The Licentiate in Music (Piano Performance) is a 93 credit program. You may have fewer credits to complete if you receive course exemptions and/or transfer credits.
Students in the licentiate program are required to achieve a minimum grade of A- in all practical instruction/exams and ensembles, as well as attain a minimum CGPA of 2.0 to continue in this program.
Use our sample 3-year program plan to determine when to take each course.
Performance Piano Major (L.Mus.) (93 credits)
Offered by: Performance (Schulich School of Music)
Degree: Licentiate in Music
Program credit weight: 93
Program Description
The Licentiate in Music (L.Mus.) Major Performance Piano is a 93-credit program.
Special Requirements
- Continuation in the program requires a minimum grade of A- in practical instruction/exams and ensembles.
- Candidates must take the L.Mus. Performance 1 Examination at the end of their first year of study and the L.Mus. Performance 2 and 3 Examinations in each of the next two years if they hope to complete the program in the normal length of time.
Required Performance (52 credits)
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| MUIN 250 | L.Mus. Practical Instruction 1. | 6 |
L.Mus. Practical Instruction 1. Terms offered: Fall 2025 Practical instruction in an instrument or voice. | ||
| MUIN 251 | L.Mus. Practical Instruction 2. | 6 |
L.Mus. Practical Instruction 2. Terms offered: Fall 2025, Winter 2026 Practical instruction in an instrument or voice. | ||
| MUIN 252 | L.Mus. Performance 1 Examination. | 4 |
L.Mus. Performance 1 Examination. Terms offered: Fall 2025 Assessment of student progress. | ||
| MUIN 333 | Piano Techniques 2. | 0 |
Piano Techniques 2. Terms offered: Fall 2025 Practical examination in piano techniques. | ||
| MUIN 350 | L.Mus. Practical Instruction 3. | 6 |
L.Mus. Practical Instruction 3. Terms offered: Fall 2025, Winter 2026 Practical instruction in an instrument or voice. | ||
| MUIN 351 | L.Mus. Practical Instruction 4. | 6 |
L.Mus. Practical Instruction 4. Terms offered: Fall 2025, Winter 2026 Practical instruction in an instrument or voice. | ||
| MUIN 352 | L.Mus. Performance 2 Examination. | 4 |
L.Mus. Performance 2 Examination. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Assessment of student progress. | ||
| MUIN 369 | Concerto. | 0 |
Concerto. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Practical examination on concerto repertoire. | ||
| MUIN 433 | Piano Techniques 3. | 0 |
Piano Techniques 3. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Practical examination in piano techniques. | ||
| MUIN 450 | L.Mus. Practical Instruction 5. | 4 |
L.Mus. Practical Instruction 5. Terms offered: Fall 2025, Winter 2026 Practical instruction in an instrument or voice. | ||
| MUIN 451 | L.Mus. Practical Instruction 6. | 4 |
L.Mus. Practical Instruction 6. Terms offered: Fall 2025, Winter 2026 Practical instruction in an instrument or voice. | ||
| MUIN 452 | L.Mus. Performance 3 Examination. | 8 |
L.Mus. Performance 3 Examination. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Assessment of student progress. | ||
| MUPG 541 | Senior Piano Seminar 1. | 2 |
Senior Piano Seminar 1. Terms offered: Fall 2025 In-class performance and analysis of solo and ensemble repertoire, including historical and modern recordings. | ||
| MUPG 542 | Senior Piano Seminar 2. | 2 |
Senior Piano Seminar 2. Terms offered: Winter 2026 Issues of piano pedagogy and preparation for competitions. | ||
Complementary Performance (14 credits)
Large Ensemble – during the first four terms (2 credits x 4 semesters).
