Music Major
Receive high-quality training to develop the skills to build a rewarding career as a well-rounded musician.
OVER
20
MUSICAL ENSEMBLES
36
FACULTY TO SUPPORT YOU ALONG YOUR PATH
250
PERFORMING ARTS EVENTS PER YEAR
20,000
NUMBER OF EVENT ATTENDEES YEARLY
Total Credit Hours: 120
Music Courses (54 - 78 hours)
General Education (45 hours)
Free Electives (10 - 32 hours)
You'll take 120 credit hours for a bachelor of arts degree, including Virginia Tech's Pathways or Curriculum for Liberal Education (CLE).
What You'll Study
The music program provides six options of study for your individual success: performance, composition, education, technology, creative technologies, and the liberal arts option.
The performance option is perfect for aspiring singers and instrumentalists, preparing you for a lifetime on the stage. An education degree is ideal if you're looking to build a powerful base of knowledge in music in order to pass that knowledge onto others at the K-12 level. Technology students study the basics of acoustics, recording and mixed-media production through the use of both conventional and emerging technologies. A composition degree enables you to concisely express yourself through music. Creative technologies students use cutting-edge equipment to create new sounds and imagine novel musical systems.
The liberal arts option is a popular choice for those looking to double major, with students focusing on performance, composition, technology, or creative technologies. Students access such benefits as weekly private lessons with their advisor, exclusive music classes, and participation in a wide host of music ensembles.
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What is a Degree in Music?
A music major combines education and active participation in ensembles to prepare you for an enriching career in the field of music. What’s more, there are a variety of options created for your individual needs, whether you intend to pursue a graduate degree or proceed into the music industry, a music major could be your ticket to success.
Why Study Music Here?
We believe in action-based learning in our enriching courses and over twenty music ensembles open to all students. These include bands, brass and string ensembles, chamber ensembles, choirs, jazz ensembles, Music for the Stage, the Virginia Tech Philharmonic Orchestra, percussion ensemble, L2Ork (Laptop Orchestra), and wind ensemble. There are also opportunities to work with theatre and cinema students on interdisciplinary productions and projects.
Beyond the Classroom
- Strong Community
- Collaboration with Theatre and Cinema
- Music Ensembles
- Outstanding Faculty
- Visiting Artists
- Studio
- Music Audition
Get Involved
There are many ways to get involved on campus. Organizations such as Alpha Psi Omega, Kappa Kappa Psi, and the USITT Student Chapter are perfect for music majors with a variety of interests.
Create With Other Students
Music majors can participate in productions and projects with other programs in the School of Performing Arts. One recent example of this is The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, a musical performed in the Moss Arts Center that featured music students onstage, backstage, and in the pit.
Join us
For a collaborative experience with a diverse group of students inside and outside of the music program, check out our wide array of Ensemble options! A campus favorite is the Marching Virginians, a band that celebrated its 46th year in 2020.
Award-winning Faculty Guidance
Our faculty include esteemed professionals who know the ins-and-outs of the field and are dedicated to working closely with their students to assure success.
Music majors hear some of the world’s greatest artists at the nearby Moss Arts Center, and are often able to work directly with them in masterclasses. Recent guest artists who interacted with our students include Renée Fleming, Yo-Yo Ma, Awadagin Pratt, and the Academy Award and Tony Award-winning Broadway songwriting duo Richard Maltby Jr. and David Shire.
Our Digital Audio Recording and Production Studio is a high-tech, state of the art facility for exploring the technology of music. The primary control room and classroom is designed to support instruction, multitrack recording, editing, and mixing, surround sound production, sound design, video editing, foley recording, and audio for post, and additional production rooms are available for overflow, multimedia/game development, and DVD production capabilities.
Prospective music majors also complete an audition as part of the application process. After submitting either the Virginia Tech Coalition or Common Application, you will receive additional details on how to apply for the audition within the School of Performing Arts.
What Our Students Are Saying
“Being a music student at Virginia Tech has been an amazing time, even in just my first semester! Studying music is absolutely amazing, but the connections you make with professors, directors and other music majors is priceless.”
Peyton Gentry, '23, Percussion/Music Performance and Education
“Being a student at Virginia Tech gave the best of both worlds for my education. I was able to be a part of a large school while also working alongside professors that are renowned leaders in their fields. There were plenty of creative opportunities to collaborate with my colleagues as this helped begin my professional career as an educator and performer. By far, those were the most challenging and enriching five years of my life that I highly treasure!”
Steven Arnold, '19, Percussion/Music Education
“My favorite thing about being a music student at Virginia Tech is that I can receive the benefits of going to a small school while getting the experience of going to a large university. The music faculty gives individual attention to the students and makes sure we are getting the best education possible. The professors will go out of their way to help and it is not uncommon to wave and say hello when you see them out in Blacksburg or on campus.”
Aly Fuller, '21, Voice/Music Performance
“[My favorite thing is] 100% the faculty. From day one, my composition and piano professors believed in me, advocated for me, and pushed me far beyond what I could have ever imagined. Since I graduated, I've been fortunate to study with many other musicians around the world, and I have continually found that the professors at Virginia Tech are some of the best around. Even now that I am not affiliated with the school as a student, I still receive a tremendous amount of support and guidance from my mentors.”
Michael Mills, '19, Music Composition
Even with all of the training, summer programs, courses, masterclasses, and travel opportunities that Virginia Tech provided, I never imagined that the thing I’d cherish most were the relationships that I formed along the way, both student and faculty. Virginia Tech has a wealth of talent in both their Music and Theatre faculty and I’m so fortunate to have met many instructors who I now consider my close friends.
Jonathan Elmore, '20, Music Performance
Careers and Further Study
Jonathan Elmore, '20
During his time as a music major, Jonathan enjoyed many wonderful performance opportunities, both at home and abroad. He credits his trip to London for "Music Analysis in London" as well as performances in Spain and New York City for being particularly impactful. Jonathan is attending graduate school at Indiana University for Vocal Performance.
Travis Whaley, '16
During his time at Virginia Tech, Travis majored in piano performance and composition and German, sang in Chamber Singers, and studied abroad. Through an undergraduate thesis and presentation, he combined performance training with the research and analytical skills cultivated from his music coursework. Through these experiences, Travis learned to combine his love of music and performance with scholarship, introducing him to the field of musicology. He’s currently working on his PhD in musicology at the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University.
What do I do with a major in music?
An exciting career in music awaits you, and the possibilities are endless. Our graduates are:
- Composers
- Conductors
- Vocalists
- Instrumental Performers
- Audio Producers
- Music Directors
- Music Educators
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