COURSE CURRICULUM

The Bachelor of Music in Jazz Studies at Capilano University is a comprehensive eight-term program totaling 127 credits, designed to develop your skills in jazz performance, composition, and music education. In the first year, you’ll build a strong foundation with courses such as University Writing Strategies, Keyboard Skills, Theory of Tonal Music and Jazz I & II, Jazz History, Ear Training, Jazz Performance and Improvisation, and Private Music Instruction, alongside participation in Jazz Ensembles. As you progress into the second and third years, the curriculum deepens with advanced theory, improvisation, music history studies, and continued performance practice, while incorporating electives outside the core music courses to broaden your academic experience. You’ll engage in specialized courses like Jazz Arranging, Conducting and Pedagogy, and Ethnomusicology, enhancing your understanding of diverse musical traditions and leadership in music settings. Private Music Instruction continues throughout, tailored to your individual instrument or voice, with opportunities for secondary instruction. In your final year, interdisciplinary seminars on special topics in musicology, large and vocal ensemble arranging, and advanced performance courses prepare you for professional and academic futures. Throughout the program, ensemble participation at various levels ensures practical experience and collaboration. This rigorous and well-rounded curriculum fosters technical proficiency, creativity, and critical thinking, equipping you to excel as a performer, composer, educator, or graduate student in the dynamic field of jazz music.