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A Steinway concert piano sits in the glass-walled Paulson Center rehearsal room.

Curriculum

MM, Piano Performance/Advanced Certificate, Piano Performance and Pedagogy

Prepare for your career as a professional concertizing artist and pedagogue in a uniquely creative, inclusive environment. In NYU Steinhardt’s unparalleled facilities, you’ll study with world-renowned artist faculty, exploring diverse musical traditions and pedagogical practices. You’ll learn performance practices involving a repertoire spanning three centuries, pedagogical traditions that shape our approach to the instrument, and educational perspectives on the art of performance.

Core course sequence

Designed for mature performers seeking careers in academia as well as the concert hall, this 45-point degree enables you to earn a master of music in Piano Performance (Concentration in Solo Piano) and an advanced certificate in Piano Performance and Pedagogy. This four-semester program combines intensive solo study with pedagogy, providing one-on-one instruction with our internationally regarded artist faculty. You’ll explore coursework in historical and contemporary performance practices and music education, and learn with peers and faculty in The Art of the Piano: Pedagogy and Practice, a course designed specifically for professional artists and those seeking to advance to studies at the doctoral level. Your experience will also include public recitals and collaborative performances, seminars taught by artist faculty, chamber music coaching with internationally renowned faculty, and a vast array of courses in music education, piano performance, and music history, theory, and composition.

Culminating Experience

You will present your degree recital in your final semester. The recital experience includes a research component that examines performance practice from musicological, historical, or pedagogical perspectives.

Required Courses (6 Credits)

Research (3 Credits)

Choose one of the following courses:

List of research courses.
Course NumberCourse NameCredits
MPATC-GE 2116Music Theory Pedagogy3 Credits
MPATC-GE 2209Seminar in Music Theory: Music and the Senses3 Credits
MPAME-GE 2021Music Reference & Research Materials3 Credits

History/Literature (3 Credits)

Chosen by advisement


Area of Concentration - Solo Performance (39 Credits)

Applied Instrumental Study (12 Credits)

List of courses for Applied Instrumental Study.
Course NumberCourse NameCredits
MPAPE-GE 2356Private Piano*12 Credits

Ensemble (6 Credits)

By advisement.

Performance Practice (12 Credits)

By advisement.

List of courses for Performance Practice.
Course NumberCourse NameCredits
MPAPE-GE 2170Collaborative Piano Techniques3 Credits
MPAPE-GE 2181Influential Pianists & Performance Practice3 Credits
MPAPE-GE 2186Piano Literature & Repertoire II3 Credits
MPAPE-GE 2187Piano Literature & Repertoire III3 Credits
MPAPE-GE 2026Colloquy in Music2-4 Credits
MPAPE-GE 2189Performance Practices and Entrepreneurship in 20th and 21st Century Piano Music3 Credits

Guided Elective in Music Education (3 Credits)

Students take 3 credits of the following courses, by advisement.

List of guided elective courses.
Course NumberCourse NameCredits
MPAIA-GE 2010Human Development and Education in the Arts3 Credits
MPAME-GE 2035Technological Trends in Music Education3 Credits

Culminating Experience (6 Credits)

List of Culminating Experience courses.
Course NumberCourse NameCredits
MPAPE-GE 2041The Art of the Piano: Pedagogy & Practice I3 Credits
MPAPE-GE 2042The Art of the Piano: Pedagogy & Practice II3 Credits