Music Department | School of Arts

The Music Department strives for solid traditional training practices while exposing students to advance music technology. As a department we ensure that students understand the context of music based off multiple cultures around the world. Our curriculum is designed for maximum flexibility while encouraging students to learn about a wide variety of musical practices.

Student Spotlight

May 9, 2022, 7:00pm - Vocal Esemble

View the Vocal Ensemble LIVESTREAM

May 10, 2022, 7:00pm - Jazz Ensemble and World Music Ensemble

View the Jazz Ensemble and World Music Ensemble LIVESTREAM

May 11, 2022, 7:00pm - Student Recital

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May 13, 2022, 7:00pm - Student Vocal Recital

View the Student Vocal Recital LIVESTREAM

ARTS 111

CSUSM Music Department presents the Spring 2021 Vocal Ensemble

The following are musical highlights from CSUSM Music Department's Songs of Protest and Resistance presentation on April 29, 2021:

"We'll Rise Up" - Songwriting by Jared Friedrichs, Rachael Groeneweg, Sarah Lehman, Patrick Clauder, Jorge Flores

Video editing: Rachael Goenew

"Lift Every Voice and Sing, A Change is Gonna Come"- arranged by Rachael Groeneweg

Congratulations to CHABSS's Scholarship & Creative Works Champions winner, Rachael Groeneweg.

Read about Rachael's accomplishments as a Music Major in the School of Arts.

Congratulations to CSUSM Music Major, Rachael Groeneweg, for moving forward as a finalist to the statewide Research Symposium!

In the Fall of 2020, Rachael Groeneweg had the privilege of being a part of the inaugural CSUSM-HBCU cohort. The cohort's theme was Songs of Protest, Resistance, and Compassion. Rachael's research included listening to a myriad of protest songs, after which she concluded the most profound genre within the protest song genre is that of compassion. To have compassion, or sympathy, for the very people who dehumanize and oppress you, is a deep and difficult "protest vehicle." Rachael's creative work is a demonstration of this notion of protest through compassion. It is based on the final scene of the movie The Help.

Congratulations to CSUSM Arts and Technology Major, Jeselle Corpus, who was selected to present her original song and music video at the upcoming CSUSM 6th Annual Graduate Humanities & Arts Virtual Conference: Crafting Civil Discourse: The (Human) Experience in a Pandemic Era.

Faculty Spotlight

Introducing Dr. Ching-Ming Cheng, the new Chair of the CSUSM Music Department.

Introducing Professor Mackenzie Leighton, bass instructor and lecturer for the History of Rock