Composition

Composition Degree Summary

Students wishing to pursue careers as composers may complete a degree in music composition. The School of Music has a distinguished faculty for this academic concentration who can help students realize career opportunities involving musical creativity.

• Significant emphasis is placed on applied (private) lessons.
• Students attend scheduled composers' forum meetings throughout each semester to explore important relevant topics with other student and faculty composers at SHSU. These discussions focus on issues such as notation, self-promotion, applying to calls for scores, compositional process, score/parts creation, opportunities for publication, and exploration of new works and composers.
• The student composers at SHSU produce one or two programs each semester comprised of their original compositions, performed by SHSU students. All of these programs are audio recorded, and composers may use these recordings for their own promotion, study, and applications to calls for scores and competitions.
• All composition students are advised individually and unique plans are made to accommodate career goals involving composition.
• Composition majors serve as performers in the SHSU New Music Lab, directed by B. P. Herrington, an ensemble of varied instrumentation that creatively interprets fresh and innovative works created by SHSU student composers.
• All composition students are members of the SHSU student group known as Ars Perpetua.
• At the end of each semester of study, composition students submit portfolios of their work for a final evaluation.
• Composers have opportunities to interact with professional composers from around the USA via campus visits and Skype sessions.

For more information about music composition at SHSU, click HERE.