General Information for all Music Majors
Policies and/or requirements for BA and Music Education Majors. All music students are responsible for adhering to these policies and meeting these requirements.
Ensembles (6 credits BA; 7 credits B.Mus.): Students are required to participate in the primary ensemble appropriate to their chosen instrument for no less than six semesters (BA), or no less than seven semesters (B.Mus.).
Lockers in Rockwell Hall: Students are welcomed to use any available locker (one only) designated for music major use in Rockwell Hall. Lockers are assigned at the beginning of each semester and are available on a first come-first served basis. Students must provide a lock and notify the Music Department office of the locker number they occupy. Students switching lockers must also notify the Music Department office.
Lockers are property of Buffalo State College and are subject to search and seizure at any time, without notice. Students who have graduated, are currently student teaching, have changed majors outside of music, or are no longer enrolled at Buffalo State College must remove the lock and locker contents. Locks that remain will be removed and the contents seized. Locks on lockers not on file with the Music Department office will also be removed and the contents seized.
Practice Room Access: Effective fall 2008, access to general use practice rooms will be granted only to music majors. Due to heightened security and safety measures, access to general use practice rooms is controlled by use of a FOB electromagnetic key. Music majors will be granted a FOB with a deposit of $5 that shall be returned to the student upon surrendering the FOB prior to graduation, student teaching, change of major, or college withdrawal. Lost or damaged FOBs will be replaced upon receipt of an additional deposit of $5. Malfunctioning FOBs will be replaced at no additional cost.
Failure to surrender a FOB upon graduation, student teaching, change of major, or college withdrawal will result in a forfeiture of deposit. Students residing in the residence hall or in legal possession of a Buffalo State College FOB may have practice room access electronically added with no additional deposit. Students who abuse the privilege of practice room access by using the rooms for purposes other than those intended, or who compromise security by lending a FOB to an unauthorized person, or propping the access door will lose practice room access for a period determined by the Music Department Chair and forfeit the FOB deposit.
Electronic Access: Effective fall 2006, with the addition of ANGEL and other new technologies at Buffalo State College, all students are required to maintain a Buffalo State College e-mail account. Vital departmental communications will be sent via e-mail. Students are required to access and check this email account often.
Applied Instruction (4 credits BA; 7 credits B.Mus.): Individual lessons in instrumental or vocal performance are required for no less than four semesters (BA), or no less than seven semesters (B.Mus.). Applied music students are required to perform before a faculty jury for each semester of study. The faculty jury will provide a written critique and grade of the performance. Bachelor of Arts in Music students must complete and pass the applied lesson sequence at the MUS 273 level by the end of the sixth semester of study, or they may be dismissed from the major. Bachelor of Arts students who wish to continue in the applied lesson sequence beyond the MUS 273 level will be accommodated based upon availability and at the discretion of either the vocal or instrumental coordinator. Bachelor of Music in Music Education students must complete MUS 471 prior to student teaching.
Applied Instruction Attendance: Applied music lessons are delivered weekly. Full attendance is required; lessons missed as a result of an excused absence must be made-up in a timely fashion and at the convenience of the applied music instructor. Students must call instructors a minimum of 48 hours in advance to ask for an excused absence. Failure to notify an instructor in advance of missing a lesson constitutes an automatic unexcused absence. Unexcused absences will result in the lowering of the student’s grade by one half letter grade and forfeiture of that lesson.
As lessons occur only once weekly, missed lessons are a serious breach of continuity in the course of applied study. Therefore, weekly lesson attendance is imperative. Since many lessons are delivered by part-time faculty who may have other commitments, it is extremely difficult for these faculty to make up missed lessons. Do not schedule anything else during your assigned lesson time, no matter how important it may seem. Lessons should only be rescheduled in the event of an illness, an emergency, or a school concert conflict.
