This is a basic 3-year plan for students from high school with no advanced standing.
Program audit
You will receive a summary of exemption credits from placement exams, transfer credits, Advanced Placements (AP), etc, before you begin your first semester at the Schulich School of Music. You can access this information via a Program Audit (PA) customized for you. Visit the PA web page to learn more about how you can view your personalized program plan.
Meet with your academic advisor to review your program plan at least once a year.
Course load
You should normally register for 20-23 credits per term.
- Full-time course load: 12 credits or more
- Part-time course load: 11 credits or less
Practical instruction and practical exams
- You must complete 3 practical exams (MUIN 252, 352 and 452) during your program. In some cases, you might take your exams at different times than what we suggest in our sample 3-year plan.
- Determine when to apply for these exams with your practical instruction teacher.
- For practical instruction registration details, visit Registration.
Sample year 1 course plan (with no course exemptions)
- You have the option to take placement exams in theory, musicianship and keyboard proficiency before school starts. Depending on the basis of admission and the placement test results, you may be exempt from music history (MUHL 186), first year theory (courses with MUTH prefixes) or musicianship/keyboard proficiency (courses with MUSP prefixes). To learn more about the course exemption criteria, see Placement Exams.
- If you choose not to write the placement tests, you will register for courses as presented in this sample first year course plan.
- If you are exempt from MUHL 186, you may consider taking an elective in the first semester.
- You must be proficient in English for all courses, especially Music History. Non-anglophone students should defer MUHL 186 until their second year and register for an English as Second Language (ESL) course in year 1. ESL courses can be accepted as non-music electives. Contact the Writing Centre for information on ESL course registration.
Fall term
MUTH 150
Theory and Analysis 1
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Music Theory and Analysis: Diatonic chords and harmonic progressions, focus on outer-voice framework, cadences, embellishments, building chordal fluency in common-practice tonality, applied chords.
Offered by: Music Research
- Prerequisite: Matriculation Music or McGill Conservatory Theory Secondary V or its equivalent.
- Corequisites: MUSP 140 and MUSP 170
MUSP 140
Musicianship Training 1
2 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Musicianship: Rhythm and metre basic subdivisions and conducting patterns; intervals, chords, and scale patterns; non-modulating tonal melodies with treble and bass clefs; harmonic progressions emphasizing two-part outer voice structures.
Offered by: Music Research
- 2 hours
- Prerequisite: Matriculation Music or McGill Conservatory Theory Secondary V or its equivalent.
- Corequisites: MUTH 150, MUSP 170
- Terms
- Instructors
- Monica Asly, Fredericka Petit-Homme, Margaret Emily De Castro
MUSP 170
Musicianship (Keyboard) 1
1 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Musicianship: Harmonic, melodic and rhythmic analysis at the keyboard through the study of rudiments, repertoire, chorale/score reading, transposition and harmonization.
Offered by: Music Research
- 1 hour
- Prerequisite: Matriculation Music or McGill Conservatory Theory Secondary V or its equivalent.
- Corequisites: MUTH 150 and MUSP 140.
- Course contents parallel with those of MUTH 150 and MUSP 140.
- Terms
- Instructors
- Julia Gavrilova, Monica Asly, Jolan Kovacs
MUPD 135
Music as a Profession 1
1 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Music Professional Development: Music Professional Development: An introduction to information, resources, and skills related to physical, mental, and professional well-being for the musician and scholar.
Offered by: Music Research
- Open to B.Mus. students or by permission of the instructor.
(optional course though not required)
- We recommend that you take this course even though it's not required. It covers useful topics such as injury prevention skills and wellness.
MUIN 250
LMus Practical Instruction 1
6 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Practical Instrument: Practical instruction in an instrument or voice.
Offered by: Performance
- Prerequisite: Admission to the L.Mus. program by audition
- Terms
- Instructors
- Annamaria Popescu, Mark C Simons, Dominique Labelle, Patrice Richer, Paul A Merkelo, Jocelyn Couture, Jennifer Swartz, Helene Plouffe, Eric Chappell, David Grott, Trevor Dix, Michel Lambert, Allan Robert McLean, Ranee Y Lee, Greg Clayton, Joseph Leo Sullivan, Andre J Roy, sylvain Bergeron, Russell Devuyst, Richard Allen Roberts, Jeff Johnston, Scott O Feltham, Kenneth Bibace, Marina Mdivani, Kyoko Hashimoto, Alain Desgagne, Joanne E Kolomyjec, Andrew J Wan, Stefano Algieri, Fabrice Marandola, Lex French, Aline Kutan, Tracy Smith Bessette, Axel Strauss, Richard P Stoelzel, Violaine Melancon, Alexis Basque, Adrian Vedady, Patrick J Kearney, Elizaveta Miller
One large ensemble (MUEN 5xx): 2 credits
One small ensemble (MUEN 5xx): 1 credit
MUHL 186
Western Musical Traditions
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Music History and Literature: A survey of Western music from the Middle Ages to the present. Emphasis on key musical concepts and genres in their historical context and aural recognition of style.
