- Degree duration: 4 years (full-time)
- DIME Detroit Phone: (313) 223-1600
- DIME Detroit Email: applications@dime-detroit.com
Introduction
The Bachelor of Arts in Music: Commercial Music Performance degree provides you with an opportunity to specialize in guitar. It aims to empower you with a high level of instrumental skill and the ability to develop an authoritative, individual approach to the performance and creation of music. On completion of the degree, you will have established a varied portfolio of creative work and have an understanding of how to develop your own unique approach to your specialism and the wider industry.
Studying for your degree at MSU Denver at DIME Detroit means you will have a guitar in your hands everyday for the duration of your studies. We recognize that if you want to compete as a player and be the best that you can be, you will need intensive instruction along with the time to practice and develop your technique and your own style, and to form a realistic and achievable career plan. This degree is for musicians who are serious about their music and focused on a career in today’s fast-paced and ever-changing music business environment. You will study in a guitar group for most of your classes and in mixed discipline groups for performance, music theory, and music business courses.
What you’ll do
For more information, visit MSU Denver’s website or explore the courses by clicking on the sections below:
Year 1: Semester 1
Techniques and Improvisation I
MUS 1910 – This course provides students the opportunity to build a solid foundation of facility on their chosen instrument through a logical progression of exercises and application. Students are challenged to experiment with basic techniques to begin to develop a creative approach to improvisation. Students situate technical vocabulary and improvisational skills within a variety of musical contexts across numerous genres. Students develop a comprehensive method for practicing productively, keeping track of their own progress as they critically reflect on it. Group lectures are enhanced with masterclasses and opportunities for one-on-one tutorial sessions.
Pre-Production
MUS 1858 -This course is a forum to work in instrumental specialist groups (i.e. guitar, bass, drums, vocals) to dissect, analyze, and learn the particular technical aspects of the Live Performance Workshop song for any given week. Students may be asked to create charts for songs, learn passages by ear, and demonstrate a rage of techniques and skills to perform a particular song with musical authenticity and accuracy.
Live Performance Workshop
MUS 3840 – This class is all about preparing to play live on stage with pro gear to the highest professional standards. Students will first do pre-production on their individual instrument in which a song’s technique, tone, feel, and arrangement will be broken down and analyzed in detail. After some individual practicing, students will perform in various live group sessions in which musical communication, performance ability, and stage presence will be molded by instructors who will provide feedback.
Recital Attendance
MUS 0020 – Students must attend a total of twelve performances selected from a list of approved performances provided at the beginning of each semester. Students must enroll during each semester of individual instruction, and must receive a “Satisfactory” grade in order to progress to the next Techniques and Improvisation level.
Essential Music Theory Skills
MUS 1010 – This course covers the techniques of music reading, analysis, and hearing skills by teaching the fundamental principles of meter, rhythm, pitch scales, key signatures, intervals, triads, seventh chords and the keyboard. The application of traditional sight-reading and ear-training are emphasized. This course is designed to prepare music majors, musical theatre majors, and music minors for MUS 1110.
Introduction to Music
MUS 1000 – This course will investigate the function, structure, style, genre classifications, and aesthetic interpretations of a diverse variety of musical traditions. The student will develop and employ a vocabulary for musical description and listen to many different traditions of musical expression.
Public Speaking
SPE 1010 – This course integrates both the theory and practical skills of topic research, composition, delivery, and criticism of public speaking. Skill development includes effective public presentation strategies and audience analysis. Students develop critical listening skills by evaluating their own public-speaking style, as well as the effectiveness of their peers and professional speakers. This course builds public-speaking confidence, and introduces the student to the power of public rhetoric in social and professional contexts.
Year 1: Semester 2
Techniques and Improvisation II
MUS 1920 – This course builds directly on the previous semester’s iteration of this course, providing students an opportunity to further develop a solid foundation of facility on their chosen instrument through a logical progression of exercises and application. Students continue to experiment with basic techniques to further develop a creative approach to improvisation. The class situates technical vocabulary and improvisational skills within a variety of musical contexts across numerous genres. Along the way, students continue to develop a comprehensive method for practicing productively, keeping track of their own progress as they critically reflect on it. Group lectures will be enhanced with masterclasses and opportunities for one-on-one tutorial sessions.
