The Music Department is dedicated to providing quality music instruction for students preparing to transfer as music majors to four-year institutions, students interested in pursuing a career in commercial music and the recording arts, and students from the community interested in lifelong learning opportunities. Our curriculum is designed to provide a balanced education in the many facets of the musical experience, and to develop each student's musical and intellectual potential to the highest level of his or her capability. The Music Department offers instruction in the areas of instrumental music, vocal and choral music, piano, guitar, jazz, theory and musicianship, history and literature, world music, and music industry studies. Performance organizations include choirs, bands, an orchestra, piano ensembles, jazz ensembles, jazz combos, a vocal jazz ensemble, and rock bands. The associate of arts degree in music is a comprehensive program of solo and ensemble performance, music theory, musicianship, piano proficiency, and literature in which students complete typical lower-division requirements for transfer to many four-year institutions as music majors at the junior level. The department offers a vocational education certificate program in music industry studies (MIS). The MIS recording arts certificate prepares students for a career in the music and recording industries. The music industry, along with a growing number of manufacturing and information delivery industries, needs audio experts and musicians with technical skills and production experience. Students learn about the creation and production of recordings of music, and learn how to complete recording projects that are typical of those found in contemporary professional recording and production environments.
