Music

About the Program

The Foothill College Music Department offers an innovative program of study that leads to an Associate in Arts degree and also prepares you for transfer to a four-year institution.

Our curriculum includes a wide variety of on campus and online courses to satisfy diverse interests and needs.

• Music Theory/Composition — Analyze the structure of music and learn to create original works.
• Music History/Literature — Examine music in classical, popular, and world music styles and also can investigate special topics such as The Beatles, Film Music, Video Games and Musical Theatre.
• Music Performance — Study piano, voice, and guitar as well as chronicle their achievements in the Department’s state-of-the-art recording studio.

Courses are taught by award-winning faculty — active as composers, authors, performers, arrangers, and publishers in the Bay Area and throughout the U.S.

Through the Music Department’s Music Technology program, you can also acquire specific training in a variety of music vocations, including product development, music production, audio engineering, and sound design.

Our Facilities

The Fine Arts Division IDEA Center features a new media classroom with MIDI keyboard stations fully equipped with the latest in recording and sound production design.

Our piano laboratory has 24 weighted keyboards, an excellent tutoring staff, and is open at hours that fit your schedule. Learn more

Career Opportunities

Career prospects in the music industry are diverse and abundant. With the advent of digital music delivery systems and alternative media, music is an integral part of the media revolution.

• You have the opportunity to enter the industry in a variety of positions directly and indirectly related to this media revolution.
• Careers are not localized: due to the growth of new media and the communication available via the internet, opportunities exist in many locations.

Recent graduates are employed with several industry-leading companies including Apple, Antares, Avid, Fantasy Studios, & George Horn Mastering.

 

Degrees & Certificates

View the list below for programs offered at Foothill. Then select a program map for a possible schedule that fulfills program and college requirements.

For program requirements and full course listings, view degrees and certificates information.

Associate in Arts Degree Music, AA Program Map

Certificate of Achievement (CA) Certificate of Achievement in Music History and Literature, CA Program Map

Courses of Interest

• World Music: Roots to Contemporary Global Fusions (Music 2D)
• History of Musical Theatre (Music 2F)
• The Beatles in the Culture of Popular Music (Music 7D)
• History of the Blues (Music 7E)
• Music in Film (Music 7F)
• Musics of Multicultural America (Music 8)
• Funk, Fusion & Hip-Hop (Music 11B)
• History of Electronic Music (Music 11D & E)
• Video Games and Popular Culture (Music 11F)
• Introduction to Musical Theatre Production (Music 47A)
• Singing Technique for Musical Theatre (Music 48B)

Many courses are offered online, and almost all of the Department’s courses are transferable.

Several courses meet Foothill College’s General Education Area I Humanities requirement, and Musics of Multicultural America also meets the Area VI United States Culture and Communities requirement.

The Department’s Music Technology program augments general music course offerings with comprehensive instruction in studio recording and audio for visual media.

View our Course Catalog music course catalog, with links to currently offered classes.