Queens College

Campus Information

  • Queens College grants Bachelor’s degrees in music, music education, and music performance, in addition to music minors and Master’s degrees in composition, musicology, music theory, music education, jazz, and performance. Many introductory music courses are also offered to non-majors to fulfill elective or general education requirements. Music fundamentals, however, is not commonly taken by non-majors; it serves primarily as a remedial course for music majors and is taught by QC faculty.
  • In-person music courses are held in the Aaron Copland School of Music, a three-story building in the middle of the north edge of the Queens College Campus (65-30 Kissena Blvd. Flushing, NY, 11367). The building also houses LeFrak Concert Hall and the Music Library, open M-F 10am-4:45pm. Textbooks can be deposited as course reserves in the Music Library, allowing students to access a copy of the textbook when the library is open.
  • Queens College is approximately an hour commute from the Graduate Center: F train to Forest Hills-71st Ave; transfer to Q64 bus; get off at Jewell Ave/Kissena Blvd and walk north along Kissena until main entrance to QC; walk northwest past QC dining hall on the left and Rathaus Hall dorm on the right to school of music main entrance. Before COVID, there was very little security: one could just walk in without showing ID and guests did not have to be announced.
  • Department chair: Michael Lipsey (michael.lipsey@qc.cuny.edu)
  • Music office admin: Tom Lee (Thomas.Lee1@qc.cuny.edu)
  • For technology help: Justin Tricarico (Justin.Tricarico@qc.cuny.edu)
  • Other GC fellows at Queens College: Samuel Teeple (steeple@gradcenter.cuny.edu); Stephen Gomez (sgomez@gradcenter.cuny.edu)

 

Courses commonly taught by graduate instructors

Course title Course description Required textbook Class size Course contact
MUSIC 1 Introduction to Music Content and course organization depend on instructor. Traditional approach is akin to “Music Appreciation,” emphasizing a chronological survey of Western Art Music. Newer approaches emphasize critical thinking, content organized by topic/theme, and more diverse and inclusive repertoire. Instructor’s choice 25-35 Emily Wilbourne (emily.wilbourne@qc.cuny.edu)
MUSIC 171, 172, 271, 272: Sight Singing and Dictation Sequence Four-semester sequence taken by all music majors. Queens College uses “movable do” solfege. First semester established foundation in diatonic singing and dictation. Second semester adds chromaticism and modulation to closely related keys. Third semester adds more challenging chromaticism, modal mixture, and common-tone related modulation. Fourth semester adds atonal singing. A New Approach To Sight Singing (4th ed.) by Berkowitz, Fontrier, and Kraft 12–18 Mark Anson Cartwright (mark.ansoncartwright@qc.cuny.edu)
MUSIC 173, 174: Harmony, Counterpoint and Keyboard Skills 1 and 2 First two semesters in the six-semester theory sequence at ACSM. Goals include learning species counterpoint, fundamentals of harmony and voice-leading in tonal music, 4-voice partwriting, figured bass, and small-scale form and phrase techniques Harmony and Voice Leading (5th ed.) by Eric Aldwell and Carl Schachter 12–18 Mark Anson Cartwright (mark.ansoncartwright@qc.cuny.edu)