Guide for Bard Conservatory Advisors, Students, Staff and Faculty
Introduction
The Bard College Conservatory of Music was founded in 2005 “to provide the best possible preparation for a person dedicated to a life immersed in the creation and performance of music.” Bard’s is the only conservatory to require that all its students pursue two degrees: the B.Music degree and the B.A. in a field other than music. Most students will need five years to complete the two degrees. During the course of this time, a student may elect to withdraw from the Conservatory and remain at the College, but a student cannot withdraw from the College and remain at the Conservatory.
Admission to the Conservatory is based on audition and the regular Bard admission procedure. Successful applicants must meet two criteria: a high level of excellence as a performer or composer, and admissibility to Bard College. In some parts of the world, the high school education of gifted young musicians does not include the pursuit of academic studies. When these students have the potential and motivation to pursue our double-degree program, a special “Exception Admit” status for the Bard Conservatory has been created. See below, under “Second Language Proficiency.”
Advising arrangements
Each Conservatory student has a team of advisors, one from the Conservatory and one from the College. In the student’s first year the College advisor is one of a group that has received special orientation. These two advisors will stay in close communication especially during the first semester of enrollment. Once the student has settled on the direction of a second major, an advisor from that discipline is chosen by the student, joining the student’s Conservatory advisor.
Concerns based on past experience
Aside from the usual challenges faced by college students, there seem to be two areas of particular concern for Conservatory students. The first has to do with absence requests. There are indeed certain occasions on which the Conservatory Administration will ask faculty to excuse students or allow them to leave class early. These would be requested only occasionally, for special performance opportunities. Such occasions will be kept to a minimum and allowed for students who are in good academic standing, in the College and the Conservatory. Students sometimes ask their professors to be excused “because I have a competition coming up” or “for an important rehearsal.” These requests should be treated as a faculty member would treat any comparable request by a non-Conservatory student.
International students are often surprised by the emphasis placed on attendance since they are used to a large-lecture, or remote learning format. Additionally, when international students are having difficulty it will often not occur to them that their instructors expect and welcome them to ask directly for help. Advisors, faculty, and fellow students form a web of support for guiding both international and domestic students to the appropriate campus resources.
Course of study
Apart from the ‘Exception Admit’ students, all first-year Conservatory students will enroll in L&T, First-Year Seminar, and Citizen Science. Students should be encouraged to make a timeline plan for completing their Conservatory, Moderation, and Distribution requirements. Students must complete their Conservatory Aural Skills and the first two Music Theory requirements by the end of their 2nd year. Placement tests are offered to facilitate registration and planning. Moderation into the College academic major should occur by the end of the student’s 3rd year, at the very latest. Conservatory students often begin the academic Senior Project in the fall or spring of their 4th year, allowing time for graduate school auditions, graduation recital, and other final Conservatory projects.
Second major
For their second major, Conservatory students can choose any Bard major except Music. The Conservatory recommends that the second major be chosen from a Division other than Arts Division, for three reasons. First, for students who major in one of the other divisions, 40 credits of Conservatory courses will suffice to meet the College requirement of 40 credits outside the division of the major. Second, several of the Arts Division majors – notably film, dance, and theater – involve evening rehearsals and performances that often conflict with Conservatory requirements. Third, we consider it educationally advantageous for Conservatory students to have the experience of working rigorously in a non-arts field. However, this is a recommendation, not a requirement.
Distribution Requirements
As with all other students, Conservatory students need to complete the College’s distribution requirements before graduating. Two of these, Practicing Art and The Analysis of Art, are fulfilled through the student’s completion of the Conservatory requirements. The College is working towards increasing course offerings which combine more than one single distribution requirement within one course. These courses are very helpful for the whole student body.
English language proficiency
For regular admission, students need the same level of English-language proficiency as regular admits to the College. However, in certain circumstances international students may be granted Exception Admit status for their first year at Bard, with the understanding that they will have achieved the required level of English-language proficiency before enrolling in reading- and writing-intensive courses. For such students, First-Year Seminar may be postponed to the 2nd year.
