The Piano Department offers comprehensive professional training to talented musicians, along with the exceptional opportunity to study at one of the nation’s foremost public research universities. All members of the piano faculty are distinguished musicians and devoted teachers who expertly guide and encourage students to achieve their greatest potential. Performance opportunities are plentiful and strongly encouraged, along with many possibilities for interdisciplinary collaboration. Fellow students are smart, focused, and supportive, creating a rich environment for artistic growth and creative thought. Pianists receive thorough preparation for careers as soloists, chamber musicians, accompanists and teachers through individual instruction, ensemble coaching, chamber music studies, and a rigorous course of piano literature and musicianship classes, including access to performance practice, fortepiano, and harpsichord instruction.
Piano students at Michigan work in state-of-the-art facilities, including the Earl V. Moore Building, which recently received a $29.5 million expansion and renovation, and have access to cutting-edge audio and video recording studios. Many dedicated practice rooms with a large inventory of superbly maintained Steinway grand pianos (for practice and performance) distinguish Michigan as a place for students to grow in their art.
All School of Music, Theatre & Dance students receive thorough entrepreneurial and career planning support through the school’s EXCEL department (Excellence in Entrepreneurship Career Empowerment & Leadership), the nation’s top program for funding student entrepreneurial ventures in the performing arts.
The University of Michigan is renowned for developing excellence. Combining the focus and rigor of a conservatory with the academic breadth and depth of a major public research university, an education at the School of Music, Theatre & Dance is a transformative experience. Musicians receive a comprehensive program of world-class instruction in performance and pedagogy, as well as the inspiration and knowledge of a liberal arts course of study, instilling the values of innovation and inclusion. Our graduates excel as artists, scholars, educators, entrepreneurs, technologists, designers, and arts administrators, and also as fully-engaged citizens eager to make a difference in their field and community.
