Mission & Vision

The primary mission of the Music Department at Bemidji State University is to prepare students for professional careers in music. The faculty recognizes the need for excellence within a broad liberal education, so the department places equal emphasis on music education, performance, and theoretical/historical study in its degree offerings. The department, an accredited institutional member of the National Association of Schools of Music, also maintains a cultural leadership and development role locally and regionally, while striving to achieve a national and international reputation.

The specific objectives of the Department of Music are

1. to provide students interested in teaching careers with the professional knowledge and skills necessary for success in the field;

2. to train students to become critical, independent, creative musicians with the necessary background in applied music (private instruction in voice/instrument), music theory, music history and literature, keyboard skills, sight-reading, and music technology; and to become full participants in music professions;

3. to provide all students of the university with opportunities to enrich themselves through participation in Music Department ensembles, academic courses, and applied lessons, and through attendance at concerts, recitals, and lectures;

4. to develop the creative potential of the region through workshops and performances.

Through the Department of Music, Bemidji State University offers a Bachelor of Science in Music Education, Teacher Licensure, and a Bachelor of Arts in Music.  In addition to these two majors in music, students may also earn Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Arts degrees with minors in music.  The full-time faculty of the Department of Music, as well as its part-time specialists, are committed to the intellectual, musical and social growth of the student musicians who attend Bemidji State University.