Pre-Production
MUS 1858 – This class is a forum to work in instrumental specialist groups (guitar, bass, drums, vocals) to dissect, analyze, and learn the particular technical aspects of the Live Performance Workshop song for any given week. Students may be asked to create scratch charts for songs, learn passages by ear, and demonstrate a rage of techniques and skills to perform a particular song with musical authenticity and accuracy.
Live Performance Workshop
MUS 1840 – This class is all about preparing to play live on stage with pro gear to the highest professional standards. Students will first do pre-production on their individual instrument in which a song’s technique, tone, feel, and arrangement will be broken down and analyzed in detail. After some individual practicing, students will perform in various live group sessions in which musical communication, performance ability, and sound design will be molded by instructors who will provide feedback.
Music Theory I
MUS 1110 – This course is the study of the melodic, harmonic, rhythm, textural, and formal elements of music through analysis and composition and the development of reading and hearing skills as they relate to these elements. It covers diatonic music based on the triad including tonic and dominant harmony, phrase structure and grouping, and melodic figuration and dissonance. Aural recognition of materials is emphasized.
Music Theory Lab I
MUS 1120 – Students will apply reading and listening skills to the melodic, harmonic, rhythmic, textural, and formal elements of music through singing and the use of the keyboard. This course covers diatonic music based on the triad.
Class Piano I
MUS 161B – This course offers class instruction in piano to students with little or no previous training. You will learn the basics of playing scales and chords along with simple etudes and accompaniment for voice and other instruments.
Recital Attendance
MUS 0020 – Students must attend a total of twelve performances selected from a list of approved performances provided at the beginning of each semester. Students must enroll during each semester of individual instruction, and must receive a “Satisfactory” grade in order to progress to the next Techniques and Improvisation level.
Mathematics for Liberal Arts
MTH 1080 – This course is an introduction to the spirit and methods of mathematics. It includes problem-solving strategies, introductory financial mathematics, probability, statistics, and other topics demonstrating the interdisciplinary applicability of mathematics.
Composing Arguments
ENG 1010 – Composing Arguments is a course focusing on the process of writing and revising college level texts in three major categories: arguments through-personal reflection, arguments through analysis, and arguments through interpretation. The course employs lecture, discussion, workshop, and conference methods. Students learn how to read, summarize, and analyze texts. Students demonstrate their ability to generate, organize, and produce writing for appropriate audiences. Course work does not include research and documentation of secondary sources. Students must receive a C- or better to earn course credit.
Year 2: Semester 1
Session Styles I
MUS 2840 – This course requires students to perform a diverse range of contemporary and iconic musical styles in the popular idiom to high standards. Students will be required to listen to and analyze a range of recordings to assess their stylistic sonic qualities and nuances. Instructors will provide historical and cultural context for each style as well as performance training and guidance in critical listening skills. Students will be required to read and interpret song charts as well as play by ear while performing in various styles/genres. Group sessions will be discipline-specific, and be supported by one-on-one tutorials and master classes.
Intermediate Techniques and Improvisation I
MUS 2910 – Building upon Techniques and Improv I and II, this course provides students the opportunity to further develop technical facility on their chosen instrument along with a deeper understanding of improvisatory skills. This will involve a logical progression of intermediate level exercises and application. Students will be challenged to experiment with intermediate level techniques to further develop a creative approach to improvisation. The course will situate intermediate technical vocabulary and improvisational skills within a variety of musical contexts across numerous genres.
Artist Inquiry I
MUS 2850 – In this course, students study and learn to perform the particular techniques, styles, repertoire, and sounds of artists within the proper historical, cultural, and social contexts. This course outlines a basic chronological history of American popular music with an emphasis on rock ’n’ roll (broadly conceived).
Large Ensemble (Pop and Soul Choir)
MUS 3810 – This ensemble class will focus on singing in a group setting, teaching students primarily about vocal technique, vocal health, vocal blend, harmony singing, dynamics, phrasing, and group dynamics. This class will include repertoire ranging from contemporary popular music to classic soul.
Music Theory II
MUS 1130 – This course is the continuation of Music Theory I. It includes the study of the melodic, harmonic, rhythmic, textural, and formal dements of music through analysis and composition and the development of reading and hearing skills as they relate to these elements. It covers predominant chords and other diatonic chords, seventh chords, harmonic sequences, and an introduction to tonicization and modulation. Aural recognition of materials is emphasized.