Offered by: Music Research
Winter term
MUTH 151
Theory and Analysis 2
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Music Theory and Analysis: Sequences and modulation, chromatic vocabulary, analysis of simple theme types (sentence, period, hybrids) and fugal techniques.
Offered by: Music Research
MUSP 141
Musicianship Training 2
2 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Musicianship: Rhythm and metre mixed divisions and syncopations; triadic and seventh chord voicings and disjunct pitch collections; chromatically embellished melodies adding alto clef; simple modulating harmonic progressions emphasizing two-part outer voice structures.
Offered by: Music Research
- 2 hours
- Prerequisites: Matriculation Music or McGill Conservatory Theory Secondary V or its equivalent. MUSP 140
- Corequisites: MUTH 151, MUSP 171
MUSP 171
Musicianship (Keyboard) 2
1 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Musicianship: Building chordal fluency. Harmonic vocabulary including sequences, chromaticism and modulation. Chorale and score reading with transposing instruments and alto/tenor clefs.
Offered by: Music Research
- 1 hour
- Prerequisite: MUSP 170
- Corequisites: MUTH 111 and MUSP 131; or MUTH 151 and MUSP 141
- Restriction: All students admitted to B.Mus. and L.Mus. programs, including those with keyboard or guitar as their principal instrument, are required to take MUSP 171 Keyboard Lab, unless exempt on the basis of a placement test. Students who are exempt from MUTH 111 through placement tests must still take MUSP 171 (unless exempt) since this course forms the foundation of keyboard-based musicianship tasks at upper levels. (All Majors in Jazz Performance substitute MUJZ 171 for MUSP 171. Students in Jazz Performance who have completed MUJZ 170 and MUJZ 171, and who transfer to a Department of Theory program, will be required to complete MUSP 171.) Students who do not achieve a continuation pass in MUSP 171 must reregister for the course in the semester immediately following. Students who do not achieve a continuation pass after repeating the course will not be allowed to proceed with further Musicianship or Theory studies until a continuation pass is achieved. Tests for MUSP 171 are held in August-September, December-January, and April-May [as well as during the Summer Session when course(s) offered], the exact dates determined by the Department of Music Research.
- Course contents parallel with those of MUTH 151 and MUSP 141.
MUIN 251
L.Mus. Practical Instruction 2
6 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Practical Instrument: Practical instruction in an instrument or voice.
Offered by: Performance
- Terms
- Instructors
- Dominique Labelle, Elizaveta Miller
- John Mac Master, Annamaria Popescu, Mark C Simons, Dominique Labelle, Patrice Richer, Paul A Merkelo, Jocelyn Couture, Jennifer Swartz, Helene Plouffe, Eric Chappell, David Grott, Trevor Dix, Michel Lambert, Allan Robert McLean, Ranee Y Lee, Brian Robinson, Greg Clayton, Joseph Leo Sullivan, Andre J Roy, sylvain Bergeron, Russell Devuyst, Richard Allen Roberts, Jeff Johnston, Scott O Feltham, Kenneth Bibace, Marina Mdivani, Kyoko Hashimoto, Alain Desgagne, Andrew J Wan, Stefano Algieri, Fabrice Marandola, Aline Kutan, Tracy Smith Bessette, Sallynee Amawat, Axel Strauss, Richard P Stoelzel, Violaine Melancon, Alexis Basque, Adrian Vedady, Patrick J Kearney, Elizaveta Miller
MUIN 252
L.Mus. Performance 1 Exam
4 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Practical Instrument: Assessment of student progress.
Offered by: Performance
- Note: Complete descriptions are to be found under Examinations and Goals in Practical Subjects in the Music Chapter of the University Calendar.
- Terms
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year
One large ensemble (MUEN 5xx): 2 credits
One small ensemble (MUEN 5xx): 1 credit