Bachelor of Music in Piano
Additional Information for Out-of State Piano Students
(American Citizens)
Additional Information for International Piano Students
Piano Transfer Students (non-Freshmen) to UH Manoa
Piano at U.H. Manoa
The Music Department offers two degrees in Piano Performance: a Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance (BM), and a Master of Music in Piano Performance (MM).
Our Bachelor and Master of Music degrees in Piano Performance offer pianists intensive training for performing careers as soloists, chamber musicians and collaborative artists, and provides qualifications for post-secondary and private studio teaching. The culminating experience for both degree programs is a full-length memorized public recital.
The Bachelor of Arts is a broader liberal arts degree that can be customized for each student to accommodate individual needs and interests. The culminating experience for this degree program is a half-length memorized public recital.
The Piano Faculty consists of Dr. Jonathan Korth, Dr. Thomas Yee, Bichuan Li, Rosy Wang and Wendy Yamashita. We are dedicated to achieving the highest academic, artistic and professional standards for our students.
Performance opportunities at UHM are plentiful. The Piano Faculty offers Piano Studio Classes where all piano majors meet weekly in Orvis Auditorium to perform for each other in a friendly and nurturing environment for constructive feedback . Piano Repertory Labs are lunch time recitals, four per semester, that are open to the public. Pianists are also encouraged to compete in our annual University of Hawaii Concerto Competition for an opportunity to perform a concerto with the University of Hawaii Symphony Orchestra at the Neal Blaisdell Center. Students may enroll and participate in a plethora of ensembles. Piano related ensembles include Chamber Music, Piano Vocal Collaboration, Contemporary Music Ensemble and Jazz Ensemble. The University of Hawaii's Music Department is well known for its multitude of ethnic ensembles.
Our recently renovated and spacious practice rooms are climate and humidity controlled, featuring many new Steinway and Petrov pianos providing piano students ample time for practice.
Our piano students have opportunities to engage in Honolulu's vibrant piano scene. The Honolulu Symphony, Honolulu Chamber Music Series, Chamber Music Hawaii, and other arts organizations regularly engage noteworthy pianists. Students are encouraged to become members of the Honolulu Piano Teachers Association (HPTA), Music Teachers National Association (MTNA) and the Hawaii Music Teachers Association (HMTA) who organize an annual state convention as well as a biennial Pianomania, a multi-piano collaborative event.
In addition to Piano Studies, the University of Hawaii Music Department provides training in applied music, music theory, composition, musicology, ethnomusicology, music education, conducting, and music technology.
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Additional Information for Out-of State Piano Students (American Citizens)
Students from a number of western states qualify for participation in the Western Undergraduate Exchange Program (WUE). In this program, students pay approximately 1.5-times the in-state tuition, which is significantly lower than the out-of-state fees. See the Western Undergraduate Exchange Program website for more information.
For additional information on establishing residency in Hawaii, visit the UHM Undergraduate Admissions website.
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Additional Information for International Piano Students
International students may qualify for the Chancellor's Merit Scholarship at the University of Hawaii. The University of Hawaii International Student Services site offers more information.
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Piano Transfer Students (non-Freshmen) to UH Manoa
Transfer students must have earned at least 24 semester credits from regionally accredited U.S. colleges and universities, in courses comparable to the University of Manoa (UHM) courses to be waived from submitting your high school transcript and SAT/ACT scores.
Transfer students require a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 2.0 (for Hawai`i residents) and 2.5 (for non residents).
For more detailed information on transferring to UH Manoa, visit UH Admissions & Records - Admission of Transfer Students.
Students at community colleges in the UH system (e.g. LCC, KCC) may qualify to take certain courses at UH Manoa for their program at their home campus (called concurrent registration). Concurrent registrants must have approval of a home campus advisor to enroll in a course at UH Manoa. For more information, please see Procedures for Concurrent Registration (Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader.)
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Program Requirements
Music Requirements
The degree requirements posted here are effective Fall 2011. Students who declared the major before this date may have slightly different requirements. Students are advised to meet with a major advisor regarding the specific requirements that apply to them.
Please consult the degree checklist for the most current information regarding required courses for this degree. Semester advising with a faculty member will decide the proper choice of classes for each semester based on those checklists.
| Course | Credits |
| Theory and Aural Training | 12 |
| |
| Music History | 6 |
| |
| Applied Music (Primary) | 20 |
| |
| Ensembles | 6 |
and 2 credits from the following:
| |
| Other Ensembles | 6 |
choose from
| |
| Ethnomusicology | |
| |
| Advanced Courses | 23-25 |
| |
| Recital Attendance | 0 |
| |
| Music Electives | 2-6 |
| |
| Total in Music | 80 |