All Exception Admit students are required to enroll in BLC 107 “Intensive ESL” (English as a Second Language) in their first year. This is a 4 credit course each semester, meeting five days per week. At the end of the year, students are assessed through a version of the Bard Entrance Examination (BEE) to determine their readiness to enroll in regular classes. If they do not pass the BEE at a sufficiently high level, they may be required to take Summer School, or Advanced ESL in order to continue in the program. In order to complete the double-degree program in five years, Exception Admit students will need to carry increasingly full academic schedules in subsequent years. For some majors, it may not be possible for Exception Admit students to graduate in five years – an additional semester or year may be necessary.
Sample Programs for Incoming Conservatory Students
See here for incoming students in voice
For Exception Admit students (limited English)
Fall:
CNSV 100 Studio Instruction (4 credits)
BLC 107 Intensive ESL (4 credits)
CNSV 112 Orchestral Training and Repertoire (0 credits)
CNSV 108 First-year CNSV Forum: Wellness, Life Skills, and Chamber Music (2 credits)
CNSV 130 Orchestral Repertoire for winds, brass, percussion, harp (2 credits)
Aural Skills (2 credits)
**Schedule permitting: CNSV 140: Core Sequence 1 Diatonic Harmony and Single Species Counterpoint (4 credits)
Total credits: 12-16
Spring:
Similar to Fall. (Possibly add Alexander Technique for Musicians)
Chamber Music CNSV 110 (2 cr), replaces CNSV 108
**Schedule permitting: CNSV 240: Core Sequence 2 Chromatic Harmony and Combined Species Counterpoint (4 credits)
For First-year students with a fairly clear idea of a second major.
Fall:
Studio Instruction (4 credits)
First-Year Seminar (4 credits)
CNSV 108 (2 cr)
Intro course in the intended second major (4 credits)
CNSV 140: Core Sequence 1 Diatonic harmony and Single Species Counterpoint (4 credits)
Aural Skills (2 cr)
Spring:
Studio Instruction (4 credits)
First-Year Seminar (4 credits)
Chamber Music CNSV 110 (2 cr)
Second course in the intended second major (4 credits)
CNSV 240: Core Sequence 2 Chromatic Harmony and Combined Species Counterpoint (4 credits)
Aural Skills (2 cr)
For First-students without a clear idea of a second major
Fall:
Studio Instruction (4 credits)
First-Year Seminar (4 credits)
CNSV 108 (2 cr)
Choose a course in a possible second major that also fulfills a distribution requirement. (4 credits)
CNSV 140: Core Sequence 1 Diatonic Harmony and Single Species Counterpoint (4 credits)
Aural Skills (2 cr)
Spring:
Studio Instruction (4 credits)
First-Year Seminar (4 credits)
Chamber Music CNSV 110 (2 cr)
Second course in the possible second major (4 credits)
CNSV 240: Core Sequence 2 Chromatic Harmony and Combined Species Counterpoint (4 credits)
Aural Skills (2 cr)
For first-year students who want to concentrate on music for the first year
Fall:
Studio Instruction (4 credits)
First-Year Seminar (4 credits)
CNSV 108 (2 cr)
CNSV 140: Core Sequence 1 (4 credits)
Music History I (4 credits)
Aural Skills (2 credits)
Spring:
Studio Instruction (4 credits)
First-Year Seminar (4 credits)
Chamber Music CNSV 110 (2 cr)
CNSV 240: Core Sequence 2 (4 credits)
Music History II (4 credits)
Aural Skills (2 credits)
For first-year students who want to move ahead quickly in a math or science field
Fall:
Studio Instruction (4 credits)
First-Year Seminar (4 credits)
CNSV 108 (2 cr)
Intro course in intended math or science major (4 cr)
Second course in intended science major (4 cr)
Aural Skills (2 cr)
Spring:
Studio Instruction (4 credits)
First-Year Seminar (4 credits)
CNSV 110 (2 cr)
Third course in intended math or science major (4 cr)
Fourth course in intended science major (4 cr)
Aural Skills (2 cr)