• Master Your Talent

    Oklahoma's only comprehensive music school with full-time faculty in all areas and degree programs at the bachelor's, master's, and doctoral levels.

    • Pride
    • Tradition
    • Community
    • World-class Arts & Academics

  • Musical Opportunities

    Through musical performance, students gain confidence, refine their skills and techniques, and get to share their creative talents with others.

    • Numerous performance opportunities
    • Over 40 student ensembles
    • Over 300 concerts and recitals per year

  • High Standards of Achievements

    The OU School of Music ranks among the best in the region with a national reputation for both scholarly and performing excellence.

    From our faculty and students to our facilities and technology, OU accepts only the best.

  • Affordability

    OU has consistently been designated as one of America's 100 Best College Buys by Institutional Research & Evaluation.

    • Costs are moderate
    • Excellent scholarship and financial aid programs
    • Among the country's best scholarship, tuition waiver, and graduate assistant programs

  • Community

    OU is one of the very few public universities to twice receive the Templeton Foundation Awards as a "Character Building College" for stressing the value of community.

    • Build life-long networking relationships with classmates and teachers
    • Top 10 nationally in the Freshman Year Experience
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Performance Hall Calendar

Welcome to the OU School of Music

Dr. Larry Mallett, Director ( bio )

The School of Music at the University of Oklahoma maintains its proud traditions while offering visionary programs that prepare students for an evolving and diverse future. An institutional member of the National Association of Schools of Music since 1931, the OU School of Music is the only comprehensive music program in Oklahoma. We offer degrees at the Bachelor’s, Master’s and Doctoral levels in all areas of music performance, composition, education, history and theory. With 60+ full-time faculty members and 450 music majors, the School of Music presents over 400 performance and scholarly events each year. Our world-class music faculty is augmented by an outstanding music facility that includes four state-of-the-art performance halls and a comprehensive Fine Arts Library. School of Music graduates occupy prestigious academic and performance positions worldwide. Please explore this website in depth to learn more about the OU School of Music, and I invite you to visit our campus to witness how music is a part of the exciting campus life at the University of Oklahoma.

School of Music - Mission Statement

The Mission of the School of Music at The University of Oklahoma is to advance learning, teaching, scholarly and creative activity, and service. Faculty and students will actively promote and contribute to the teaching profession, discover knowledge as performers and researchers, and enhance the discipline of music through professional service at the national and international levels. Established in 1903, the School of Music was the second School established on the OU campus and has been an Institutional Member of the National Association of Schools of Music since 1931. The only doctoral granting music school in Oklahoma, the OU School of Music will serve its constituents through the artistic and scholarly productivity of its faculty, students and alumni. The University of Oklahoma will award music degrees in the areas of composition, education, musicology, performance and theory. The School of Music at OU will maintain its traditions while offering programs that prepare students for an evolving and diverse future.

Weitzenhoffer Family College of Fine Arts - Mission Statement

The mission of the Weitzenhoffer Family College of Fine Arts is to provide the highest quality performance, exhibition, teaching, creative activity and research through a diversity of activities and arts experiences.

Mark Allen Everett Fellowship for Graduate String Students

  • 0.5 FTE Graduate Assistantship
  • $15,000 Stipend per year
  • Tuition waiver assistance
  • Health coverage
  • Open to MM and DMA string students for Fall 2013

OU American Organ Institute Awarded Grammy Foundation Grant for the Preservation of 1920s Organ Collection

The University of Oklahoma’s American Organ Institute Archive and Library will preserve and provide public access to a unique organ recording collection with a first-ever grant from the GRAMMY Foundation. With this funding, the Institute continues its contribution to the legacy of organ music and the GRAMMY Foundation’s mission to preserve the nation’s vast recorded heritage.

"This grant is another example of the national and international stature of OU’s American Organ Institute," said OU President David L. Boren. "It plays a crucial part in the preservation of the role of organ music in our society."

The $20,000 grant will allow the Institute to restore the collection’s most treasured items, some of which are made of paper. The collection consists of 760 original and irreplaceable master organ player rolls (weighing in at 16 tons) produced by the Möller Pipe Organ Co. in the early 1920s, including organ arrangements by notable performers of the 20th century.

