There's something for everyone studying music at Hobart and William Smith. Whether you want to play an instrument in a dynamic ensemble, study the history of hip-hop or develop the foundations for sound engineering, you can. You'll have the freedom to take your passion for music where you want.
Want to learn the business side of music? Try our Music Administration and Entrepreneurship minor.
Want to learn to become a music teacher? You can participate in ensembles and music in conjunction with completing the major to earn teacher certification in New York State.
Picking and learning a new instrument is easy, too at HWS. You can learn and practice one-on-one with music instructors in a wide variety of instruments from piano, guitar, drums, cello to voice, woodwind instruments and violin. And with many music courses cross-listed with other departments, you'll expand your musical knowledge and its connections across subjects. All this can be done while studying in a state of the art facility with multiple private practice rooms, a student lounge and plenty of space to perform and practice your craft. The skills and knowledge you'll gain studying Music will prepare you for other fields as well such as languages, politics, technology, economics and sciences, meaning your posibilities are endless.
"My time working with the Music Department helped me become the musician that I am today. The professors are extremely passionate about their areas of focus, providing students with the resources to succeed in the classroom and pursue their individual interests. The private lesson instructors are some of the best I have worked with and have helped me get to another level with my instruments. The many different school ensembles provide a space for any musician to grow and perform, with friends. I was also able to complete an honors project focused on hip hop my senior year with Associate Professor of Music Mark Olivieri, which was one of the most rewarding parts of my HWS career.”
FacilitiesOne Home for All Music
Whether you’re singing in a choir or taking music lessons, you’ll get to take advantage of all the Music department has to offer in the 65,000 square foot Gearan Center for the Performing Arts. The center includes an 1,800 square foot recital venue for choral performances, an 1,850 square foot venue for orchestra and multiple practice spaces. A student lounge and personal lockers are jut some of the amenities students can take advantage of, along with rentable instruments.
Honors
And Research
Music students looking to engage more in their work can study and complete Honors and research projects in their chosen topic with the guidance of a faculty member.
Past examples of Honors projects include:
Matthew Nardone ’21: Intersections of Nostalgic and Futurism in Western Popular Music Charity Lofthouse, Adviser
Ryan M. Klimkewicz ’20: An Inquiry of Quality In The Age Of Streaming: Exploring Semantic Dimensions and the Erosion of Quality in the Age of Streaming Mark Olivieri, Adviser
Elena K. Parkins ’18: Pacifism in Song: An Exploration of Select Wartime Works by Benjamin Britten Robert Cowles, Adviser
Experiential EducationLet the Music do the Talking
Music isn’t just a subject you learn about in the classroom – you perform it. In the Colleges’ Music Department, you’ll be encouraged to join an ensemble or learn a new instrument one-on-one with an instructor.
At Hobart and William Smith, learning goes beyond textbooks and classrooms. You’ll gain high-impact practical experience that deepens learning and opens doors.
Study music’s role as a social reaction to British domination in Ireland or reggaeton’s cultural influence in Denmark.
Wherever you go, our top-ranked global education program will allow you to apply classroom knowledge, develop cultural understanding and build global connections that expand your personal capacity and sense of purpose.
Studying music is inherently a cross-cultural examination of influences, experiences, cultures and methods. As an interdisciplinary program, courses in the Music Department connect to other departments like Asian studies, European studies, Africana studies, Latin American studies and media and society. Studying music can unpack biases, inequities and racism that persists in the world and can also serve as a specific way to gain a broader view of values and structures in cultures.
Music Courses
Study music and its impact on life, culture and society.
MUS/AMST 215 POWER, PRIVILEGE AND THE OTHER IN U.S. POPULAR MUSIC
Learn to identify ways in which music and performative gesture underscores, subverts and sometimes transcends dominant cultural scripts and narratives.
MUS 194 A HISTORICAL GENEALOGY OF HIP HOP
Learn about one of the most influential cultural phenomena of the late 20th Century, from its start in 1970s New York City to today.
MUS 205 MUSIC AT THE MOVIES
Explore film music’s role and relation to the plot and visual elements at small-scale and large-scale (narrative) levels from the silent-era to present day.
ELENA PARKINS ’18 ACADEMIC SUCCESS COACH AT NAZARETH COLLEGE
Elena was always trying new activities growing up. When the time came to go to college, she didn’t want to give that up. As a William Smith student, Elena was able to pursue her interests in music and psychology, study abroad and perform in four on-campus groups.
Graduates of the HWS Music department have gone on to pursue careers in fields like education, politics, business and the arts.
In addition to their professional careers, many of our students continue their education and earn graduate degrees from top-ranked graduate schools across the country.
Regardless of their subsequent career paths, our students have carried with them their memorable HWS musical experiences and used them to make music an integral part of their lives.
COMPANIES THAT EMPLOY OUR GRADUATES:
A.H. Harris
Achievement First Hartford Elementary School
All Seasons Tennis Club
Americorps/City Year
Amp the Cause
Bloomberg LP
Bozzuto Group
Celonis
Clean Ocean Access
ConcreteDirect
Conserva Partners
Evelyn Kirrane Aquatics Center
Excellus BlueCross BlueShield
Fidelity Investments
Food Network
Four Seasons Hotel and Resorts
Fulbright ETA
Fusion Academy
Gilsenan and Costa Ctr. for Occup. & Speech-Language Therapy
Hanover Research
Instagram
International Centre for Missing & Exploited Children
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