Master of Music in Music History - Performance Practices in West Hartford United States | University of Hartford

Hartt's music history program allows you to study diverse musical traditions from around the world and Western cultures within their historical and cultural frameworks. Through introductory surveys and specialized seminars, majors and minors develop a thorough appreciation of music as both an art form and cultural expression. A key aspect of Hartt's program is its adaptable elective courses tailored to student preferences. These thoughtfully designed electives have covered topics like operatic history, string quartet repertoire, video game soundtracks, the psychology of music, Indian classical music, and scholarly editing. The curriculum also includes jazz studies and African-American music traditions through Hartt's Jackie McLean Institute of Jazz.

Beyond academic studies, students can join various performance groups such as the Baroque ensemble Collegium Musicum. Hartt provides access to an extensive collection of period instruments - including recorders, Renaissance lutes and flutes, harpsichords, clavichords, Baroque bows, shawms, and sackbuts - creating a dynamic, hands-on learning experience.

Music history undergraduates select between two concentrations: scholarship/research or performance practice. The scholarship track focuses on analytical writing and academic research methods, while the performance practice option blends musical performance with historical performance techniques, ornamentation studies, and related topics. At the master's level, students can specialize in scholarship/research, performance practice, or music history pedagogy - the latter combining music history with Hartt's education program to examine contemporary teaching approaches and historical methodologies.