Concert/Recital Attendance: All students taking applied lessons at the 171 level or higher must attend ten concert performances per semester. Students taking half-hour lessons (MUS-112) are exempt from the requirement but are strongly urged to follow it. Attendance at all Collegia is mandatory and counts toward the concert attendance requirement. The remainder of the requirement, to total ten, can be fulfilled by attending (not performing in) any Music Department concert or recital.
A list of these performances is handed out and posted at the beginning of each semester. It is also available at www.buffalostate.edu/music. When attending these events, sign the attendance sheet to receive credit for that performance. If your name does not appear on the sheet, it is your responsibility to write it in.
Students may substitute off-campus performances with prior approval from the Department Chair, with the exception of Buffalo Philharmonic concerts, which are automatically approved. Students should e-mail their request to Dr. Fuster no later than 48 hours before the performance. In all cases, these performances must take place during the current semester. To receive concert credit, sign your name on the ticket stub and/or program as proof of your attendance and turn in as soon as possible to Dr. Witakowski.
For off-campus performances at which no faculty member is present, the student MAY be required to write a 750 word essay reviewing the performance. The last day for accepting outside concert credit is by noon of Study Day.
All students should sign and turn in the Concert Attendance Release Form at the beginning of each semester. This enables your attendance record to be posted online for you and your faculty adviser to check during the semester. The performance list is posted at www.buffalostate.edu/music/resources.xml. It is updated often.
In the event that the concert attendance requirement is not fulfilled, the student's applied music grade is lowered by one quality point (ie: A to A-) for each missing performance, and one letter grade (ie,: A to B) for each missed Collegium.
Collegium: “Collegium” is the Buffalo State College term for the Music Department’s general student recitals, which are held two or three times per semester. All music majors are required to attend all scheduled Collegia each semester. See your applied music instructor or advisor if you have an unavoidable conflict. Unexcused absences will result in the lowering of your applied music grade by one whole letter grade.
All music majors are required to perform on a Collegium at least once per academic year. Failure to perform on at least one Collegium per academic year will result in a conference with your applied teacher and the Department Chairperson regarding your level of dedication to your craft. Some applied studios may require more frequent Collegium performance participation.
Studio Class: “Studio class” is the Buffalo State College term for the informal performance and feedback sessions for students and is organized by instrument type (e.g., woodwinds, voice, brass, percussion, strings, piano, etc.). Studio classes are offered multiple times each semester. All music majors are required to attend all scheduled studio classes each semester. See your applied music instructor or advisor if you have an unavoidable conflict. Unexcused absences will result in the lowering of your applied music grade by one whole letter grade. All music majors are required to perform as part of a studio class at least once per semester. Failure to perform on at least one studio class per semester will result in a conference with your applied teacher and the Department Chairperson regarding your level of dedication to your craft. Some applied studios may require more frequent studio class performance participation.
Jury: “Jury” is the Buffalo State College term for the solo performance, which occurs upon the completion of each semester of applied instruction. All students are required to perform a jury while enrolled in applied instruction. The juried performance determines whether the student is promoted to the subsequent level of applied music instruction (e.g., 171 to 173, 173 to 271, 271 to 273, etc.). Effective Fall 2006, all juries will contain a sight-reading component of commensurate difficulty with the level of applied study.
All students enrolled in the BA program are required to complete the applied music sequence through the MUS 273 level. BA students who wish to continue in the applied lesson sequence beyond the MUS 273 level will be accommodated based upon availability and at the discretion of either the vocal or instrumental coordinator. All students enrolled in the Bachelor of Music in Music Education program are required to complete the applied music sequence through the MUS 471 level.
Effective fall 2008, students who are unsuccessful in attaining a desired level of applied lesson jury advancement may informally petition the Music Department Chair to perform a repeated jury at the beginning of the subsequent semester. In order to petition, the student must have the support of their applied music instructor, and have a significant amount of additional study in evidence over the break that separates the previous and new semesters. If the repeated jury is successful, the student may advance to the appropriate level of applied study as determined by the repeated jury. If it is unsuccessful, the student must remain enrolled in the applied level determined as determined by the jury at the end of the pervious semester. All repeated juries must occur within the first full week of classes, or within Buffalo State College’s predetermined Schedule Adjustment Period.
