Music

Department Chair: Marc Reed
Email: mareed@fortlewis.edu

Professor: Mark Walters
Associate Professors: Lisa Campi Walters, Katherine Jetter, and Marc Reed
Assistant Professors: Charissa Chiaravalloti and Max Williams

Program Mission and Goals

The mission of the Fort Lewis College Music Department is to produce fine musicians, compassionate individuals, and connoisseurs of music. Whether music is the chosen field or a secondary passion, we are dedicated to fostering students to be their best possible musical selves, and demonstrate these abilities on campus and abroad.

Through programs that both challenge and nurture, the Music Department attempts to meet the following goals:

Provide an opportunity for all the students of this liberal arts institution to develop a better understanding of the musical arts.
Provide training in music leading to one’s associated careers.
Provide artistic leadership and musical performances for the enrichment of the cultural aspects of the college and community.

The Music Department has also established the following objectives

Music department graduates will:

Develop skilled musicianship as it relates to their chosen performance medium, demonstrated through juried and public performance.
Demonstrate musical competence, including historical, theoretical, analytical, and keyboard expertise as illustrated by a senior project.
Establish advanced performance skills and professionalism that will enrich the cultural and aesthetic strengths of the institution and community.
Formulate a plan for post-graduation as it pertains to each student’s desired career path.

College-wide goals that the Music Department’s goals address

The Music Department’s goals are aligned with two of the college’s four general education goals to be assessed:

Goals 1 and 3 and objectives 1, 2a, and 2d correspond to College-wide goal, “Learning as Inquiry”
Goal 2 and objectives 2b, 2c, 2e, and 3 correspond to the College-wide goal, “Responsible Action”

In today’s complex society, the need persists for the educated person to be aware of the important role played by the arts. The Fort Lewis College Music Department, an accredited member of the National Association of Schools of Music, provides an opportunity for all students to be actively involved in the expansion of their understanding of music. The discipline and sensitivity developed by the study of music provides an excellent background for many and varied careers. The Music Department awards both majors and minors in music.

For the student interested in majoring in music, the department offers a comprehensive curriculum. There are five different courses of study (options), each leading to the Bachelor of Arts degree in Music: General Music Studies , Jazz Studies , Music Business , Music Performance , and Music K-12 Teaching .

The General Music Studies option is designed for students interested in a liberal arts education with an emphasis in music.

The Music K-12 teaching option gives high-quality academic preparation to students who wish to become Colorado licensed K-12 music teachers. This option is extremely demanding and requires careful planning and advising. Students choosing this option should consult a Music Department advisor as early as possible in their careers and should read the Teacher Education Licensure Program section of this catalog for the steps and requirements for applying to and requirements for completing the program.

The Music Performance option is designed for students who have demonstrated a strong commitment to music performance and who wish to use some of their elective credits to further concentrate in this area. The performance concentrations are limited to the areas of expertise represented by the music faculty. The areas of concentration are piano, voice, brass, woodwinds, percussion, and strings. A specific instrument must be chosen from within the brass, woodwind, or string families.

Requirements for a Bachelor of Arts Degree with a Major in Music

All music majors must satisfy the specific departmental requirements as well as the common requirements listed below.

Specific Departmental Requirements: See major options for detailed requirements, links provided at the bottom of this page.

Common Requirements

MUSIC MAJOR MINIMUM GRADE REQUIREMENT

Music majors must obtain at least a C- in all music (MU) courses that count towards their chosen degree plans.

AUDITION / PERFORMANCE / RECITAL REQUIREMENTS

All students majoring in music will be required to pass an entrance audition and theory placement exam. Music majors must also successfully pass an individual performance exam during the semester they are enrolled in MU 229 . This is a juried exam occurring within the student’s applied music course that term. Most often this will occur during the second semester of the sophomore year. Students must present a half recital of at least 30 minutes duration during the senior year.

PIANO PROFICIENCY REQUIREMENTS
All music majors must satisfy a piano proficiency requirement before taking MU 349 or MU 423 . The requirement includes sight reading, harmonization of a simple melody, and demonstrated ability to perform easier piano compositions (such as Clementi: “Sonatina Op. 36 #1;” Bach: “Two Part Invention”). Students with adequate skills may petition to take the examination and may receive credit for the appropriate courses. Those with less background must take a piano placement test and, in their freshman year enroll in the proper course in the piano class sequence 103A, 104, 203, and 204. Successful completion of this sequence with a grade of A or B also satisfies the piano proficiency requirement.

MUSIC LITERATURE REQUIREMENT
Concert Attendance: Attendance at scheduled recitals and concerts and at regularly scheduled listening labs is required each semester.

MAJOR ENSEMBLE REQUIREMENT
At least 8 credits from MU 105 , MU 110 , MU 117 , MU 305 , MU 310 , and MU 317 are required. Students will be assigned to the appropriate major ensemble by the applied music instructor(s). MU 110 , MU 117 , MU 310 , or MU 317 are required for the instrumental specialization, and MU 105 or MU 305 are required for the choral specialization. At least one of the above is required each semester of residency with the exception of Music K-12 Teaching Option which does not require Major Ensemble during the semester of student teaching.

APPLIED MUSIC REQUIREMENT
One applied course is required each semester of residency except during the semester of student teaching (Music K-12 Teaching option). If students will be taking applied guitar courses, they may count MU 108 toward their applied requirement. Also, the following guidelines pertain to the Music Performance option: students must obtain music faculty approval before declaring the Music Performance option and subsequently register for 2 credits of applied music for their major instrument each semester of residency.

FOREIGN LANGUAGE (OPTIONAL)
Two semesters of foreign language study are strongly recommended for both the General Music Studies and Performance major.

Major in Music and Options

Music Major - General Music Studies Option

Music Major - Jazz Studies Option

Music Major - Music Business Option

Music Major - Music K-12 Teaching Option

Music Major - Music Performance Option

Minor in Music

Music Minor