14 credits selected as follows:
8 credits from:
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| MUEN 563 | Jazz Vocal Workshop. | 2 |
Jazz Vocal Workshop. Terms offered: Fall 2025, Winter 2026 Vocal workshop for jazz musicians. | ||
| MUEN 572 | Cappella Antica. | 2 |
Cappella Antica. Terms offered: Fall 2025, Winter 2026 An ensemble of 8 to 12 voices specializing in early music. N.B. This ensemble may substitute as a Basic Ensemble in programs that specify Choral Ensemble, with Departmental approval. | ||
| MUEN 587 | Cappella McGill. | 2 |
Cappella McGill. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. An ensemble of 16 voices performing challenging repertoire from the Renaissance to the present day. Since the expectation is a level of performance equivalent to a professional chamber ensemble, singers wishing to join this group should have had considerable ensemble experience, and advanced vocal and sight-reading skills. | ||
| MUEN 590 | McGill Wind Orchestra. | 2 |
McGill Wind Orchestra. Terms offered: Fall 2025, Winter 2026 Large ensemble for wind instruments. | ||
| MUEN 592 | Chamber Jazz Ensemble. | 2 |
Chamber Jazz Ensemble. Terms offered: Fall 2025, Winter 2026 This ensemble will deal with the extensive repertoire of music which exists for small jazz orchestra (9-13 instruments). | ||
| MUEN 593 | Choral Ensembles. | 2 |
Choral Ensembles. Terms offered: Fall 2025, Winter 2026 Students enrolling in Choral Ensembles will be assigned to one of the above groups. | ||
| MUEN 594 | Contemporary Music Ensemble. | 2 |
Contemporary Music Ensemble. Terms offered: Fall 2025, Winter 2026 Ensemble for contemporary music - instruments and voice. | ||
| MUEN 595 | Jazz Ensembles. | 2 |
Jazz Ensembles. Terms offered: Fall 2025, Winter 2026 Ensemble for jazz - instruments and voice. | ||
| MUEN 597 | McGill Symphony Orchestra. | 2 |
McGill Symphony Orchestra. Terms offered: Fall 2025, Winter 2026 Ensemble for orchestral instruments. | ||
6 credits from:
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| MUEN 540 | Chamber Music Project 1. | 0.5 |
Chamber Music Project 1. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Chamber music ensemble for various instruments. | ||
| MUEN 541 | Chamber Music Project 2. | 0.5 |
Chamber Music Project 2. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Chamber music ensemble for various instruments. | ||
| MUEN 556 | Introduction to Collaborative Piano 1. | 1 |
Introduction to Collaborative Piano 1. Terms offered: Fall 2025 Aspects and techniques of performing in ensembles, including vocal accompanying, piano duos, instrumental duos and chamber ensemble work. Ensemble score-reading, preparation and performance analysis. | ||
| MUEN 557 | Introduction to Collaborative Piano 2. | 1 |
Introduction to Collaborative Piano 2. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Developing the collaborative performance. Masterclass-style coaching of assignments in vocal accompanying, piano duos, instrumental duos and chamber ensemble work. Further ensemble score-reading, preparation and performance analysis. | ||
| MUEN 560 | Chamber Music Ensemble. | 1 |
Chamber Music Ensemble. Terms offered: Fall 2025, Winter 2026 Ensemble for chamber music - various instruments. | ||
| MUEN 578 | Song Interpretation 1. | 1 |
Song Interpretation 1. Terms offered: Fall 2025, Winter 2026 Normally open only to Voice and Piano Performance students. Study of the standard song repertoire with emphasis on the singer and pianist as partners. A public recital will be given at the end of each term. | ||
| MUEN 579 | Song Interpretation 2. | 1 |
Song Interpretation 2. Terms offered: Fall 2025, Winter 2026 Study of song repertoire for singers and pianists. | ||
| MUEN 581 | Introduction to Ensemble Playing for Pianists. | 1 |
Introduction to Ensemble Playing for Pianists. Terms offered: Fall 2025, Winter 2026 Concentration on interpretation and performance of piano duet and two piano repertoire. | ||
| MUEN 582 | Piano Ensembles. | 1 |
Piano Ensembles. Terms offered: Fall 2025 Ensemble playing in two-piano and piano 4-hand repertoire. | ||
| MUEN 584 | Studio Accompanying. | 1 |
Studio Accompanying. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Highly qualified collaborative partners will be assigned to work independently with studio teachers and their students. | ||
| MUEN 585 | Sonata Masterclass. | 1 |
Sonata Masterclass. Terms offered: Fall 2025, Winter 2026 Exploration of the vast literature for sonatas with piano and instrument, including multiple issues of ensemble preparation and performing. | ||
Complementary Musicianship (2 credits)
2 credits from:
