The Music Program offers a broad range of opportunities to experience and explore the realm of music. A great variety of subjects is offered, ranging from Fundamentals of Music to Senior Seminar in Music. The subjects are arranged into six categories: introductory, history/literature, theory/composition, performance, special topics/advanced subjects, and music and 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 upper-level performance, special topics/advanced, and music and media subjects.
The symphony orchestra, choral groups, wind and jazz ensembles, chamber music groups, and the Senegalese drumming and Balinese Gamelan 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 performance groups and for some private study.
Twenty-three professors and lecturers who specialize in composition, performance, and music history offer our wide variety of subjects.
The undergraduate program leading to the degree of Bachelor of Science in Music represents a confluence of three basic areas: a thorough grounding in the theory underpinning Western music, a comprehensive study of the history and repertoire of Western and World music, and performing experience in small and/or large ensembles. Seven required subjects (one of which consists of two terms of performance) and three restricted electives constitute the core of the program, which should be supplemented by additional electives. 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. Before declaring their major, students should 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 music: performance, composition, and history. The four subjects in Tiers I and II are at the introductory or intermediate level. The two in Tier III will 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: | |
| Theory/Composition: 21M.301 | ||
| and one from each of the following areas: | ||
| History/Literature: 21M.220, 21M.235, 21M.250, 21M.260, 21M.291, 21M.293, or another subject (with approval of minor advisor) | ||
| 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 two realms. The joint major requires four subjects (21M.301, 21M.302, 21M.500, and one of the following: 21M.220, 21M.235, 21M.250, or 21M.260), two terms of performance subjects, electives in two categories (usually theory/composition, history/literature), a third elective in any category (theory/composition, history/literature, or two terms of performance), and six subjects that fulfill the engineering or science curriculum portion of the joint degree.
NB: Joint as well as full majors may, with faculty approval, substitute three full years of Advanced Music Performance (21M.480) and a senior recital for the two required terms of performance subjects and two of the three electives.
Students wishing to enroll in any of these degree programs should consult the major or minor 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 Theater Arts, 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 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 | Theoretical Studies
One subject from the following: |
|
| 21M.611 | Foundations of Theater Practice | |
| 21M.618 | Making Theater About Science | |
| 21M.703J | Media and Methods: Performing | |
| 21M.710 | Script Analysis | |
| 21M.711 | Production Seminar | |
| 21M.846 | Topics in Performance Studies |
|
| Tier II | Practical Studies Four subjects from the following: |
|
| 21M.600 | |
Introduction to Acting |
| 21M.603 | Introduction to Design for the Theater | |
| 21M.604 | Playwriting I | |
| 21M.605 | Voice and Speech for the Actor | |
| 21M.606 | Introduction to Stagecraft | |
| 21M.624 | Acting with the Camera | |
| 21M.645 | Motion Theater | |
| 21M.704 | Musical Theater Workshop | |
| 21M.705 | The Actor and the Text | |
| 21M.715 | |
Topics in Theater Arts |
| 21M.732 | Costume Design for the Theater | |
| 21M.733 | Scenic Design | |
| 21M.734 | Lighting Design for the Theater | |
| 21M.735 | Technical Design: Scenery, Mechanisms, and Special Effects | |
| 21M.736 | The Craft of Costume | |
| 21M.785J | Playwrights' Workshop | |
| 21M.790 | Directing | |
| 21M.830 | Acting: Techniques and Style | |
| 21M.840 | Performance Media | |
| 21M.863 | Advanced Topics in Theater Arts |
|
| Tier III | Performance and Design Twelve units from the following subjects: |
|
| 21M.805 | Performance and Design Practicum | |
| 21M.815 | Production Practicum | |
| 21M.851 | |
Independent Study in Production and Performance |
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.
Evan Ziporyn
Kenan Sahin Distinguished Professor of Music
Section Head
Alan Brody, PhD
Professor of Theater Arts
Peter Child, PhD
Professor of Music
MacVicar Faculty Fellow
(On leave, fall)
John Harbison, MFA
Professor of Music
Institute Professor
Lowell Edwin Lindgren, PhD
Professor of Music
(On leave)
Janet Sonenberg, MFA
Professor of Theater Arts
(On leave)
Marcus Aurelius Thompson, DMA
Robert R. Taylor Professor of Music
Michael Cuthbert, PhD
Associate 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
Emily Pollock, PhD
Assistant Professor of Music
David Deveau, MM
Senior Lecturer in Music
Anna Kohler
Senior Lecturer in Theater Arts
Martin Marks, PhD
Senior Lecturer in Music
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
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
Karen Perlow, BA
Technical Instructor in Theater Arts
Jeanne Shapiro Bamberger, MA
Professor of Music, Emerita
Stephen Erdely
Professor of Music, Emeritus
Ellen T. Harris, PhD
Class of 1949 Professor of Music, Emerita
Michael Ouellette, MFA
Senior Lecturer in Theater Arts, Emeritus
Barry Lloyd Vercoe, DMA
Professor of Media Arts and Sciences, Emeritus