NDSU Inaugurates the School of Music
October 4, 2012
North Dakota State University is pleased to announce the creation of the NDSU School of Music. On September 26, the North Dakota State Board of Higher Education formally changed the name of the Department of Music to the School of Music, signifying its far-reaching mission encompassing a broad based curriculum that includes professional doctoral programs in performance and conducting.
"This notable and important designation more accurately reflects both the depth and breadth of our music program, and the importance of a broad-based curriculum in defining a top-ranked research university," said NDSU President Dean L. Bresciani.
The NDSU School of Music offers undergraduate degrees in liberal studies, performance, and music education; master’s degrees in performance, conducting, and music education; and doctor of musical arts degrees in performance and conducting.
NDSU Director of the Division of Fine Arts John Miller pointed out that “NDSU Music has had a long history of service to the region, the profession, and the arts. The School of Music designation is not reflective of a change in what we do, but a new name that characterizes what we have been doing for the last several years—offering meaningful musical kinships with all its audiences, whether local or global.”
The NDSU music program began in 1904 with Doc Putnam, a medical doctor from Casselton, North Dakota, who formed the NDAC cadet band, which became known as the Gold Star Marching Band after numerous Gold Star ratings during ROTC inspections. The Department of Music officially became a four-year degree program in 1952 and offered a major in music for the first time in campus history. NDSU Music began professional masters and doctoral degrees in 2002 and is the only performance and conducting doctoral program in North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, and western Minnesota.
A yearlong series of events is planned in commemoration of the inauguration of the School of Music, including residencies by noted musical artists and gala concerts at the Ordway Center for Performing Arts in St. Paul on March 12, 2013 and again at Festival Concert Hall at NDSU on March 25. A number of commissions and commemorative events will occur throughout the year, highlighted by a full production of Mozart’s Magic Flute, and a scholarly and performance symposium in the spring. The NDSU Music Symposium, Choral Music of the Americas, will feature composers and conductors from North America and South America in this week long series of workshops, clinics, and performances. The American Choral Directors Association and NDSU Division of Fine Arts will sponsor the symposium. Further, a commemorative book—Music at NDSU—is in preparation by Professor Robert Groves and will provide a documentary and pictorial history.
For more information, please contact NDSU School of Music at 701.231.9564 or ndsu.fine.arts@ndsu.edu.
