For More Information
Graduate Program Chair in Composition and Theory,
Eric Chasalow
Graduate Program Chair in Musicology, Allan R. Keiler
Joint MA Advisor in Music & Women's and Gender Studies, Allan R. Keiler
For more information about admissions, financial aid, and student services, please visit the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences.
Composition and Theory
The Graduate Program in Composition and Theory offers composers the time and means to develop a secure command of the craft of composition. Students in the program acquire greater facility with the structure and syntax of tonal music by studying it in analysis seminars and by writing it in proseminars. They study a wide variety of contemporary music in theory and analysis seminars. Individual creative work is undertaken in composition seminars with guidance from the faculty. Students also have the opportunity to pursue creative work in electro-acoustic music by working in the Brandeis Electro-Acoustic Music Studio (BEAMS) and to work toward performances of their music in the New Music at Brandeis concert series.Students may choose among three degree programs: Master of Arts (M.A.), Master of Fine Arts (M.F.A.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.). Under normal circumstances, the M.A. is a one-year program and the M.F.A. is a two-year program. The Ph.D. program typically entails one year of further training following the completion of M.F.A. requirements.