The School of Music is part of the College of Visual and Performing Arts, a community of artists with over 1,600 undergraduate and graduate students. CVPA is the largest visual and performing arts unit within the University of North Carolina system and is recognized for its comprehensive array of graduate programs and success of its graduates. The School of Music enrolls over 550 undergraduate and graduate students.
With a basis in rigorous professional training in musical performance, theory, and teaching, coupled with a versatile liberal arts curriculum, Music students experience a deep, well-rounded education at every level of study, preparing them for a diverse range of careers across the spectrum of music and beyond. Beyond the classroom, our students enjoy a wide range of opportunities to experience and perform in concerts and musical ensembles across a wide range of genres and cultures, from classical to chamber music to modern jazz. Our mission is to develop artists who are critical thinkers, deeply versed in the theory and performance of music, and engaged in the critical and social contexts of music in society. Whether future performers, scholars, or educators, we welcome students who strive for excellence.
We approach music as an essential part of human culture and therefore aspire to engage with the diversity of musical meanings and practices globally and locally; our student and faculty scholarship enrich understandings of music as sound, text and activity. We engage with local, regional, national, and international communities through teaching, performance, publications, lectures, conferences, symposia, festivals, and other educational and cultural programs.
Studies in music have been offered at UNCG since its opening in 1892. Courses for music majors who were looking to teach or perform were offered in solfeggio, ear training, and history of music. Beginning in 1912, the school started offering more musical theory class options which included: counterpoint analysis, melody writing, and elementary form. Today, the university offers areas of study in music education, performance, musicology, ethnomusicology, composition, and music theory.