Recitals: A Half Recital (see Half Recital) is required for the Bachelor of Music in Music Education degree. There is no recital requirement for the Bachelor of Arts in Music as the BA is NOT a degree in music performance, but is a liberal arts degree with a concentration in music. BA students are permitted and encouraged to perform a half recital with the written consent of the applied instructor and the appropriate vocal or instrumental coordinator. Full recitals (see Full Recital) are also permitted for BA and B. Mus. students with the written consent of the applied instructor and the appropriate Vocal or Instrumental Coordinator. It is the responsibility of all students presenting a recital to complete and submit the attached Recital Booking Form. All students presenting a recital must adhere to the deadlines and requirements listed on the Recital Booking Form, and gather all of the required signatures. Failure to adhere to proper recital booking procedures will result in the forfeiture of the recital.
Faculty/staff/student accompanists: All instrumental and vocal students requiring piano accompaniment will be assigned a faculty or staff accompanist and must register for MUS 110 "Accompanist/Coach" under the assigned accompanist. The list of accompanying assignments and their respective call numbers will be posted outside of Rockwell Hall 104 and be distributed to all applied faculty. Students are required to attend a half-hour rehearsal/coaching session each week in addition to their weekly applied lesson. Failure to attend these coaching sessions will result in a lowering of the student's grade for MUS 110 and may affect the student's applied lesson grade. Students must rehearse with their accompanist a minimum of two times before any performance (Jury, Collegium, Studio Class).
Recital preparation and more difficult repertoire will require additional rehearsal time. Students must submit piano accompaniment parts to the accompanist at least four weeks prior to any performance date. The student is responsible for scheduling rehearsals. Accompanists require a minimum of 24 hours notice for rehearsal appointments. If a student does not schedule sufficient rehearsal time with their accompanist, the accompanist or applied instructor may cancel the performance.
Accompanists may not be able to accommodate all student requests. Ultimately, it is the responsibility of the student, not the BSC Music Department, to provide and secure accompanists.
Primary Ensemble Requirement: With the exception of pianists and guitarists, each music major must participate in the appropriate primary ensemble during each semester they are enrolled in applied music instruction. Pianists and guitarists must participate in the appropriate primary ensemble for two semesters; the remainder of the degree requirement may be satisfied through enrollment in secondary ensembles, accompanying, or continued participation in the primary ensemble. Failure to participate in a primary ensemble will result in a conference with your applied teacher and the Music Department Chairperson, and may result in the suspension of applied study. Primary ensembles include the BSC Wind Ensemble, BSC Philharmonia, BSC Chorale, and BSC Chamber Choir. Specific primary ensemble requirements for each applied area are listed below.
Brass players—BSC Wind Ensemble
Wind players—BSC Wind Ensemble
Percussionists—BSC Wind Ensemble
Symphonic Strings—BSC Philharmonia
Vocalists—BSC Chorale or BSC Chamber Choir (upon auditioned acceptance)
Pianists and Guitarists—BSC Chorale *
*Pianists and guitarists may substitute BSC Wind Ensemble or BSC Philharmonia if they play a symphonic string. wind, brass, or percussion instrument.
Secondary Ensemble Assignments: (Effective fall 2006) All students must participate in a small ensemble, chamber or consort music making opportunity, prior to graduation (for BA students), or prior to student teaching (for Music Education majors). The Music Department defines such experiences as two or more instruments/voices simultaneously performing without a conductor. A solo instrument/voice with accompaniment, keyboard or otherwise, shall not constitute a secondary ensemble. All secondary ensembles will be coached by a Music Department Faculty member.