Bailey School of Music
Music theory offers musicians and scholars a concentrated study of patterns in music and their interpretation. This area of the BSOM plays special roles in promoting critical thinking, writing skills, musicianship, and undergraduate research. Our faculty is top-notch, with three PhDs in Music Theory from schools such as Eastman and Louisiana State University. Training is hands-on with lots of one-on-one faculty-student interaction. We have a proven track record of placing our graduates into prestigious programs at the master’s and doctoral levels. Additionally, our undergraduate degree in music theory gives a musician a wide range of skills including writing, musical analysis, piano and singing proficiency, scholarly reading, and composition in different musical styles.
If accepted into the program, students take applied lessons on their instrument, and participate in our many well-known ensembles.
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Music Theory Past Capstone Projects
Capstone projects are used by music theory majors to apply for graduate programs in music.
Name Title Advisor Year Meghan O’Harra The Impact of Metric Placement on the Perception of Modulation Kelly Francis 2020 Joseph Grunkemeyer Narrative Ambiguity in Brahms Jeffrey Yunek 2020 Nicole Hamel Aragorn: A Case of Joseph Campbell’s Monomyth in Howard Shore’s Film Score from the Lord of the Rings Benjamin Wadsworth 2019 Kristin Houston Tonal Ambiguity in Solo Piano Works of Thelonious Monk Benjamin Wadsworth 2019 Alexander Peneton Leitmotifs in Progressive Rock Benjamin Wadsworth 2018 Simon Needle On the Topic of Hip Hop: Topic Theory as Applied to the Works of Kendrick Lamar Benjamin Wadsworth 2018 Kyle Green Chord Progressions and Sleep Quality Benjamin Wadsworth 2018 Madison Coffey Minimalism, Form, and Meaning in Björk: An Analysis of Utopia Benjamin Wadsworth 2018 Kelsey Woods The Reception of Sonata Form in Edvard Grieg’s Music Jeffrey Yunek 2018 Joshua Little The Absolute Progression in Michael Giacchino’s Film Scores Benjamin Wadsworth 2017 Show more