"This grant from the GRAMMY Foundation recognizes the extreme cultural and musical value of the Möller master rolls held by the American Organ Institute at the OU School of Music," said Institute Director John Schwandt. "This is an important part of our mission to preserve the musical tradition of the pipe organ and reintroduce it to modern audiences in new and exciting ways, and we look forward to the time when we are able to present the finished product of this project to the public."

The collection also includes a one-of-a-kind perforator mechanism used to create daughter rolls from master rolls. The master rolls are made of heavy bonded paper and were cut by hand. They are significant for their musical content and value to the history of the process involved in making this music. Many well-known artists of that period recorded for Möller. Classical, jazz, popular, patriotic and religious music of the early 20th century can be reproduced in full fidelity. The specific technology used in creating the master rolls was proprietary and cannot be duplicated, Schwandt said. If they are not restored, the technology and the music will be lost, he said.

The technology for player rolls had been around for hundreds of years before Möller perfected the art form. The player rolls produced from these master rolls were fed into Möller’s Artiste roll player mechanisms for performances on pipe organs in private residences, music halls, funeral parlors and churches. The Möller system is recognized by many as the best roll player system ever created by an organ firm. The Institute is restoring an Artiste player to be installed on the Möller Municipal Symphonic Organ Opus 5819 in OU’s Paul F. Sharp Concert Hall. In this way, modern audiences can hear live performances of music created more than 80 years ago.

Nearly forgotten for decades, the rolls are in delicate condition – each roll is needing conservation work as soon as possible. The preservation and digitization of these rolls will result in much greater access to the rolls and the music contained within them. The Institute regularly offers opportunities for the public to view the entire collection, the restoration of the one-of-a- kind Möller perforator mechanism and ongoing organ restoration work.

Led by Schwandt, the Institute’s program has grown in number of students and stature. The academic program emphasizes organ performance, church music and organ technology, and a theatrical organ and silent film accompaniment curriculum is being designed. The pipe organ workshop is home to the restoration of the Möller Opus 5819, acquired in 2006 for the Paul F. Sharp Concert Hall at the OU School of Music. OU is the only university in the nation with a complete working pipe organ shop devoted to teaching.

For more information about OU’s American Organ Institute and opportunities to view the ongoing restoration work, visit the website at http://aoi.ou.edu.

Friends and donors to the OU School of Music help us to prepare distinguished composers, conductors, instrumentalists, music educators, and vocalists. In order to assure OU's continued legacy of training the artistic leaders of tomorrow, the School of Music relies on the generosity of its friends. Gifts to OU are deeply appreciated and provide an essential source of support for our talented young students who need help to meet the rising costs of their education, as well as for enhancements in educational programs, faculty compensation, and renovations to the School of Music facilities.

General Information

Your contribution to the OU School of Music will help educate the next generation of musicians. OU depends upon the financial support of alumni, friends, foundations, and corporations to maintain its position as a leading educational institution in the performing arts.

Your contribution in any amount makes a difference. Gifts may be unrestricted or may be directed toward a particular discipline, such as composition, conducting, singing or performance, or toward a special activity. We would be pleased to discuss areas you would most like to support.

Join the Friends of Music

2013 streaming will be available for the following concerts:

  • OU Symphony Orchestra Concerto Gala - April 2 @ 8pm
  • OU Chorale - April 7 @ 3pm
  • Percussion Orchestra - April 9 @ 8pm
  • Wind Symphony - April 16 @ 8pm
  • President's Concert OU Symphony Orchestra and Choirs - April 20 @ 8pm
  • OU Jazz Bands - April 25 @ 8pm

Live Concert Stream

Audio streaming will be available below for Sharp Hall Concerts.

If you would like to listen to our audio stream in your default streaming application, click here to tune in .

The University of Oklahoma's Summer Woodwind Workshop, June 3-5, 2013. http://ouimtw.ou.edu

OU Kodály Level I, July 8-19, 2013; Tulsa, OK
OU Kodály Level II, June 17-28, 2013; Norman, OK

Don’t miss this opportunity to pursue Kodály certification under the direction of dynamic, experienced, creative teachers! Levels II in Norman, OK. Credit, audit, and non-credit options are available.