Recital Attendance
MUS 0020 – Students must attend a total of twelve performances selected from a list of approved performances provided at the beginning of each semester. Students must enroll during each semester of individual instruction, and must receive a “Satisfactory” grade in order to progress to the next Techniques and Improvisation level.
Music Theory II Lab
MUS 1140 – This course is a continuation of Music Theory I Lab,and covers diatonic seventh chords and elementary chromaticism.
Research and Argument Writing
ENG 1020 – This is a course in the process of writing extended essays supported by research. The course includes an introduction to library use, research techniques, and the conventions of MLA and APA styles of documentation, as well as practice in critical reading, thinking, and writing across the disciplines. Students can expect to do a series of shorter writing and research assignments leading to the longer, documented paper. Freshman Composition includes hands-on instruction in the use of computers in research and writing in a computer lab.
Year 2: Semester 2
Session Styles II
MUS 2842 – Building on MUS 2840: Sessions Styles I, this course will focus on more advanced skills necessary to be a successful working musician in studio and live sessions. Particular emphasis will be placed on reading and interpreting song charts in a diverse range of contemporary and iconic musical styles in the popular idiom. Students will listen to and analyze a more complex range of recordings to assess their stylistic sonic qualities. Instructors will provide historical and cultural context for each style as well as further performance training and guidance in developing more nuanced critical listening skills. Group sessions will be discipline-specific, and be supported by one-on-one tutorials and master classes.
Intermediate Techniques and Improvisation II
MUS 2920 – This course builds directly on MUS 2910: Intermediate Techniques and Improv I, providing students an opportunity to further develop technical facility on their chosen instrument while advancing their improvisational abilities. This will involve a logical progression of advanced intermediate exercises and application. Students will progress to experiment with an advanced-intermediate level of techniques to further develop a creative approach to improvisation. The class will situate technical vocabulary and improvisational skills within a variety of challenging musical contexts across numerous genres at an advanced-intermediate level.
Artist Inquiry II
MUS 2852 – This course is the second course in a sequence. This course allows students to continue to study and perform the particular techniques, styles, repertoire, and sounds of artists within their proper historical, cultural, and social contexts. This course continues to outline a basic chronological history of American popular music with an emphasis on rock ’n’ roll (broadly conceived).
African Drum Ensemble
MUS 3810 – This ensemble class will focus on the performance of various music from Africa and its diaspora. Students will particularly learn about the musical elements of rhythm and polyrhythm as well as call-and-response singing. Repertoire may range from traditional drum and vocal music to contemporary Afro-pop.
Recital Attendance
MUS 0020 – Students must attend a total of twelve performances selected from a list of approved performances provided at the beginning of each semester. Students must enroll during each semester of individual instruction, and must receive a “Satisfactory” grade in order to progress to the next Techniques and Improvisation level.
American History since 1865
HIST 1220 – This course covers the background to the present-day United States beginning with the Civil War and culminating with recent times. It analyzes cultural, social, economic and technological change. Topics addressed include immigration, industrialism, emergence of the U.S. as a world power, Progressivism, the First World War, the Great Depression, World War II, and the Cold War and its aftermath.
Art and Visual Literacy
ARTH 1500 – This course is a general introduction to the tools and methods used to analyze and interpret works of art in a variety of contexts. Students learn how to effectively communicate how visual forms work in conjunction with cultural beliefs both in the past and present. Analytical tools appropriate to the disciplines of art criticism and art history, including the use of research, are used by the student to support interpretations. A variety of artistic traditions, including materials and techniques from across the globe and throughout time, are introduced so that students are prepared to identify and interpret historical and contemporary examples of visual art and design. By developing an awareness of the relationship between visual forms and the messages they convey, students increase their ability to respond critically to their own increasingly complex, visual environment. This course is designed for the non-major and recommended for the General Studies requirement in Arts and Humanities.
Year 3: Semester 1
Advanced Techniques and Improvisation I
MUS 3910 – Building on Intermediate Techniques and Improv I and II, this course will provide students the opportunity to develop advanced technical facility and improvisational abilities on their chosen instrument. This will involve a logical progression of advanced-level exercises and applications. Students will be challenged to experiment with advanced level techniques to further develop a creative approach to improvisation. The class will situate technical vocabulary and improvisational skills within a variety of challenging musical contexts across numerous genres.
