Undergraduate Music Placement Exams

All new students in B.Mus. or L.Mus. (except Jazz streams), and students in the B.A./B.Sc. or other degree program from other faculties who pursue a music major or minor, may take the following placement tests in theory (MUTH) and musicianship (MUSP), regardless of previous college or university courses and credits. These placement tests are optional.

All new students from out-of-province are placed in the following freshman/prerequisite courses. Students coming from music programs in CEGEP, or from another university music program, may choose to seek advanced standing by taking the optional placement exams to test out of the required courses, MUTH 150 and 151.

List of placement tests available:

1. Musicianship MUSP 140/141/240/241
2. Keyboard Proficiency MUSP 170/171*

*Note: B.Mus. and L.Mus. students whose main instrument of study at McGill is piano, organ, or harpsichord are automatically exempt from MUSP 170 and 171. Lute players may request to use any Continuo course (MUPG 272, MUPG 372, or MUPG 670) as equivalent to both MUSP 170 and MUSP 171, once they complete the Continuo course.

MUSIC HISTORY (MUHL 186)

There is no placement test for MUHL 186.

Those students who have successfully completed History I, II, III & IV from a Music DEC at CEGEP or post-secondary courses in Western Musical Traditions, or passed RCM Level 10 History exam, will be given advanced standing for MUHL 186 (determined by transcript record.)

DETAILED EXAM INFORMATION:

Students wishing to have advanced standing and be exempted from prerequisite courses may do the following exams in theory and musicianship by July 15:

1. THEORY (MUTH 150/151

Please note that the first-year theory placement exam is a single exam incorporating material from both MUTH 150 and MUTH 151. Students will be tested on both theory courses.

MUTH 150 Music Theory and Analysis 1
Content includes:

• Resolution of dominant and diminished seventh chords
• Principles of four-part writing in keyboard and chorale styles
• Harmonic analysis with Roman numerals and figured bass
• Labeling nonharmonic tones (passing, neighbor, suspension, anticipation, echappée, incomplete neighbor)
• Labeling cadence types (PAC, IAC, HC, DC)

To prepare, you may consult any standard undergraduate music theory textbook, such as The Musicians’ Guide to Theory and Analysis (Marvin/Clendenning), The Complete Musician (Laitz) or Concise Introduction to Tonal Harmony (Burstein/Straus). It is recommended to visit websites such as MusicTheory.net or Teoria.com for tutorials and drills.

MUTH 151 Music Theory and Analysis 2
Content includes all of the above, plus

• Analysis and classification of sequences
• Modulation and tonicization (secondary dominants)
• Standard chromatic harmonies (augmented sixths, Neapolitan sixths)
• Types of 6/4 chords (neighbour, cadential, passing, arpeggiating)

To prepare, you may consult any standard undergraduate music theory textbook, such as The Musicians’ Guide to Theory and Analysis (Marvin/Clendenning), The Complete Musician (Laitz) or Concise Introduction to Tonal Harmony (Burstein/Straus).

2. MUSICIANSHIP (MUSP 140/141/240/241)

A. First Interview. This will determine possible exemption from Musicianship Training MUSP 140/141. You sight-sing (with or without solfège) a melody that appears on the screen and identify intervals and triads by quality (e.g., major, minor, diminished, augmented) and inversion (e.g., 6/3 or first inversion, etc.). If you succeed in these tasks you will be asked to take a second interview. If you qualify for a second interview, you will receive notification via your McGill email address shortly after your first interview.

B. Second Interview. This will determine possible exemption from Musicianship Training MUSP 240/241. You sight-sing atonal melodies and identify chromatic chords in a harmonic progression, including seventh chords, applied dominants, augmented sixths, and modal mixture, by quality and inversion.

3. KEYBOARD PROFICIENCY (MUSP 170/171)

• Sight read a short example in two parts.
• Transpose a simple melody at sight
• Construct chords at the keyboard (root position and inverted triads and 7th chords).

• Resolve dominant and diminished 7^th chords in 4 voices.
• Play progressions from chord symbols (for example, I–V6/ii–ii–V6–I) in keys with up to 4 sharps or flats, or playing a similar progression from figured bass
• Read a simple score in more than two staves using treble, bass and alto clefs.

All incoming B.Mus. Jazz Performance, B.Mus. Faculty Program (Jazz) and L.Mus. Jazz Performance can seek advanced standing for first year core jazz courses by completing a Jazz Placement Exam interview to be held remotely by Zoom. This placement test is optional. The interview will be of 10 -15 minutes duration and will cover placement in Jazz Materials, Jazz Ear Training, and Jazz Keyboard Proficiency. Students will have to sign up for an interview time and day according to the published schedule.

If you do not wish to take the placement test, you are expected to register for the 100-level MUJZ core courses as shown in the sample first year course plan for your program.

By default, all new students are placed in the following prerequisite courses:

1. Jazz Materials MUJZ 160/161
2. Jazz Keyboard Proficiency MUJZ 170/171
   (Note: Jazz guitar and jazz piano students are automatically exempt from MUJZ 170 and MUJZ 171)
3. Jazz Ear Training MUSP 123/124
4. Jazz History MUJZ 187

*Note: Students in B.Mus. Faculty Jazz have the option to take MUTH 150 & 151 placement tests alongside the jazz ones. Detailed info about the MUTH placement tests can be found under Placement Exam information by program for B.Mus., L.Mus. (except Jazz streams).

• The level (and section assignment) for each prerequisite course will be determined by the results of the interview.
• There is no placement exam for MUHL 187 Jazz History.
• Students will be exempt from MUJZ 187 if they have successfully completed an equivalent course from Cegep and college/university.

Placement Test Format:

Each placement test takes between 10 and 15 minutes. It will be conducted by individual interview via zoom. You are required to have both audio and video functions for this placement test. Preparation for Placement Test: For placement in Jazz Materials MUJZ 160-161: You will be tested orally on your knowledge of scales, voicings and chord-scale relationships. For placement in Jazz Ear Training MUJZ 123-124: You will be asked to identify chords, sing various scales by ear and sight-sing a short passage.

Preparation for Placement Test:

For placement in Jazz Materials MUJZ 160-161: You will be tested orally on your knowledge of scales, voicings and chord-scale relationships.

For placement in Jazz Ear Training MUJZ 123-124: You will be asked to identify chords, sing various scales by ear and sight-sing a short passage.

For placement in Jazz keyboard proficiency, MUJZ 170-171: Your keyboard skills will be assessed according to both your prior experience in piano and your ability to identify chord voicings as presented to you on a keyboard during the interview.
Those who have a keyboard at home should try to do the interview in the same room, so that we can hear you play. But a keyboard will not be absolutely necessary for this part of the placement test.