About the Program	Faculty and Staff	Admission
	Institute of Jazz Studies	Students	Curriculum

Master's Program in Jazz History and Research
 

Courses and Curriculum

Course schedules are here: http://www.acs.rutgers.edu/soc

Use the bottom part and select Newark, Graduate, current semester, then on the next page select the jazz program.
All required courses are offered during two full days each week (usually on Wednesdays and Fridays) during the fall and spring semesters. On occasion, a summer course will be offered as well, meeting one long day a week. In addition, students with special interests are welcome to pursue relevant courses in other departments that meet at other times; all such courses must be approved in advance by the program head. All students are required to have internet and email access or to use the campus computer facilities. The program's listserv discussion group is at http://groups.yahoo.com/groups/jazzma. One may not join the list until one is in the program.

Total of 12 courses, 36 credits (full-time load is 3 courses per semester--either way, courses can be finished in two years):
TYPICAL COURSES OFFERED (*=REQUIRED)

• *6 credits: Year-long jazz historiography sequence (Porter). Must be taken in the first year.
• *6 credits: Year-long jazz theory sequence (Martin). Will be taken in first or second year, based on placement test (see below).
• *3 credits: Literature of Jazz (Howland)
• 3 credits: Big Bands (Howland)
• 3 credits: Stride Piano (Martin)
• 3 credits: Charlie Parker (Martin)
• 9 credits: Topics courses (Porter, Howland, Martin); changing topics each semester, for ex., John Coltrane, or Songwriting, or Lester Young, or Duke Ellington, or Jazz on Film, Monk and Mingus, Big Bands, Jazz and Race, etc., etc.
• *3 credits: Thesis (can be compiled partly from research projects for other courses; is always taken in the fall of the year that you will graduate)

Most students choose to take all courses, required or not. However, for the ones that are not required, students with special interests are welcome to substitute relevant courses in other departments; all such courses must be approved in advance by the program head. One may take courses with faculty in history, African American studies, or philosophy, on related topics. Other options are Writing Arts Criticism, Internships at the IJS and elsewhere, and graduate jazz courses and performance courses at Mason Gross (Rutgers-New Brunswick) and William Paterson University.

Private lessons in theory or performance and participation in the Mosaic jazz ensemble are highly recommended (or may in rare cases be required) in addition to the required 36 credits. Mosaic does not count towards the M.A. degree, so grad students usually audit it. Private lessons and ensembles at the graduate level are offered at the New Brunswick campus and at nearby colleges, and these will count towards the degree if you have cleared this with the program director before registering.

PLEASE NOTE: THE THEORY SEQUENCE starts with fairly basic materials but quickly moves to more advanced topics. New students will take a placement test to determine if they should take the theory sequence during their first or second year. Those who are selected to take the course in their second year will be asked to study during the first year, using books and software that we will recommend, and take the placement test again at the end of their first school year.

A typical course sequence might be as follows (if you take Theory I and II in your second year, you'd revise this schedule accordingly)--this is a SAMPLE only--actual courses offered vary from year to year:

• Semester I: Historiography I(Porter); The Literature of Jazz (Howland); Jazz Theory I (Martin); plus Mosaic jazz ensemble and/or private lessons if appropriate.
• Semester II: Historiography II (Porter); Theory II (Martin); Topics: Coltrane (Porter); Mosaic jazz ensemble and/or private lessons if appropriate.
• SUMMER: Selected Topics By Request (Porter)--this very popular new option is a course where Dr. Porter teaches topics requested by the grad students.
• Semester III: Topics: Jazz and Race (Porter); Thesis (Porter); Big Bands (Howland); Mosaic jazz ensemble and/or private lessons if appropriate.
• Semester IV: Topics: Billie Holiday and Lester Young (Porter); Charlie Parker (Martin) OR Outside Elective (in another department or another college); ensemble and/or lessons. ALSO, completing and revising the thesis. After all coursework and the thesis, a comprehensive exam is required around March 1 in the semester that you will graduate.

Work toward a Masters at another institution will be credited insofar as that work fulfills any of the above requirements, up to a maximum of 12 credits.

One-day writing workshops and/or a semester long writing seminar may also be required, at our discretion, in addition to the required 12 courses.

Tutoring is available and may be required for those who are not native English speakers.

Dr. Lewis Porter, Director M.A. Program in Jazz History and Research Department of Arts, Media and Culture Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey 110 Warren Street Bradley Hall, Room 254 Newark, NJ 07102-1896   Telephone: (973) 353-5600, ext. 30 Fax: (973) 353-1392 Email:    lporter@andromeda.rutgers.edu

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Last update: March 22, 2011