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Department of

Music

Applied Lessons

Taking Private Music Lessons

Instrumental and voice lessons are available to students who are music majors, music minors, or who are enrolled in a performance ensemble.

The purpose of the Applied Music Program, in general, is to provide training for qualified students who wish to develop their talent and more fully express themselves through musical performance. To enroll in applied lessons you must follow these steps (music majors and minors may skip step 1):

1. Enroll in one of the following performance ensembles:

COURSE NUMBER INSTRUCTOR MEETING TIME ROOM

University Choir

Musc 153 or 353

Edwin Basilio, Ph.D.

M 7:00 - 9:00 pm

C153

Choral Scholars*

Musc 152 or 352

Edwin Basilio, Ph.D.

MTWTh 12:20 - 1:15 pm

C153

USD Symphony

Musc 151 or 351

Angela Yeung, Ph.D.

W 7:00 - 9:50 pm

Shiley Theatre

Chamber Music

Musc 150 or 350

Angela Yeung, Ph.D.

TTh 10:45 am -12:05pm

C144

 

*Entry into the Choral Scholars is determined by a rigorous audition and screening process which is usually completed in the year before admittance to the ensemble.

2. Get an add/drop form and have it signed by Angela Yeung, Ph.D. (Camino 173, x4106), Christopher Adler, Ph.D. (Camino 142L, x7502) or Marianne Pfau, Ph.D. (Camino 173, x4101).

Students enrolling in private lessons must pay a course fee, per semester, of $540 for lower division or $580 for upper division credit. Note that this fee is waived for one enrollment per semester for music majors with at least one year of enrollment in good standing at USD and Choral Scholars.

In addition, members of the USD Symphony may be eligible for reimbursment for one enrollment per semester.

3. Fill out the Applied Student Contact and Schedule Form (in wooden box outside Camino 142G) and return it to Ron Shaheen, Ph.D. (C142G, x7653), who will arrange an instructor and lesson time for you.

Applied music students receive ten 50-minute lessons in the course of the semester.

All applied music students must perform in a jury at the end of the semester as their final exam. The day for juries is usually the 'dead' day between the last day of class and the first day of final exams. During juries, the students perform for a faculty panel who grade them on their performance. The final grade is determined as follows: the instructor’s grade counts for 2/3 and the composite jury grade counts for 1/3 of the final grade. (The composite jury grade is the average grade given by the faculty present at the juries.)

The minimal requirements for students to enroll in individual lessons are as follows:

For Voice: Students must have had some previous experience with performing as a singer, either with a choir or chorus, in a musical, or private voice lessons. Students must be able to read music well enough to learn their vocal part on their own.

For Piano: Students must have had a few years of private instruction and must be able to read grand staff notation, hands together, at an elementary level. Students who have successfully completed Class Piano II (Music 205) may also enroll in private lessons with the consent of Kay Etheridge, Ph.D. the coordinator for the piano area.

For Guitar: Students must own their own instrument. They must also have experience with basic classical guitar technique, chord accompaniment, and note reading in first position.

For Other Instruments: Students must be able to read music and own their own instrument and they must have a few years experience with their instrument

In lieu of private lessons, students might consider one of the following group instruction courses:

Class Piano I (Musc 105)
Class Piano II (Musc 205)
Class Voice (Musc 107)
Class Guitar (Musc 108)

If you have any more questions, please contact:
Ron Shaheen, Ph.D.
Camino Hall 142G, x7653
rshaheen@sandiego.edu