Gettysburg College
The Sunderman Conservatory of Music is a dedicated place for music inside a liberal arts college, a conservatory embedded in a rich intellectual community. It’s a place of synergy and energy, of concertos and calculus, symphonies and science, history and harmonies, gamelan and German. An exceptional faculty of artists and scholars, a campus culture rich in performance, and opportunities that range from residencies with internationally-renowned guest artists and lecturers each semester to musical experiences abroad for a semester or a summer make Sunderman one of the most distinctive undergraduate music options available.
Gettysburg College offers a Bachelor of Music in Performance, a Bachelor of Music Education, and a Bachelor of Arts with a Major in Music with the option for a Double Major.
Academic rigor. Creative inquiry. Surprising collaborations. Innovative instruction. Unique musical challenges. Immersing students in a curriculum that values the traditions of classical, jazz, and world musics, Sunderman unites professional artistic standards with the intellectual and academic breadth of the liberal arts in an environment of creative inquiry.
| Courses | |
| Bachelor of Arts in Music | The Bachelor of Arts in music degree is designed for students with serious preparation for and interest in the study of music within a liberal arts context. Students build strong musical foundations through performance, applied study, music theory, music history, and world music. Advanced work in the major continues with a selection of courses that serve to concentrate and contextualize students’ understanding of music.Some students may choose to work with a faculty mentor to focus on particular areas of interest within music (for example, composition, conducting, teaching, jazz studies, musicology, ethnomusicology) through coursework, independent study, or internships. The BA in Music offers a broad array of options, including the opportunity to pursue a second major or a minor in another disciplinary field. Graduates have gone on to pursue careers in music performance, composition, conducting, teaching, musicology, and ethnomusicology and in related fields such as arts management, arts marketing, music recording, and music librarianship. Others have completed graduate or professional programs in law, medicine, chemistry, physics, math, and numerous other fields while continuing to remain involved in music as an avocation. Admission to the Bachelor of Arts in Music is by audition. |
| Bachelor of Music in Performance | This 36-course degree typically leads to graduate work in performance for those who seek careers as performers and studio teachers. It also provides the foundation for those pursuing careers as singers in opera and musical theater, as instrumentalists in orchestras and bands, as solo recitalists, collaborative pianists, conductors, college instructors, and church musicians. It is considered a professional music degree with approximately two-thirds of the course work in music. Admission to the Bachelor of Music is by audition. |
| Bachelor of Music Education | This 36-course degree prepares students for careers as music educators at all levels in public and independent schools upon graduation. The curriculum treats all aspects of music education, including general music, vocal/choral music, and instrumental music. Music education students are given a wealth of classroom experience prior to graduation and will develop the performance skills essential to good teaching through applied lessons, large and small ensemble participation, and an impressive variety of performance opportunities. Non-Western traditions and approaches to popular music are integrated throughout the music education curriculum. While the majority of graduates move immediately into a teaching career, some may also choose to pursue graduate work in music education or in music performance, composition, or arts administration. Approximately one-half of the coursework is in music, while another 15 percent is in education courses. Students earn Pennsylvania K-12 music teaching certification upon successful completion of all requirements. Admission to the Bachelor of Music Education is by audition. |