Music and Theater Arts

Photos of students in performances.

Symphony Orchestra rehearsal and Schnitzler's "La Ronde" production composite image. (Photos by Sina Mohammadi and Hayden Taylor.)


At MIT, the arts are widely practiced, performed, and celebrated - in corridors and classrooms, on stage and in the studio.

Hundreds of exhibitions, performances, and readings enliven MIT's campus annually, enhancing and enriching campus life while drawing tens of thousands of visitors from throughout the region.

Between 60 and 70 percent of incoming freshmen come to MIT with strong interests and involvement in the arts. Many pursue their artistic interests through participation in MIT's Music and Theater Arts Section, which provides numerous opportunities for students to develop artistically and intellectually.

Music

MIT's Music Program provides a challenging, rewarding undergraduate musical education for students at every level of preparation and talent. The music faculty includes internationally known composers and performers, and students may choose from a wide variety of offerings in performance, theory/analysis/composition, and music history/literature.

MIT students can major, double major, minor or concentrate in music. In addition to individual and class study in traditional and experimental music, students may participate in many performance groups directed by members of the faculty. These include the MIT Symphony and String Chamber Orchestras, Wind Ensemble, Festival Jazz Ensemble, Chamber Music Society, Concert Choir, Chamber Chorus, Gamelan Galak-Tika and the Senegalese performing ensemble, RAMBAX MIT.

Theater Arts

Through MIT's Theater Arts Program, students explore diverse theatrical forms and practices, from the scripted play to actor-created theater, from musical theater to the theater of identity politics. Courses range from playwriting to directing to set design, always reflecting a commitment to diverse aesthetics. Students participate in numerous curricular and extracurricular ensembles ranging from the curricular Dramashop to the extracurricular improv comedy troupe, Roadkill Buffet.

The Program welcomes students' unique cultural and individual perspectives in a collaborative environment that encourages inquiry as the cornerstone of both personal and artistic growth. Together, MIT Theater's faculty and students work together in search of expression, depth and mastery in the art of theater.

The Listening Room - MIT's Music Program

Flash and JavaScript are required for this feature.

This video is from MITNewsOffice on YouTube and is not provided under our Creative Commons license.


Music and Theater Arts Courses

Course # Course Title Level
21M.011 Introduction to Western Music Undergraduate
21M.013J The Supernatural in Music, Literature and Culture Undergraduate
21M.030 Introduction to World Music (Spring 2013) Undergraduate
21M.030 Introduction to World Music (Fall 2006) Undergraduate
21M.051 Fundamentals of Music Undergraduate
21M.065 Introduction to Musical Composition (Spring 2014) Undergraduate
21M.065 Introduction to Musical Composition (Fall 2005) Undergraduate
21M.113 Developing Musical Structures Undergraduate
21M.220 Early Music Undergraduate
21M.223J Introduction to Anglo-American Folk Music Undergraduate
21M.235 Monteverdi to Mozart: 1600-1800 Undergraduate
21M.250 Beethoven to Mahler Undergraduate
21M.250 Schubert to Debussy Undergraduate
21M.262 Modern Music: 1900-1960 Undergraduate
21M.263 Music Since 1960 Undergraduate
21M.269 Studies in Western Music History: Quantitative and Computational Approaches to Music History Undergraduate
21M.271 Symphony and Concerto Undergraduate
21M.289 Islam/Media Undergraduate
21M.291 Music of India Undergraduate
21M.293 Music of Africa Undergraduate
21M.294 Popular Musics of the World Undergraduate
21M.295 American Popular Music Undergraduate
21M.301 Harmony and Counterpoint I Undergraduate
21M.302 Harmony and Counterpoint II Undergraduate
21M.303 Writing in Tonal Forms I Undergraduate
21M.304 Writing in Tonal Forms II Undergraduate
21M.342 Composing for Jazz Orchestra Undergraduate
21M.350 Musical Analysis Undergraduate
21M.351 Music Composition (Fall 2008) Undergraduate
21M.355 Musical Improvisation Undergraduate
21M.361 Composing with Computers I (Electronic Music Composition) Undergraduate
21M.380 Music and Technology: Recording Techniques and Audio Production Undergraduate
21M.380 Music and Technology: Live Electronics Performance Practices Undergraduate
21M.380 Music and Technology: Algorithmic and Generative Music Undergraduate
21M.380 Music and Technology (Contemporary History and Aesthetics) Undergraduate
21M.410 Vocal Repertoire and Performance: Women Composers (Spring 2007) Undergraduate
21M.410 Vocal Repertoire and Performance: African American Composers (Spring 2005) Undergraduate
21M.539 Topics in Culture and Globalization: Reggae as Transnational Culture Undergraduate
21M.542 Interdisciplinary Approaches to Musical Time Undergraduate
21M.603 Principles of Design Undergraduate
21M.604 Playwriting I Undergraduate
21M.606 Introduction to Stagecraft Undergraduate
21M.611 Foundations of Theater Practice Undergraduate
21M.616 Learning from the Past: Drama, Science, Performance Undergraduate
21M.621 Theater and Cultural Diversity in the U.S. Undergraduate
21M.630J Black Matters: Introduction to Black Studies Undergraduate
21M.670 Traditions in American Concert Dance: Gender and Autobiography Undergraduate
21M.675 Dance Theory and Composition Undergraduate
21M.710 Script Analysis (Fall 2011) Undergraduate
21M.710 Script Analysis (Fall 2005) Undergraduate
21M.714 Studies in Drama: Theater and Science in a Time of War Undergraduate
21M.715 The Craft of Costume Design Undergraduate
21M.732 Beginning Costume Design and Construction Undergraduate
21M.733 Design for the Theater: Scenery (Spring 2005) Undergraduate
21M.734 Design for the Theater: Scenery (Spring 2005) Undergraduate
21M.734 Lighting Design for the Theatre Undergraduate
21M.735 Technical Design: Scenery, Mechanisms, and Special Effects Undergraduate
21M.775 Hip Hop Undergraduate
21M.785 Playwrights' Workshop Undergraduate
21M.873 Theater Arts Topics - Suburbia Undergraduate
21M.873 Theater Arts Topics Undergraduate
21M.S53 Chinese Popular Musics in Dialogue Undergraduate
21M.505 Music Composition (Fall 2008) Graduate
21M.515 Vocal Repertoire and Performance: Women Composers (Spring 2007) Graduate
21M.515 Vocal Repertoire and Performance: African American Composers (Spring 2005) Graduate

Archived Music and Theater Arts Courses

Some prior versions of courses listed above have been archived in OCW's DSpace@MIT repository for long-term access and preservation. Links to archived prior versions of a course may be found on that course's "Other Versions" tab.

Additionally, the Archived Music and Theater Arts Courses page has links to every archived course from this department.