The University of Oklahoma Bi-annual Seminar for Piano Teachers is a three-day seminar is designed for those teaching elementary, intermediate and advanced piano.

Summer Music Camp

Student & Faculty Successes
Congratulations to Adam Hall for receiving the American Institute of Indian Studies Fellowship. Adam will spend a year in India studying Hindi as he begins work on his Masters in Musicology degree.
Congratulations to Molly Lindsey on winning the Phi Kappa Phi Award for Distinguished Undergraduate Research for her presentation at Undergraduate Research Day.
The University of Oklahoma’s American Organ Institute Archive and Library will preserve and provide public access to a unique organ recording collection with a first-ever grant from the GRAMMY Foundation. With this funding, the Institute continues its contribution to the legacy of organ music and the GRAMMY Foundation’s mission to preserve the nation’s vast recorded heritage.
Congratulations to Beth Mattingly on winning a Fulbright grant to study in Hungary next year. The Fulbright Program provides participants - chosen for their academic merit and leadership potential - with the opportunity to study, teach and conduct research, exchange ideas and contribute to finding solutions to shared international concerns.
Congratulations to Delphine Piguet on being awarded the Cleo Cross International Student Scholarship. This scholarship is awarded on the basis of academic excellence and service to the University community.
Congratulations to Cindy Tseng for winning the Provost’s Graduate Teaching Assistant Award. The award recognizes and rewards outstanding performance by graduate students.
Vic Firth has posted a performance of David Maslanka's "This is the World." Commissioned by OU percussion professor Lance Drege, and former piano pedagogy graduates Karen Beres and Chris Hahn, "This is the World" was featured on a CD released last fall through Albany Records. (www.vicfirth.com)
The OU chapter of the National Association for Music Edcaution has won the 2013 NAfME Collegiate Chapter of Excellence Award for their submission on the Young Men’s Vocal Workshop. Congratulations to the entire board and the great future teachers in the membership.
Melissa Byars (Sophomore BM, horn) won second prize in the collegiate brass and wind players division of the Ladies Music Club of OKC Performance Competition.
Violinist Emily Bishop, MM-Performance, is the winner of the 2012 Oklahoma Community Orchestra Young Artist Competition.  Emily will be soloist with the orchestra and the award carries a cash prize as well.
We are pleased to be able to announce that two of our doctoral students, Silviya Mateva and Adam Pajan, have been advanced to the semi-final round of the Longwood International Organ Competition.  Ten semi-finalists were chosen from a pool of 100 entries from around the world. The competition will take place at the Longwood Estate June 18-23, with the winner receiving the largest prize of any organ competition in the world, as well as a performance at Longwood and a contract with a concert management firm.
The International Trombone Association has awarded their 2013 Neill Humfeld Award to OU trombone professor Dr. Irv Wagner for his outstanding and lasting contributions to the world of trombone performance and education. The Neill Humfeld Award recognizes outstanding trombone teaching while honoring the teaching excellence of the late Neill Humfeld.

For more information, please visit the International Trombone Association website at www.trombone.net.
Congratulations to undergraduate students Sarah Langston and Kendell Workun who where both elected to leadership positions within the Collegiate Oklahoma Music Educators Association. Sarah is President Elect and Kendell will server as Editor.
Congratulations to senior BME hornist Collin Findlay on being named alternate in the South Central Music Teachers National Association Competition "Young Artist Performance."
Horn Professor, Eldon Matlick, will be on the teaching faculty at the InterHarmony Music Festival to be held in Arcidosso, Italy from July 15-29, 2013.  This festival is an international music festival featuring orchestral, chamber, and solo performances. For more information, please visit http://interharmony.com.
Jeff Fair (BM 1999) has just been awarded the Principal Horn position of the Seattle Symphony. Jeff has been with the SS since 2006. He is also in his first year as Horn Professor at the University of Washington. Prior to Seattle, Jeff was Principal Hornist in San Antonio for three seasons.
Rod Ackmann, Professor of Bassoon, presented the World Premiere and European Premiere of Awatovi for Oboe, Bassoon and Piano, by Daniel Baldwin, last summer at the Oklahoma Summer Arts Institute at Quartz Mountain and the Assisi, Italy Music Festival, respectively. The piece was also recently performed at the Midwest Double Reed Society's (MDRS)  Eleventh Annual Double Reed Festival at the University of Kansas.
Sophomore Bassoonist Kevin Jones, recently won First Place in the Oklahoma Music Teachers Association (OMTA) Collegiate Woodwind Solo Competition at Oklahoma State University. As winner, he will be featured in a solo performance next June at the OMTA Conference, hosted by the OU School of Music, as well as receive a financial award.

