Bachelor of Music in Composition

Cultivate creativity, refine your personal expression and study music’s viability in 20th century societal context with 51¶¯Âþ's Bachelor of Music (BM) in Composition-Music. Develop your musical thought in all media, including electroacoustic music and visual music. 51¶¯Âþ’s Boyer College of Music and Dance fosters innovation, collaboration and trains students as theyÌýadvance their craft and expressive effect.ÌýÌý

Immerse yourself in contemporary practices, theoriesÌýand techniques through the study of postromantic music literature. The Department of Music Studies provides essential learning experiences for music students. The small student body enables close mentoring relationships to form with the composition faculty who are internationallyÌýperformed composers. Hear your works performed through regular new student composition concerts. Listen to works of established 20th-century composers being performed by the New Music Ensemble and the Contemporary Music Ensemble. The city of Philadelphia offers tremendous opportunities to explore musical composition and performance year round.

Students seeking this full-time, 124-credit academic degree within the Boyer College of Music and Dance will have to complete 51¶¯Âþ’s General Studies curriculum andÌýtake a minimum of two writing-intensive courses. In culmination, create a portfolio of musical compositions demonstrating notational fluency and talent in composing convincing and intelligible music.

Classes & Curriculum

The Bachelor of Music in Composition degree curriculum includes courses in

  • Composition,
  • Conducting,
  • Secondary Piano and
  • Theory.

Learn more about course specifics for the Bachelor of Music in Composition degree.

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A student with a pencil in hand and sheet music in their lap.

Tuition & Fees

In keeping with 51¶¯Âþ’s commitment to access and affordability, the Bachelor of Music offers a competitive level of tuition with multiple opportunities for financial support.

Tuition rates are set annually by the university and are affected by multiple factors, including program degree level (undergraduate or graduate), course load (full- or part-time), in-state or out-of-state residency, and more.ÌýYou can view the full .

These tuition costs apply to the 2024–2025 academic year.

Pennsylvania resident:Ìý$21,504.00Ìýper year
Out-of-state: $37,752.00Ìýper year

BC-COMP-BMUS

Additional Program Information