Bachelor of Arts in Music

The Bachelor of Arts in Music is for students who desire a liberal arts education in music without a strict focus in performance. Students in the BA can pursue a general route as well as pivot toward three concentrations, as follows:

BA in Music (General): Offers breadth and depth in a liberal arts music degree and provides students with a large selection of courses within the major and the most flexibility of all the routes in choosing music electives. The General BA route contains sufficient elective units to be used for those students seeking Music Education licensure.

BA in Music with concentration in Musicology & Ethnomusicology: Provides students the opportunity to explore the large-scale relationships between culture, politics, and musical repertories of the Western and non-Western world, from the past to the present. Faculty expertise runs the gamut from the Middle Ages to popular music, from Indonesia to Japan, Africa, and the Americas, and from manuscript studies to oral traditions and technology.
BA in Music with concentration in Music Theory: Provides students the opportunity to explore the inner workings of music from all styles and periods in depth, utilizing theoretical, analytical, historical, and cultural perspectives.
BA in Music with concentration in Global Music Studies: Provides students with opportunities to study music in a global context from a variety of disciplinary approaches, including performance, ethnomusicology, and music theory and analysis.

The BA prepares students for graduate work and academic careers in musicology, ethnomusicology, music theory, and composition, and through a choice of electives provides a base to pursue professional careers in music journalism, music librarianship, music publishing, arts management/leadership, and other wide-ranging areas of the music and arts industry.

Unique Opportunities
Students may take up to 6 units of private instrumental or vocal instruction and/or participate in music ensembles toward the degree. Eligibility is determined by audition and faculty availability. BA students who choose private instrumental and vocal instruction will be charged an Applied Music Fee.
Cross-curricular experiences in the College of Fine Arts, including the popular Arts Leadership Minor.
Flexibility through electives to customize the degree toward making interdisciplinary connections between music and related fields, and toward academic or professional outcomes.
The option of pursuing Music Education licensure through the General BA route.
Learning Outcomes
Students graduating with a BA in Music are expected to:

Demonstrate knowledge of music history, theory, and analysis, including formal and compositional idioms from the Middle Ages to the present.
Demonstrate familiarity with world music and culture and systems of non-Western music making, including popular music.
Understand the relationship between music and social justice, race and politics, gender, cultural contexts, and analogous artistic movements.

You will need to send original or certified copies of your home country's credentials as part of your application. TOEFL ibt - Students who are most competitive for admission will have a composite score of at least 90-100 and minimum scores of 20 in each section. IELTS - A total/overall score of 7 or higher will also satisfy BU's English Language proficiency requirement for all programs.