MA in Music in Santa Cruz United States | University of California, Santa Cruz

The Master of Arts (M.A.) in Music offers specializations in composition, musicology/ethnomusicology, or performance practice, blending performance training, compositional analysis, and scholarly research. This graduate program fosters a harmonious mix of abilities and perspectives while promoting varied methodological approaches. Working closely with an academic advisor, students undertake a two-year curriculum that concludes with a capstone project - either an original composition, research thesis, or analytical essay paired with a public performance or lecture demonstration. Students may participate as performers, conductors, or as coaches for original works or selected repertoire.

Coursework encompasses research methodologies, musical analysis, composition techniques, and performance traditions spanning Western music from the Renaissance to contemporary works, along with studies of Indian, Latin American, and Asian musical traditions. Past graduate projects have included: ethnomusicological studies like Evolution and Preservation in Balinese Gender Wayang Pedagogy and Rhythmic and Harmonic Structures in Flamenco Guitar; Western performance research such as William Kinloch's Early Scottish Keyboard Works: An Annotated Edition and Alberto Ginastera's Piano Masterworks: Analytical Approaches to Danzas argentinas and Twelve American Preludes; and original compositions including Cantigas Das Folhas and Atom Turning in the Sun of Eternity.