Kenan Sahin Distinguished Professor of Music
(On leave, fall)
Keeril Makan, PhD
Associate Professor of Music
Jay Scheib, MFA
Associate Professor of Theater Arts
Patricia J. Tang, PhD
Associate Professor of Music
(On leave, spring)
Michael Cuthbert, PhD
Assistant Professor of Music
(On leave)
David Deveau, MM
Senior Lecturer in Music
Martin Marks, PhD
Senior Lecturer in Music
Michael Ouellette, MFA
Senior Lecturer in Theater Arts
George Ruckert, PhD
Senior Lecturer in Music
Charles Shadle, PhD
Senior Lecturer in Music
Pamela Sharon Wood, MM
Senior Lecturer in Music
Adam Boyles, DMA
Lecturer in Music
Director, Orchestra
Sara Brown, MFA
Lecturer in Theater Arts
Director of Design
William C. Cutter, DMA
Lecturer in Music
Director, Choral Programs
Frederick Harris, PhD
Lecturer in Music
Director, Wind Ensembles
(On leave, fall)
Mark Harvey, PhD
Lecturer in Music
Kim Mancuso, MFA
Lecturer in Theater Arts
Theresa Neff, PhD
Lecturer in Music
Jean Rife, BM
Lecturer in Music
Elena L. Ruehr, PhD
Lecturer in Music
Peter Whincop, MA
Lecturer in Music
Leslie Cocuzzo Held, BA
Technical Instructor in Theater Arts
Michael Katz, MFA
Technical Instructor in Theater Arts
Karen Perlow, BA
Technical Instructor in Theater Arts
Jeanne Shapiro Bamberger, MA
Professor of Music, Emerita
Stephen Erdely
Professor of Music, Emeritus