Mount Allison University

The Music program helps you develop into a well-rounded musician with experience in performance, theory, music history, and music education, as well as a sound basis in the liberal arts.

Program overview

Faculty: Faculty of Arts
Degree options: BMus; BA honours or major; Any degree, minor

The Music program stresses professional training, with an emphasis on musical performance. There are also courses and ensembles open to students outside the Music department.

At Mount Allison, there are different levels of Music depending on your interests and skills.

Bachelor of Music
As a Bachelor of Music student, you will benefit from four years of advanced private lessons. The department offers performance study in:

voice
piano
woodwinds
brass
strings
percussion
guitar
organ
harpsichord

Bachelor of Music students are not formally streamed into specific areas of musical study, meaning the program gives you the freedom to focus on the areas that best suit your interests and career plans.

This flexible approach to the study of Music helps ensure you are well prepared for the wide-ranging demands and varied career options that exist for today’s musicians. Find out more about the Bachelor of Music.

Bachelor of Arts
The Bachelor of Arts with a major or minor in Music allows you to balance your musical studies with other subjects and may be suited to you if you are planning a career in music scholarship, librarianship, or other music-related fields, rather than performance.

Courses in the Music program are available in the four main areas of:

performance
music history and literature
music theory and composition
music education

There are also courses in areas such as composition, conducting, collaborative piano, chamber music, jazz, opera, and world music.

Courses open to all students
For students outside the Music department, there are courses offered in:

music appreciation
theory
music in Canada
world music

You also have the opportunity to participate in the department’s large ensembles, such as symphonic band and the Choral Society, which are open to all students.

Find a list of Music courses in the academic calendar – Music.

Bryenton Innes “The Mount Allison Music department is an incredibly welcoming and involved music program. The small size fosters an intimate environment that allows a high level of instruction and communication with faculty and opens up a lot of opportunities that are unique to each student. I come from a small town with minimal music training. With the resources available at Mount Allison, not only was I able to really form myself as a professional musician and academic, but also learn how to take care of myself as I grow.”

Bryenton Wayne Innes (’20)
Bachelor of Music
Lakelands, NS

Minae Masui “The thing I most appreciated about the music program is the people in the department. It’s a small music school so everyone knows each other and they are all very friendly and supportive. The Music program is a relatively busy program, but all the faculty members are caring about students and it was very helpful to pursue my degree as well as build up my performance techniques. I believe MtA is a great place to start your more serious musical education.”

Minae Masui (’19)
Bachelor of Music, minor in commerce
Osaka, Japan

Madeleine Gaudette “With its active and friendly department, superb facilities, distinguished faculty, plentiful performance opportunities, small class sizes, and non-competitive environment, Mount Allison's Department of Music is truly excellent.

In a program that is so demanding of one's time and energy, it is amazing to be able to establish personal connections with professors who are caring and put in just as much dedication and effort into their work as their students do in their shared passion for the art.

There is a strong emphasis on the growth and progress of each individual's musical development. It is great to have professors that acknowledge a student’s current level, while simultaneously striving to help them grow and improve to reach their goals.

The Bachelor of Music program at Mount Allison does not stream students into specific specialties such as performance or composition like many other programs. This gives students the flexibility to experience many areas of musical study without the restrictions of a specialty at the undergraduate level. This diversity encourages students to discover where they thrive and which direction they can pursue next to further develop and attain more specialized skills in their discipline.

Madeleine Gaudette (’19)
Bachelor of Music
Tignish, PEI

Music student Aude Urbancic. “Music is my passion and I felt the Mount Allison Music department was the best place for me to evolve as a musician. The department is small and offers many opportunities such as student performances, faculty and guest concerts, and master classes. However, the main reason I came to Mount Allison is because of its incredible faculty. It is very important to study with a teacher who will suit you and will guide you to improve as much as you possibly can. Our faculty members are not only professional and accomplished, they are also very approachable and caring about their students.”

Aude Urbancic ('15)
Bachelor of Music
Port Williams, NS

“Although I hadn’t really thought about pursuing music as a career, I’d always wanted to further my studies in music as music was a valuable part of my life. I was also intrigued by human interactions and how our minds functioned which led me to study psychology. Taking a Bachelor of Arts provided me with an opportunity to study music alongside psychology.”

Jin Lee ('13)
Bachelor of Arts, honours Music, major in psychology
Busan, South Korea

History

The study and performance of music has been a special feature at Mount Allison for more than 140 years — since the first Certificate in Music was granted in 1874. In 2017, the Music department is celebrating 100 years since the first Bachelor of Music degree, and 50 years since the opening of the Marjorie Young Bell Music Conservatory.

Admissions

If you intend to pursue the Bachelor of Music you must submit a separate application directly to the Music department. An audition, personal interview, and entrance assessment will also be required.

Visit the Music admissions pages for forms, guidelines, and application deadlines.

The Music application form is only for students applying to the Bachelor of Music – there is not need to fill out the form if you plan on applying to the Bachelor of Arts in Music.

Facilities

Mount Allison is home to an exceptional music building — the Marjorie Young Bell Conservatory of Music.

It offers:

a newly renovated 350-seat concert hall
unrestricted access to practice studios
an exceptional collection of instruments, including 15 grand pianos
a well-equipped computer lab and recording facility
choral and instrumental music collections

The Alfred Whitehead Memorial Music Library is the finest library of its kind in Atlantic Canada, with more than 30,000 books, scores, audio recordings, and videos.

In the spotlight

There are plenty of opportunities to share your love of music with the community.

Take part in:

Choral Society
Elliott Chorale
Opera Workshop
Symphonic Band
Chamber Orchestra
Jazz Ensemble
Pep Band
Music for the Cure
Garnet and Gold Musical Theatre Society
Conduct Becoming

In addition there are opportunities to perform as a soloist, duo, or as part of a chamber music ensemble during the department’s weekly Collegium and Colloquium series.

Study abroad and exchange

Mount Allison also offers study abroad and exchange opportunities in 17 countries. Music programs exist in New Zealand, Australia, France, and the United States.

More information

Learn more about this discipline or apply online now.

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