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Music Composition
Major/Minor
Making Music
Explore your musical and creative gifts with a Music Composition major. You will experiment with different instruments and textures of sound, develop your individual composition style, and consider the role of music in different cultures around the globe.
Along with providing a solid background in music theory, our program familiarizes you with brass, woodwind, percussion, and string instruments, putting theory into action through hands-on composition labs.
Get on track for these careers
- Film Music Composer/Arranger
- Video Game Musician
- Arranger for School or Broadway Music
- Music Producer
- Choral Conductor
- Arts Consultant
- Musician
- Band Manager
- Music Teacher
- Publisher
Participate in a Musical Ensemble
Music students gain performance and conducting experience through required ensemble participation. Taylor offers a wide range of vocal and instrumental ensembles.
Audition & Scholarship Information
The Music, Theatre, & Dance Scholarship is presented to outstanding high school seniors and transfer students who are committed to a career in music, theatre, or dance. The total award amounts vary depending on the student’s musical ability and the needs of the Department of Music, Theatre, and Dance. To qualify, students must declare a major in the department, complete the scholarship application, and audition in person or video.
Apply Now
Music Composition Minor
A minor in Music Composition assists students in developing their music composition skills for classical or popular applications. Choose to focus on instrumental, choral, or electro-acoustic composition to apply your passion for music to various fields. Majors in Christian Ministries or Film and Media Production may be interested in adding this minor to their degrees.
Daniel Morrison
Class of 2016
"It was a blessing to be pushed by my professors to be excellent. [They] drove me to work hard to become better at my craft and to build habits of excellence. Taylor also helped give me a wider base of understanding of Christian faith."
Music Composition Curriculum & Degree Options
Students interested in course descriptions and academic policies can check out our Undergraduate Catalog.
Liberal Arts Foundational Core
A Taylor liberal arts education will prepare you to live and work in a fast-changing world. It also goes a step further: laying a strong spiritual foundation that cultivates wisdom. You’ll become a well-versed individual, equipped with critical thinking skills, a lifelong love of learning, and an appreciation for God’s creation.
Theory and Practice of Music Composition
Our music theory training involves essential elements of tonal theory and harmony, principles of part writing, melodic phrase analysis, and diatonic harmonic progression. You’ll learn the general “rules” of composing and, through every composition class, develop original pieces.
Your course work will let you analyze the structures and designs of historic composers’ pieces to inform your own compositions and use modern music technology to strengthen your technical composition skills across a variety of genres and musical styles. You will learn how to arrange choral and instrumental works, practice conducting, and gain extensive performance experience through ensemble participation. Every Music Composition student concludes their music education with a senior recital, performing their original compositions.
A Music Composition major prepares you to study further in graduate school, teach theory and/or composition at a high school or college levels, and compose or arrange sacred or secular music. This major also leads to numerous opportunities in radio, television, and other related fields.
Related News
Matter and Spirit Opens in Metcalf Arts Center
Nov 01, 2022
“Matter and Spirit” will be displayed in Metcalf Gallery from November 4 until December 12. The traveling Chinese/American Art exhibition explores the place of the spiritual in the context of China and the United States, both increasingly materialistic societies.
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Music Composition Major Publishes Third Album
Mar 24, 2022
Current freshman Music Composition major Ethan Watts ’25 released his third album, Hysteresis, in December 2021.
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Tuning in to Real-World Experience
Jun 05, 2020
With an internship at Sweetwater Sound’s summer camps, junior Music Education and Special Education major Moorea Reiskytl gained valuable skills equip her for the classroom.
Read ArticleSend Me Information
