Sonic Practice

Chair: William Cheng

Professors M. A. Casey, W. Cheng, K. Dong, T. C. Levin, S. Pinkas, S. R. Swayne; Associate Professor A. R. Fure (Director, Graduate Program in Sonic Practice); Assistant Professors C. Alvarez, R. A. Beaudoin; A. Martin; Senior Lecturers R. L. Braude, L. G. Burkot, M. L. Cassidy (Assistant Conductor, Dartmouth Symphony Orchestra), J. P. Ennis, J. Halloran, E. C. Mellinger (Assistant Conductor for Choral Ensembles), R. Moseley, S. W. Nam, J. E. Polk, T. Reid, M. E. Zsoldos; Lecturers N. M. Browne, T. H. Bynum (Director, Coast Jazz Orchestra at Dartmouth), P. Chin, F. Ciabatti (Director of Orchestral and Choral Programs), S. Felix, A. R. Garapic, O. Guey, P. J. Kennelly, A. J. Lakota, B. E. Messier (Director of Bands), S. Rogers, S. Sanchez, B. Selby, T. D. Sessions, S. Sinha, J. Taitt, P. M. Webster, B. Younge; Adjunct Associate Professor H. F. Shabazz.

To view Music Undergraduate courses, click here. 

To view Music Graduate requirements, click here.

To view Music Graduate courses, click here.

Requirements for the Master of Fine Arts Degree (M.F.A.) in Sonic Practice

Dartmouth's M.F.A. in Sonic Practice is a 3-year graduate program for composers, artists, and scholars working expansively with sound. The program draws together a close-knit community of makers and thinkers concerned with the visceral and social force of sound: its capacity to move bodies, shape cultures and stretch our sense of the palpable and the possible. Through one-on-one conversation with faculty, seminars, group critiques, and extra-disciplinary classes, students foster critical and technical skills that empower their independent creative practices while deepening their intersectional grasp of the aesthetics and politics of sounding and listening.

Candidates for admission to the M.F.A. in Sonic Practice typically have:

1. A bachelor's degree in a field relevant to their creative and/or scholarly practice.

2. Demonstrated knowledge and experience in some area of sonic arts, including (for example) composition, sound art, music theater, instrumental performance, songwriting, improvisation, spatial audio, sound installation and/or electronic music.

The Graduate Record Examination is not required for application to the program.

Regardless of a student’s area of specialization within the program, the requirements for completion of the Master of Fine Arts Degree in Sonic Practice include:

1. A minimum of eleven terms fully enrolled. Fall, Winter, and Spring terms must be in residence on campus; summer term is geographically flexible. 

2. Enrollment in the Graduate Seminars (MUS 101-109), given each term (excluding summer), for a total of 9 graduate seminars. 

3. A number of electives in different disciplines (as well as music), including, but not limited to engineering, visual art, computer science, theater, and creative writing. The electives and the specific courses will depend on the student’s background and area of specialization within the program. 

4. Directed research (thesis courses). Two courses (MUS 138) taken under the supervision of a member of the music faculty and/or joint supervision with a member of another cooperating department.

5. Enrollment in Contemporary Music Lab (MUS 50.21-23) during each term (excluding the summer term).

6. Completion of one graduate ethics module (MUS 700) taught by a music faculty.

7. Enrollment in 2 courses per term in addition to Graduate Seminar and Contemporary Music Lab. (These can be Directed Research or Undergraduate Courses). 

8. A thesis approved by the student’s graduate committee demonstrating mastery of the materials in the student’s area of concentration within the program.