Bard College Conservatory of Music

The Bard College Conservatory of Music is part of Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York. Founded in 2005, the program is unique among music conservatories in the United States in that all undergraduate students are required to participate in a five-year dual-degree program, in which both a B.M. in music and a B.A. in a subject other than music are obtained. Many of the Conservatory's faculty also teach at other conservatories such as the Juilliard School and the Curtis Institute.

Undergraduate faculty teach the standard orchestral/chamber music instruments and composition. The Conservatory also offers two graduate programs: the Graduate Vocal Arts Program and the Graduate Conducting Program, and a Post-graduate Collaborative Piano Fellowship in addition to a Preparatory Division and The Conductor's Institute.

The construction of the László Z. Bitó Conservatory Building began in October 2011 and is scheduled for completion in January 2012. Made possible by a $9.2 million gift from Bard alumnus László Z. Bitó, class of 1960, this teaching and performance facility addresses the growing needs of the Conservatory, brought on by its fivefold growth since its founding in 2005. The building is designed by Deborah Berke & Partners Architects.

The Bard College Conservatory of Music offers a five-year undergraduate program in which each student pursues two degrees concurrently: a Bachelor of Music degree and a Bachelor of Arts degree in a field other than music. At the graduate level, the Conservatory offers two two-year programs in conducting and voice leading to a Master of Music.

All Conservatory undergraduates pursue a five-year program leading to two degrees: the bachelor of music and the bachelor of arts in a field other than music. The pursuit of these two degrees at Bard is thoroughly integrated. Conservatory students live, eat, and attend most classes with non-Conservatory students, and are fully part of the academic and social life of the College. Each Conservatory student has two academic advisers, one from the Conservatory and one from a field that the student is considering as a major for the B.A. degree. The bachelor of music program contains many innovative components: all performance majors study composition, and the Conservatory Seminar integrates music theory and music history with special emphasis on their relation to performance.

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