Stern College for Women music courses are designed to give students in any field experience with the pleasures of music study and performance. Courses present the basic tools of music theory (counterpoint, harmony and analysis) and knowledge of music history and offer experience in composition. Performance in chamber ensembles, chorus and/or jazz band is encouraged, and to that end, credit is offered to both majors and minors studying an instrument with a private instructor.

The Music Department strongly encourages its majors to extend and refine their performance abilities during their student years by enrolling in at least one performanceoriented course each term that they are students. A fundamental guideline for all students pursuing the major and minor in music is that they should have a healthy balance between academic courses (history, theory, style analysis) and performance courses (chamber ensembles, jazz ensemble, applied music lessons).