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Music and Performing Arts Professions

One Creative Collective

The Department of Music and Performing Arts Professions (MPAP) brings together a dynamic network of eighteen interconnected programs in Performance, Music Composition and Technology, Music Business, Arts Administration, Education and the Creative Arts Therapies. Within our innovative courses of study, you'll be encouraged to explore across disciplines, while working with renowned artists, scholars, and industry professionals in your own field. You'll collaborate with talented peers and faculty—including recipients of Academy, Emmy, Grammy, and Tony Awards—taking full advantage of unprecedented interdisciplinary opportunities. And you'll graduate as a versatile, uniquely skilled professional, ready to lead and succeed in the evolving world of music and the performing arts.

Two Vocal performance students singing on stage

Performance

Collaborate with distinguished faculty and talented peers in NYU Steinhardt’s dynamic community of instrumental and vocal performers. Expand your artistry through a wide range of performance opportunities—from NYU’s orchestras and ensembles to grass roots student gigs and interdisciplinary collaborations with our Screen Scoring and Concert Composition programs.

PhD student presenting at a PAA forum

Music Business and Arts Administration

Connect with cultural leaders at top venues across New York City, and at major organizations like Arista, Warner Music Group, Spotify, and the New York Philharmonic. Build a dynamic professional network through alumni events, guest lectures, cross-program collaborations, and hands-on internships. Graduate fully equipped to lead and succeed in today’s fast-evolving arts and entertainment industries.

Professor coaching two students acting on stage

Arts Education and Therapy

Pursue a meaningful career grounded in culturally responsive, evidence-based practices through rigorous coursework and immersive internships. Take advantage of partnerships with leading institutions such as the World Health Organization, the Nordoff-Robbins Center for Music Therapy, the Jameel Arts & Health Lab, the Verbatim Performance Lab, and Steinhardt’s vibrant music and dance programs.

Professor working with students in an audio lab

Music Composition and Technology

Refine your artistic voice through rigorous training and hands-on exploration. Collaborate on projects and performances with peers and faculty whose work bridges industry, research, and academia. Create and record in world-class facilities like the new Sony Audio Lab, the James Dolan Recording Studio, Paulson Center Studios and MARL Lab.

News and Events

Beth Nielsen Chapman Joins NYU Steinhardt as Artist-in-Residence

The Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter will teach and perform as the Spring 2026 NYU–Americana Music Foundation Artist-in-Residence.

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NYU Steinhardt’s Nordoff-Robbins Center and MARL Receive Renée Fleming Neuroarts Investigator Award

The team’s research examines how music therapy may be able to improve social communication skills in autistic children.

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NYU Steinhardt Presents US Premiere of Carl Orff’s “Astutuli”

The rarely performed play with music features a cast of 22 from across the University accompanied by the NYU Steinhardt Percussion Ensemble.

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PAA Welcomes Simon Woods as Adjunct Faculty Member

Woods, President and CEO of the League of American Orchestras, will teach Governance of Performing Arts, bringing decades of leadership insight to the classroom.

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NYU Steinhardt’s Julia Wolfe Named NYU University Professor

Composer, MacArthur Fellow, and Pulitzer Prize winner honored for her pathbreaking work as a practicing artist conducting powerful historical research.

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Vocal Pedagogy Program Announces New Global Partnership

The NYU Steinhardt Vocal Pedagogy Outreach Program (VPOP), announced a new international partnership with Harmony – The Music School, a contemporary music institution in Bangalore, India known for its student-centered approach to vocal training and ensemble performance. Launching in the 2026–2027 academic year, the collaboration marks the program’s first sustained global partnership.

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Jackson A. Waters Wins National Cabrillo Festival Prize

Jackson A. Waters (MM ’25), has been named the 2025 recipient of the Emerging Black Composer Project (EBCP) Cabrillo Festival Prize by the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music.

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Spotlight on Isabelle 

Isabelle Kern grew up in Germany and began playing piano at age three. As an NYU undergrad, Isabelle double-majored in music and psychology, deepening her interest in the connection between mind, body, and music. Pursuing a master’s in Music Therapy felt like a natural next step, she explained. 

Students (1,652)

  • Undergraduate Students 50%
  • Graduate Students 50%

Undergraduate Areas of Study

  • Performance 34%
  • Music Business and Arts Administration 27%
  • Arts Education and Therapy 5%
  • Music Composition and Technology 34%

Graduate Areas of Study

  • Performance 24%
  • Music Business and Arts Administration 22%
  • Arts Education and Therapy 21%
  • Music Composition and Technology 33%