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Visit the site for Meyerfest: A 50th Anniversary
Celebration of Leonard B. Meyer’s Emotion
and Meaning in Music
What is Music Theory and Music Cognition?
 Music
theory is an ancient discipline, going back to the Greeks. Music cognition
lies at the intersection of music theory, cognitive psychology, and neuroscience.
It explores the mental processes involved in not only hearing music, but also
in performing, composing, improvising, and even remembering it. Simply put,
it tries to understand the psychological and physiological mechanisms that
allow musical experiences to take place.
The Northwestern Program
Northwestern University is a world leader in connecting music theory and music
cognition. The school's faculty is internationally known for this, and the
added resources of Northwestern's many distinguished programs in the cognitive
sciences create unique opportunities for research. Faculty and students engage
in research related to musical style, expressive performance, memory for music,
musical expectation, emotion, and creativity. Over 150 students each year participate
in a full range of classes, seminars, colloquia, and projects. Program graduates
with advanced degrees may be found in teaching positions at colleges and universities.
Double Majors/Minors
It is possible, with careful planning, to obtain the BM in both performance and cognition (double major) in four years. A minor is available for those pursuing other degree options.
Students may enter the PhD program directly after completing a bachelor's degree.
Undergraduate Program
Undergraduates develop facility in traditional areas such as counterpoint,
harmony melody, rhythm, and form. They address questions such as "How
is this music constructed?" "How do listeners respond to these musical
features?" "What features define musical style?" "What
is the basis for common metaphors used in describing music?" The program
of study also includes music history, the history of compositional technique,
and the history of explaining music.
Applicants must have a broad range of musical experiences, read music extremely
well, and be able to listen to a melody and transcribe it into standard music
notation. They should enjoy thinking about the technical details of music's
construction and preferably have had some experience with things like science
projects, AP psychology, general courses on the brain or cognition, and so
forth.
Graduate Program
Applicants must have very good skills in harmony, counterpoint and figured bass; show evidence of the ability to write research papers in scholarly English; have broad musical tastes; and freedom from restrictive dogmas. Submission of a research paper exploring some facet of listeners' responses to music is advised, and the GRE general test is required.
Students pursuing the PhD receive full tuition and a living stipend so that they may fully devote themselves to research and study.
Students may enter the PhD program directly after completing a bachelor's degree.
Read the answers to the frequently asked questions regarding this degree program.
Special Opportunities
Many opportunities exist for exchange between the program in Music Theory and Cognition and other areas at Northwestern. Some of these include the departments of linguistics, psychology, communication sciences and disorders, and the program in cognitive science.
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