What is Musicology?

Musicology studies the history, cultural contexts, and interpretation of music, and in recent decades has expanded its coverage to extend beyond European art-music to other traditions and regions. The Department of Musicology at UCLA has long been the recognized leader in the study of popular music, in studying music in relation to power and difference, and approaching traditional repertories and musical practices in innovative ways. The National Research Council ranks UCLA Musicology as the number one program in the country.

Musicology offers undergraduates a Major and a Minor, with courses ranging across European and American music, including specialized courses in EDM, Motown, blues, medievalism, musicals, rock, punk, film music, sound studies, and performance studies, and studying music in relation to politics, gender, and postcolonialism. Musicology is also the home of UCLA’s Early Music Ensemble, serving the larger UCLA community and offering several public concerts each year.

Musicology Professor Ray Knapp to Deliver UCLA's 138th Annual Faculty Research Lecture
In 1925, UCLA established the annual Faculty Research Lectures to recognize two Academic Senate members with exceptional achievement in research and creative endeavors. Ray Knapp, distinguished professor of musicology, disability studies and humanities at The UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music, will deliver the 138th lecture, entitled "How Music(ology) Saves Lives."
A Conversation with Pulitzer Prize-Winner Michael Abels
The compositions of Michael Abels are marked by eclectic themes and sounds, creating rich soundscapes that explore connections between global musical traditions. In 2023 he won the Pulitzer Prize for
Musicology Postdoctoral Scholar Named Area Editor for Grove Dictionary
Bernard Gordillo, chancellor’s postdoctoral scholar in history, musicology, and the Chicano Studies Research Center, has been named the Central America Area Editor for the Grove Music Online: Latin American and Iberian Music.
Assistant Professor of Musicology Wins Mellon Emerging Faculty Leaders Award
Catherine Provenzano, assistant professor of musicology at The UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music, has just been named one of ten winners of the Mellon Foundation's Emerging Faculty Leaders Award.
Mixmaster Dean
Don Harrison at Style Magazine previewed Professor Robert Fink’s talk about playlists and DJs and musicologists for the University of Richmond’s 2024 Neumann Lecture.
What is Music's Value? A Conversation with Tim Taylor
Tim Taylor, professor of ethnomusicology and musicology at The UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music, has always been curious about how we assess the value of music. The author of
May 7 Wed
5:00pm
Free
lectures-symposia
"Driven into Paradise": Schoenberg in Los Angeles
This online event panel gathers venerated historians, musicologists and composers to explore Schoenberg’s complex relationship with Los Angeles. Participants –Sabine Feisst – ASU Evelyn Smith Professor of Musicology. Feisst’s publications
May 8 Thu
7:30pm
Free
classical, contemporary, lectures-symposia
Exiled in Los Angeles: Thomas Mann and Arnold Schoenberg at 150
A Conversation with Doris Berger, Hans Vaget, and Alex Ross, moderated by Lily E. Hirsch, with music performance by UCLA Professor of Piano Inna Faliks. To honor Thomas Mann’s 150th birthday anniversary and to
UCLA Faculty Center Learn More
May 15 Thu
4:00pm
Free
lectures-symposia
Schoenberg in Hollywood and Representations of Jewishness in Opera
Lowell Milken Lecture in Jewish Music by Professor Joy H. Calico   There is a long history of representing Jewishness on the operatic stage. Calico’s talk situates Tod Machover’s Schoenberg in

Explore Degrees

Conducting
Graduate study and training in choral, orchestral, or wind conducting
Ethnomusicology
The study of global musical traditions through performance training, research, and field work
Global Jazz Studies
Jazz performance and musicianship courses are paired with African American Studies
Music Composition
Mentorship in the creation and realization of music for concerts, opera, and visual media
Music Education
Preparation for music educators leading to a BA and teaching credential in just four years
Music Industry
A leadership-focused professional degree which prepares students to transform the creative, entrepreneurial, and executive structures of the music industry
Musicology
The scholarly study of the histories, cultures, and critical interpretations of music and music-making
Music Performance
Study and training towards professional performance careers in Western classical music