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| MUSP 346 | Post-Tonal Musicianship. | 2 |
Post-Tonal Musicianship. Terms offered: Summer 2025, Fall 2025, Winter 2026 Extended tonal and post-tonal harmonic and contrapuntal structures, rhythmic practices of the 20th and 21st century, score reading. | ||
| MUSP 350 | Musicianship for Pianists. | 2 |
Musicianship for Pianists. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Fundamental musicianship issues in the context of performance with an emphasis on sight-reading, practical score analysis and focused learning methods. | ||
| MUSP 361 | Topics in Musicianship. | 2 |
Topics in Musicianship. Terms offered: this course is not currently offered. Advanced ear training challenges in rhythm, pitch, harmony, form, or timbre. | ||
Required Courses (25 credits)
25 credits of required courses selected as follows:
9 credits of Theory
10 credits of Musicianship
6 credits of History
Theory
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| MUTH 150 | Theory and Analysis 1. | 3 |
Theory and Analysis 1. Terms offered: Fall 2025 Diatonic chords and harmonic progressions, focus on outer-voice framework, cadences, embellishments, building chordal fluency in common-practice tonality, applied chords. | ||
| MUTH 151 | Theory and Analysis 2. | 3 |
Theory and Analysis 2. Terms offered: Winter 2026 Sequences and modulation, chromatic vocabulary, analysis of simple theme types (sentence, period, hybrids) and fugal techniques. | ||
| MUTH 250 | Theory and Analysis 3. | 3 |
Theory and Analysis 3. Terms offered: Summer 2025, Fall 2025 Compositional resources of late 18th and early 19th century music. Analysis of forms common to the period c. 1770 - 1840, including Classical sonata forms in several media. | ||
Musicianship
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| MUSP 140 | Musicianship Training 1. | 2 |
Musicianship Training 1. Terms offered: Fall 2025 Rhythm and metre basic subdivisions and conducting patterns; intervals, chords, and scale patterns; non-modulating tonal melodies with treble and bass clefs; harmonic progressions emphasizing two-part outer voice structures. | ||
| MUSP 141 | Musicianship Training 2. | 2 |
Musicianship Training 2. Terms offered: Winter 2026 Rhythm and metre mixed divisions and syncopations; triadic and seventh chord voicings and disjunct pitch collections; chromatically embellished melodies adding alto clef; simple modulating harmonic progressions emphasizing two-part outer voice structures. | ||
| MUSP 170 | Musicianship (Keyboard) 1. | 1 |
Musicianship (Keyboard) 1. Terms offered: Fall 2025 Harmonic, melodic and rhythmic analysis at the keyboard through the study of rudiments, repertoire, chorale/score reading, transposition and harmonization. | ||
| MUSP 171 | Musicianship (Keyboard) 2. | 1 |
Musicianship (Keyboard) 2. Terms offered: Winter 2026 Building chordal fluency. Harmonic vocabulary including sequences, chromaticism and modulation. Chorale and score reading with transposing instruments and alto/tenor clefs. | ||
| MUSP 240 | Musicianship Training 3. | 2 |
Musicianship Training 3. Terms offered: Summer 2025, Fall 2025 Rhythm and metre mixed divisions and two-part work; additional chordal voicings and pitch collections; melodies modulating to closely-related keys adding tenor clef; harmonic progression including applied chords; two-part keyboard-style passages. | ||
| MUSP 241 | Musicianship Training 4. | 2 |
Musicianship Training 4. Terms offered: Summer 2025, Winter 2026 Changing metres; chord voicings and atonal pitch collections; modulating tonal melodies and score reading of transposing instruments; harmonic progression including chromatic chords; two-part passages. | ||
| MUSP 363 | Topics in Global Musicianship. | 2 |
Topics in Global Musicianship. Terms offered: Winter 2026 Musicianship skills from one or more global musical practice(s), with specific challenges and approaches corresponding to the selected topic. | ||
History
| Course | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| MUHL 186 | Western Musical Traditions. | 3 |
Western Musical Traditions. Terms offered: Fall 2025 A survey of Western music from the Middle Ages to the present. Emphasis on key musical concepts and genres in their historical context and aural recognition of style. | ||
| MUHL 286 | Critical Thinking About Music. | 3 |
Critical Thinking About Music. Terms offered: Summer 2025, Fall 2025, Winter 2026 Examination of various periods and styles: e.g., central works from different traditions, the interaction of music and society, performance practice, and music's relation to other arts. | ||