Domestic Music Market
MUS 1890 – This course provides students with an introductory overview of the American music industry. Students demonstrate how the multiple components of, and stakeholders in, the music business all work together to create income streams for artists and industry professionals. Students study the business strategies of classic and contemporary artists to reveal how these musicians have navigated an increasingly complex and dynamic industry.
Musics of the World
MUS 3050 – The course will explore the diverse forms of musical expression found in within cultures from around the world. In addition to surveying a variety of musical practices, aesthetic systems, and functions of music, the fundamental theoretical approaches of ethnomusicology will be introduced and employed.
Group Recital
MUS 3878 – Building on Live Performance Workshop, this class takes a more advanced approach to live performance. While continuing to develop technical and improvisational skills on their chosen instrument, students will develop their skills as Musical Directors as they form and manage their own ensembles. Students will choose repertoire as they cultivate a group sound and personality. Faculty will be on hand to offer feedback and constructive guidance to help mold a band into a cohesive professional unit. Various faculty members will be assigned to each group as mentors. Each ensemble will be responsible for constructing and performing a 40-minute set for an audience of their peers and instructors, receiving feedback from both. Students will be required to consider lighting, sound design, staging, audience interaction, promotion, and other elements of constructing a professional performance to a high standard.
Ensemble
MUS 3810 – This course is a continuation of MUS 2810 and is designed to explore and study performance techniques through the rehearsal and performance of standard ensemble literature. Ensembles may also serve as reading labs for conducting classes. This course may be repeated for credit.
Recital Attendance
MUS 0020 – Students must attend a total of twelve performances selected from a list of approved performances provided at the beginning of each semester. Students must enroll during each semester of individual instruction, and must receive a “Satisfactory” grade in order to progress to the next Techniques and Improvisation level.
Introduction to Nutrition
NUT 2040 – This course is designed to provide the student with an understanding of the fundamental concepts of human nutrition, including digestion, absorption, metabolism, and function of nutrients as they relate to human health and disease.
Year 3: Semester 2
Advanced Techniques and Improvisation II
MUS 3920 – This course builds directly on MUS 3910: Advanced Technique and Improv I, providing students an opportunity to further develop an advanced technical facility and improvisational abilities on their chosen instrument. This will involve a logical progression of advanced exercises and applications. Students will continue to experiment with advanced level techniques to further develop a creative approach to improvisation. The course will situate this advanced technical vocabulary and improvisational skills within a variety of challenging musical contexts across numerous genres.
Group Recital
MUS 3878 – Building on Live Performance Workshop (MUS 1840), this class takes a more advanced approach to live performance. While continuing to develop technical and improvisational skills on their chosen instrument, students develop their skills as Musical Directors as they form and manage their own ensembles. Students choose repertoire as they cultivate a group sound and personality. Faculty will offer feedback and constructive guidance to help mold a band into a cohesive professional unit. Various faculty members will be assigned to each group as mentors. Each ensemble will be responsible for constructing and performing a set for an audience of their peers and instructors, receiving feedback from both.
Jazz Styles
MUS 3020 – This class explores the history of Jazz within the context of the African American cultural experience. The course will examine African musical aesthetics that are at the core of all forms of jazz throughout its history. The evolution of jazz will be traced, beginning with distinctly African American musical expressions such as minstrelsy, the blues, and ragtime, before surveying the developments and prominent figures of jazz in the 20th century including New Orleans and classic jazz, bebop and related movements, the innovations of Coleman and Taylor, the innovations of Miles Davis, and the jazz styles of the present.
Ensemble
MUS 3810 – This course is a continuation of MUS 2810 and is designed to explore and study performance techniques through the rehearsal and performance of standard ensemble literature. Ensembles may also serve as reading labs for conducting classes. This course may be repeated for credit.
Recital Attendance
MUS 0020 – Students must attend a total of twelve performances selected from a list of approved performances provided at the beginning of each semester. Students must enroll during each semester of individual instruction, and must receive a “Satisfactory” grade in order to progress to the next Techniques and Improvisation level.
Staging Cultures
THE 3213 – This course uses theatre history and dramatic texts to explore cultures of previously and/or presently marginalized peoples, including but not limited to African Americans, Hispanics, Asian Americans, women, and the GLBTQ community, in order to promote greater understanding of these peoples and their struggles for representation.
Introduction to Journalism and Mass Media
JRN 1010 – This survey course introduces students from all academic disciplines to the historical development of journalism and mass media and its relationship to contemporary society. Students will explore the functions and impact of newspapers, books, television, radio, magazines, films, public relations and issues such as technology convergence, censorship, economic control, and privacy.
