Graduate Artist Diploma Program

The Artist Diploma may be the most appropriate option for a student seeking total concentration in performance at the graduate level. Thus, the Department of Music Performance offers the Graduate Artist Diploma, a graduate-level non-degree performance program intended for only the most talented and outstanding performers. This program is offered to students in the performing areas of orchestral conducting, piano, strings (violin, viola, violoncello, double bass), woodwinds (flute/piccolo, oboe/English horn, clarinet, bassoon, saxophone), brass (French horn, trumpet, trombone, tuba), harp, percussion, and voice.

Entrance Requirements

Applicants to this program will typically have completed a master’s degree with a major in performance or a Performer’s Certificate that represents a minimum of a three-year performance-intensive program. For the Graduate Artist Diploma in orchestral conducting, a master's degree or its equivalent is preferred. Required credentials for admission include an application, application fee, final and official transcripts of all postsecondary studies, two letters of recommendation, a repertoire list and evidence of a performing career in progress (such as programs and/or critical reviews).

Students whose first language is not English must submit TOEFL results of 80 or higher (iBT test), (for paper-based test: 550 or higher; for computer-based test: 213 or higher), to be considered for admission. For the iBT test, at least 20 out of 30 in each of the subcategories is required.

Final admission to the program is granted following successful completion of a 60-minute artist diploma entrance recital (excluding Conducting students for whom videos of previous performances and auditions will be sufficient and Orchestral Instruments students), which is typically presented by the close of the first semester, and should include selections demonstrating the student's ability to perform in various styles. The singer's audition program must also demonstrate proficiency in French, German, and Italian.

The applicant must audition in person or via electronic means. Applicants for the Graduate Artist Diploma in orchestral conducting are asked to submit a videotape of a public performance, reading session or rehearsal, minimum length of 30 minutes, demonstrating diverse styles of orchestral repertoire; in addition, they will take a written and aural examination.

Placement Examinations

Incoming Artist Diploma students have the opportunity to take a Music History Placement Examination and Theory Placement Examination if they plan on taking history or theory courses as electives during the course of their study. Students entering the Artist Diploma Program in Conducting are required to take a Music History Placement Examination and Theory Placement Examination (which has three parts, a harmony section, an aural skills section, a score reading section of transposing instruments played at the piano or other instrument of student's choice) before their initial registration is completed. Students entering the Artist Diploma Program in Orchestral Instruments (Strings, Woodwinds, Brass, Harp and Percussion) are required to take a Music History Placement Examination and Theory Placement Examination (which has two parts, a harmony section and an aural skills section) before they plan to take a history or theory class. For students entering the Conducting program, if the results indicate areas of deficiency, they will be required to take specified graduate review courses before taking history or theory electives. These review courses do not count toward degree requirements. Artist Diploma students in Piano and Voice are not expected to take the exams, but should consult with their area head if they are interested in taking theory or history courses as part of their curriculum.

Program of Study

To receive the Graduate Artist Diploma, the student must successfully complete a curriculum of 35 or 36 semester hours, as described below, with an average of B or better. Enrollment for a minimum of four semesters is required, with a maximum period of three years allowed for completion of the program. Transfer credits may not be accepted to satisfy course requirements. Credits for coursework apply to the program requirements after the artist diploma entrance recital is passed.

Classes chosen for the music electives requirement should be lecture or lecture/activity courses to be determined with the program advisor. Examples include music theory, music history or similar courses appropriate to the major. All required recitals are to be performed in public before a committee of the music faculty and will be graded on a pass/fail basis.