School of Music Graduate Studies- Choral Conducting
We are very proud of the master of music degree in choral conducting at Northern Arizona University. NAU does not offer a doctoral degree, so master’s degree candidates receive personal attention, graduate assistantship awards, and significant teaching and conducting opportunities. The degree is a well-rounded program of music history and theory with strong emphases in choral literature and conducting technique.
The NAU choral department has six ensembles: Shrine of the Ages Choir, Vocal Chamber Ensemble, Women’s Chorale, Men’s Chorale, University Singers, Vocal Jazz Ensemble, plus the Harold M. Harter Memorial Handbell Choir, an outstanding ensemble with six-octaves of handbells and choir chimes.
NAU choral ensembles have performed at numerous Arizona Music Educators conventions. In addition they have performed at regional and national conventions of ACDA and MENC. In April 1998, the Shrine of the Ages Choir performed at the National MENC convention in Phoenix. In March 2000 Shrine performed at the ACDA western division convention in Los Angeles.
All the NAU choirs tour annually and every four years our select ensembles tour internationally. The NAU vocal chamber ensemble competed in the prestigious Marktoberdorf Competition in 1993 and toured Germany, Switzerland, and Italy in June 2000. In March1998, the Shrine of the Ages Choir toured the Peoples Republic of China. In May 2004, Shrine toured Austria and Germany, which included a performance of Verdi's Requiem in Rothenburg, Germany with the Würzburg Philharmonic. In May 2007, Shrine will travel to New Zealand and Australia.
Each spring a major choral/orchestral work is performed with the Flagstaff Symphony Orchestra. Recent works include Mozart's C Minor Mass, Orff's Carmina Burana, Verdi's Requiem, Brahm's Requiem, Mendelssohn's Elijah, and J. S. Bach's St. John Passion. In April 2008, the NAU Choral Union will join forces with the FSO to perform Benjamin Britten's War Requiem.
Program of Study
Steps to Apply to Choral Studies at NAU
Step 1. Go online and apply to the NAU Graduate College at nau.edu/gradcol. The Graduate College application will require your undergraduate transcripts.
Step 2. Contact Dr. James Leve, the NAU School of Music graduate coordinator.
Step 3. Contact Dr. Edith A. Copley, the director of choral studies.
Edith.Copley@nau.edu or call (928) 523-2299
Please send three letters of recommendation to Dr. Edith A. Copley, NAU Box 6040, Flagstaff, AZ 86011-6040.
Step 4. Please send a VHS videotape or DVD recording of a 30-minute rehearsal with one of the ensembles that you are currently conducting.
After reviewing application materials from the Graduate College, letters of recommendations and rehearsal tapes, selected applicants will be invited to NAU for an on-campus interview/audition in February or March.
In preparation for the on-campus audition, applicants are requested to write a two-page essay that describes their music background, their strengths as a conductor/teacher and the what they hope to improve during the course of graduate study.
While on the NAU campus, each applicant will sing to demonstrate vocal ability; play a composition at the piano that demonstrates keyboard abilities; sight sing to demonstrate rhythmic and melodic reading ability and sense of pitch; and conduct a 25-minute rehearsal with the Shrine of the Ages Choir (top concert choir). Applicants will be told in advance the specific repertoire they should prepare for the audition
Most of the graduate students accepted into the MM degree in choral conducting at NAU have 3 or more years of successful teaching experience. Applicants with teaching experience may apply for a half or full graduate assistantship. Students who receive a full or partial assistantship automatically will receive a full out-of-state tuition waiver, plus a portion of the in-state tuition. Full out-of-state tuition scholarships are also available for students who do not receive assistantship awards.
The master of music degree candidates in choral conducting at NAU will enjoy the rigor of the coursework, the quality of the choral ensembles, and the excellent conducting opportunities.
Please send videotapes and DVDs to:
Dr Edith A. Copley
NAU Choral Studies
Box 6040
Flagstaff, AZ 86011
If sending by UPS or Fed Ex use the following address:
Dr. Edith A. Copley
NAU School of Music
Building 37, Rm. 120
Knoles and Riordan Rd.
Flagstaff, AZ 86011-6040
928-523-2642