Welcome to CSU Music
The School of Music, Theatre, and Dance empowers students to create, collaborate, innovate, and inspire. Through teaching, creative artistry, research, advocacy, and service, we elevate arts education.
Dan Goble, Director of the School of Music, Theatre, and Dance
Welcome to the Department of Music at Colorado State University where our primary goal is to prepare students to become highly skilled music educators, music therapists, performers, composers, and conductors. Program goals inspire and develop high standards of teaching, scholarship, performance, and research in music. We are pleased to offer small academic classes, applied study with highly qualified faculty, and careful attention to advising; many degree programs and courses are offered online. You’ll work alongside dynamic faculty and dedicated students, developing knowledge and skills to excel in a variety of fields.
The Department of Music is a part of the School of Music, Theatre, and Dance, which represents the performing arts on campus in a highly visible and vibrant environment. With many orchestras, bands, choirs, jazz ensembles, opera, music-theatre, chamber music, and marching band, performance opportunities are extensive, while collaborative opportunities draw on the interdisciplinary character of the arts.
Talented and ambitious students come from across the nation, and around the world, to experience our multi-genre curriculum, creativity, scholarship, and entrepreneurial skills, preparing for whatever they may choose to pursue upon graduation. With so many opportunities, along with a tradition of excellence and a supportive learning environment, the Department of Music at Colorado State University is uniquely positioned to offer you an outstanding music education.
At Colorado State University, your training takes place in one of the nation’s finest teaching and performance facilities, the exquisite University Center for the Arts, where a vibrant learning environment fosters creativity and growth. Ensembles and courses in appealing interest areas are available to all students, regardless of major.
The school offers B.M. degrees in music education, performance (vocal, instrumental, piano, organ, jazz), music therapy, , and composition, as well as a B.A. in music.
- A variety of ensembles: orchestras, bands, jazz bands, choirs, opera, and percussion.
- Chamber music and solo opportunities.
- Scholarships available for instrumental and vocal performance.
- Prestigious national rankings include Forbes’ “America’s Top Colleges” and U.S. News and World Report’s “Best Colleges” and “Best Value Schools.”
- In 2015, CSU became the first university in the world to earn a Platinum rating in STARS. CSU received a Platinum rating again in 2017 and is featured in Smithsonian National Museum of American History’s “Places of Invention.”
- Fort Collins consistently ranked as the nation’s best place to live (Money Magazine & National Geographic) and “Best Places for Business and Careers” (Forbes).
Colorado State University is an accredited institutional member of the National Association of Schools of Music (NASM).
We know you'll "find your state" at Colorado State University, and be continually inspired along the way!
Department of Music Mission Statement
In alignment with Colorado State University’s land-grant mission, the Department of Music prepares and inspires current and future music professionals, while cultivating, preserving, and expanding the musical arts for people of varied ages and abilities, in diverse local and global communities.
Department of Music Goals
Goal 1: Advance the knowledge and application of music at the highest level of scholarly and artistic excellence through inclusive practices of discovery, dissemination, teaching, innovation, and preservation.
Goal 2: Maintain, develop, and expand programs of excellence and relevance by providing quality instruction, mentoring, and advising for a diverse population of students, including both majors and non-majors.
Goal 3: Educate and train future professionals in music and related fields to excel as inclusive, inspirational, and responsible communicators, artists, scholars, practitioners, and leaders.
Goal 4: Nurture and support excellent artistry and scholarship of all faculty and students.
Goal 5: Serve the broader mission of the University by contributing to its diverse cultural environment, and by facilitating faculty and student participation in the performing arts experience, as a vital part of that environment, in a way that promotes inclusivity.
Goal 6: In alignment with CSU’s land-grant mission, provide leadership in music and related fields through scholarship, outreach, and engagement locally, regionally, nationally, and globally.
Goal 7: Foster an environment of common humanity, treating all individuals with respect, compassion, kindness, and as an end unto themselves through our actions, words, curriculum, and outreach, both in public and in private.