Year 4: Semester 1
Personal Expression
MUS 4920 -This course represents the culmination of improvisation and self-expression skills learned from the Techniques and Improvisation sequence. The course will explore advanced improvisational concepts on a student’s instrument in preparation for the Professional Performance Capstone Course and Senior Recital. Students will continue to experiment with professional-level improvisational concepts to further develop their personal style of expression on their instrument. Students will apply their improvisational skills within a variety of musical contexts across numerous genres.
Techniques Practicum
MUS 4910 – This course is the culmination of technical development from the Techniques and Improvisation sequence. The course will explore advanced technical concepts on a student’s instrument in preparation for the Professional Performance Capstone Course and Senior Recital. This will involve a logical progression of exercises and application. Students will continue to learn professional-level techniques to further master the craft of their specific instrument. The course will explore the technical vocabulary of a variety of musical contexts across numerous genres.
Commercial Composition and Arrangement
MUS 3850 – This course requires that students study and apply techniques, methodologies, and concepts for composing and arranging original music. Students will analyze classic and contemporary songs and arrangements, including score analysis and critical listening assessments.
DIME Elective
XXX XXXX – Students will be able to choose from a selection of core courses in other disciplines (i.e., songwriting, music entrepreneurship) as well as a rotating group of offerings that may include: Home Recording, Live Sound, Detroit Music Heritage, Guitar Ensemble, Pop Music & Politics, Stage Management, and more!
Ensemble
MUS 3810 – This course is a continuation of MUS 2810 and is designed to explore and study performance techniques through the rehearsal and performance of standard ensemble literature. Ensembles may also serve as reading labs for conducting classes. This course may be repeated for credit.
Recital Attendance
MUS 0020 – Students must attend a total of twelve performances selected from a list of approved performances provided at the beginning of each semester. Students must enroll during each semester of individual instruction, and must receive a “Satisfactory” grade in order to progress to the next Techniques and Improvisation level.
Sound and Music
PHY 3620 – This course will consider the basic nature of sound waves, the ear and hearing, musical instruments, and acoustics. Although this course is mainly descriptive, some high school algebra will be used.
Year 4: Semester 2
Senior Recital
MUS 4890 -This course is the culmination of the student’s degree in Commercial Music Performance. The student will be responsible for individually constructing, organizing, promoting, and executing an individual recital. While they may perform with others, each musical selection must feature the student for which the degree is to be awarded. Students will meet periodically with their faculty mentor to discuss their ideas and progress toward their final performance. The individual student will be required to organize rehearsals in preparation for the final performance. Students will also be required to construct extensive program notes, which explain their choice of music, personnel and staging while situating each of their song selections within their proper historical, social, and cultural context. Students must display a high level of professionalism throughout the semester as well as within the final performance. Repertoire should include a mix of original and pre-existing material, which displays a wide range of performance skills in several contemporary music genres.
Commercial Music Capstone
MUS 4899 – This course is a culmination of the MSU @ DIME music degree, requiring students to integrate and apply the knowledge they have gained over the entirety of their studies. Students will be asked to conduct ethnographic and library/online research in order to identify a range of potential career opportunities for themselves. Students will need to demonstrate a comprehensive understanding of their field as they examine how these areas are relevant to their various potential career paths.
DIME Elective
XXX XXXX – Students will be able to choose from a selection of core courses in other disciplines (i.e., songwriting, music entrepreneurship) as well as a rotating group of offerings that may include: Home Recording, Live Sound, Detroit Music Heritage, Guitar Ensemble, Pop Music & Politics, Stage Management, and more!
Recital Attendance
MUS 0020 – Students must attend a total of twelve performances selected from a list of approved performances provided at the beginning of each semester. Students must enroll during each semester of individual instruction, and must receive a “Satisfactory” grade in order to progress to the next Techniques and Improvisation level.
Marketing Around the Globe
MKT 2010 – Students study the importance of globalization in the business world where global markets are more connected and marketers must respond to the expectations of global consumers. The course covers the essential concepts of global marketing with the aid of extensive, real-life examples. The course offers balanced coverage of developed and developing markets. Integrating cultural analysis throughout the course, students examine global and local competition and forms of global market entry, as well as basic principles of global marketing strategies, such as price, product, distribution, and promotion.