The Bachelor of Music in Composition is the initial professional degree in music composition — providing you with the musical training you need to prepare for a career as a composer.

In addition to demonstrating professional, entry-level competence in composition, as a graduate of our composition program, you will acquire an advanced level of musicianship skills, obtain broad knowledge of musical language and literature, and develop teaching skills related to musical composition and theory.

The Bachelor of Music in Composition degree requirements are designed to give you:

• Comprehensive musicianship — Demonstrate the Marylhurst Music Core learning outcomes 
• Composition techniques — Use a variety of composition techniques to create a unique body of music informed by contemporary concepts, materials and forms, that is idiomatically written for various instrumental, vocal and technologically mediated forces
• Performance foundation — Perform solo and ensemble undergraduate repertoire on a primary instrument or voice to an advanced intermediate level
• Teaching skills — Demonstrate competence in teaching basic musicianship skills
• Pedagogy methods — Those following the teaching concentration will demonstrate competence in counterpoint, analysis and pedagogy
• Integration of technology — Those following the creative media concentration will demonstrate the ability to work with various technological media

Career Paths

Although there are few full-time positions for composers, many create careers by working independently, composing, performing and teaching. Our creative media emphasis track prepares you for work in film, television and game industries, while the teaching emphasis track provides traditional coursework to prepare you for graduate studies.