Jazz Studies: Composition
The University of the Arts four-year Composition program is designed as a creative launching pad for a career as a composer.
What makes us different: a focus on collaboration
The curriculum provides a foundation in jazz, pop, commercial and contemporary classical genres with a focus on emerging technologies. Professional and student instrumental and vocal ensembles perform and record student compositions and arrangements. In addition to composing for UArts ensembles, there is an emphasis on interdisciplinary collaboration. Students write for film, animation, theater, dance and multimedia projects.
Our Music Composition degree program will help you develop discipline and focus through private lessons with our faculty who work professionally in contemporary classical, jazz, pop and commercial (radio, TV, film, video games and more) idioms. They are Fulbright Scholars and McArthur Foundation "Genius Grant" recipients, and their work has been performed in venues across the globe. Monthly workshops featuring guest composers representing a variety of musical genres present you with an inside look at their creative processes and techniques.
The music you create while earning your bachelor's degree in Composition will be read or performed by our ensembles, and frequent performances of your compositions will highlight the School of Music's concert schedule. You can also collaborate with ProJazz in Santiago, Chile, or the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts in the U.K.
Where do UArts Composition graduates work?
Our Composition alumni write music for a broad range of artists, including Grammy winners John Legend and Kanye West; they work at top film and advertising production companies like Yessian in New York City (whose work includes the film trailer for "Terminator 3" and ads for clients including Coca-Cola, Blackberry, Saab and Ikea); they compose award-winning music for such movies and TV shows as "Mission Impossible" and "Beverly Hills 90210." Some graduates teach at the K-12 and college levels, and one is currently the president of the Art Institute of California-Orange County.