Percussion Professor Lance Drege released a percussion CD in August entitled "This is the World."

 

The CD was the culmination of a project began several years ago with the commissioning of a new work from noted composer David Maslanka for two pianos and two percussion. The commission was undertaken by Lance Drege and the CanAm Piano Duo, whose members include Dr. Karen Beres (University of North Carolina School of the Arts) and Dr. Christopher Hahn (University of Montana) - both OU alums in the DMA Piano Performance and Pedagogy program. The forty-six minute, five movement composition "This is the World we know, the world of air and breathing and sun and beating hearts" was premiered here at the University of Oklahoma in February 2010, and through support of the University of Oklahoma Research Council, was recorded here at the University of Oklahoma School of Music, Paul F. Sharp Concert Hall in June 2011, with the composer present and serving as producer. Other works on the disc include Libby Larsen's Gavel Patter and Witold Lutoslawski's Paganini Variations for Two Pianos and Percussion with percussion parts added by Marta Ptaszynska. The recording is distributed and available through Albany Records.

Music professor Dr. Ken Stephenson's third book "Guido's Rhythmic Rules: Medieval Fundamentals of Music Theory in Verse Form" has been published by the Medieval Institute of Music
Faculy member Jennifer Saltzstein has had her article "Cleric-trouvères and the Jeux-partis of Medieval Arras" published in the peer-reviewed journal Viator.
Music Student Collin Findlay won the Brass Division of the MTNA Young Artist Competition held Nov. 3rd in Stillwater, OK.  He will move on to compete in the Regional Division of the MTNA Competition.
Vocal department and OU Opera Theater alumnus Julie Davis made her international debut this past season with Staatstheater Darmstadt in the title role of Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor. She is currently featured singing the tour de force of all four female roles in Offenbach's Tales of Hoffmann in Darmstadt's new production of the opera. Ms. Davis is also accumulating many other performances and attracting attention in other German opera centers, notably Mannheim.
DMA Composition student Joseph Hasper has been awarded the 2012-2013 Beatrice Carr and W. Ray Wallace Scholarship.
DMA student Chris Westover has been selected as one of twelve finalists for the Junior Fellowship in Conducting at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester, England. The position includes work with the renowned Halle Orchestra, which is based in Manchester.
Graduate Piano Student Jessica Nilles has been named the winner of the Graduate Division of the Oklahoma Music Teachers State Piano Competition.
Freshman Violinist Dominique Hammons, freshman performance major, performed with the Houston Symphony October 13, 2012 as the winner of the Houston Symphony Young Artist Competition on their Lunada concert.
OETA provided a showcase for the OU Pride of Oklahoma Marching Band during the 2011 "Bedlam Week." Viewers were able to see what goes into the preparation and design of marching band shows, how the bands get in "game mode" before they take to the performance field, and special small HD cameras will gave viewers the visual perspective of being IN the band. The nomination is in the “Sports Special” category for the Heartland region of the Emmy Awards. The winner will be announced the evening of Saturday, July 21, 2012.
OU music technology and composition student Kyle Vanderburg's composition, Creatures from the Black Bassoon, has been selected for performance by the 2012 International Computer Music Conference. The ICMC is the largest and most prestigious electroacoustic music event in the world.
OU music composition student Dex Ford's composition, Barbershop, has been chosen as the winning work in the 2012 The University of Louisville Young Composer Competition for New Electro-acoustic Music.