An orchestra plays onstage with a projected image on a screen above them.

Our Programs

Founded in 2005, the Bard College Conservatory of Music offers a unique five-year, double-degree program at the undergraduate level, integrating rigorous musical training with a liberal arts education. Graduate programs include vocal arts, conducting, instrumental performance, and Chinese music and culture, along with Advanced Performance Studies and a Collaborative Piano Fellowship. The Conservatory's US-China Music Institute, formed in 2017, offers the only degree programs in Chinese instrument performance in the Western Hemisphere. 

Undergraduate Double-Degree Programs

The Bard Conservatory of Music offers two five-year double degree programs.
  • Musicians on a stage chat happily.
    Bachelor of Music and Bachelor of Arts
    All Conservatory undergraduates pursue a five-year program leading to two degrees: the bachelor of music degree and the bachelor of arts degree in a field other than music. The innovative curriculum of The Bard College Conservatory of Music is guided by the principle that musicians should be broadly educated in the liberal arts and sciences in order to achieve their greatest potential.
  • Musicians in a practice room chat happily.
    Liberal Arts and Chinese Instruments
    Bard Conservatory also offers a five-year double-degree program in the Liberal Arts and selected Chinese instruments, including: dizi, erhu, guqin, guzheng, Chinese percussion, pipa, ruan/liuqin, sheng, suona, and yanqin. Studio instruction in these instruments is provided by world-renowned musicians and educators, in partnership with the Central Conservatory of Music (CCOM) in Beijing. 

Graduate Programs

Graduate Vocal Arts Graduate Conducting
Graduate Instrumental Arts Advanced Performance Studies
Collaborative Piano Fellowship MA in Chinese Music and Culture | 中国音乐与文化艺术硕士学位

Graduate Vocal Arts

The Graduate Vocal Arts Program, led by renowned mezzo-soprano Stephanie Blythe, is a unique master of music program in vocal arts. Created to prepare the young singer for the special challenges of pursuing a professional life in music in the 21st century, this two-year MM degree program balances a respect for established repertory and expressive techniques with the flexibility and curiosity needed to keep abreast of evolving musical ideas. Students work on operatic, art song, chamber music, and new music repertoire throughout the coursework of the program. Operatic repertoire is studied and performed throughout the curriculum and in fully staged productions at the Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts. 
Go to the GVA Site →

Graduate Conducting

Offering tracks in choral and orchestral conducting, the Graduate Conducting Program (GCP) of the Bard College Conservatory of Music is a two-year curriculum that culminates in the master of music (MM) degree. Led by renowned conductors James Bagwell and Leon Botstein, the program equips its graduates with the broad-based skills and experience necessary to meet the special opportunities and challenges of a conducting or conducting-related career in the 21st century.
Go to the GCP Site →

Graduate Instrumental Arts

he Graduate Instrumental Arts Program, a Master of Music in Instrumental Studies, combines academic and practical studies of music, with a strong emphasis on music as a means of engaging with, and serving, the broader community beyond the campus. Through this degree program, students develop the core values of music and musicians in service of society.
Go to the IA Site →

Advanced Performance Studies

The Advanced Performance Studies (APS) Program is a non-degree-granting, four-semester program for exceptionally gifted performers who wish to continue their study of music through concentrated study with the world-class faculty of the Bard Conservatory. Applicants must have completed at least the bachelor of music or its equivalent and must demonstrate a high level of ability and potential through the admission process.
Go to the APS Site →

Collaborative Piano Fellowship

The Postgraduate Collaborative Piano Fellowship (CPF) is a two-year program designed to give performance experience to pianists who are passionate about collaborative work. The fellowship provides an organic transition between school and the professional musical world, and is open to students who have already completed a degree in collaborative piano as well as those who have completed a master’s degree in piano performance.
Go to the CPF site →

MA in Chinese Music and Culture | 中国音乐与文化艺术硕士学位

The Master of Arts in Chinese Music and Culture at Bard College is a two-year program offering students a unique interdisciplinary approach to Chinese music studies and Chinese culture studies. This collaborative program between the US-China Music Institute and the Asian Studies Program at Bard College began enrolling students in Fall 2022. Professor Jindong Cai from the US-China Music Institute serves as the program’s chair with support from the Asian Studies Program faculty.
Go to the CMC site →