Candidates for the Bachelor of Arts with a major in music are required to present a lecture, lecture/recital, recital, or senior project during the last three terms at Lawrence. Students in this program are encouraged to consult their advisers early in the junior year. If a recital is performed, it is subject to the regulations administered by individual applied areas as described above. For other projects, a proposal must be submitted and approved by the B.A. in Music Committee.
The following are guidelines to apply to the other projects that must be approved by the B.A. in Music Committee.
- The proposal for the project should be submitted in writing
- The initial proposal should be submitted no later than week 8 of the term prior to the
one during which the project will be completed
- The project proposal should state in specific detail exactly what the project entails
and exactly what the student will do to complete it. The proposal should also briefly
indicate how such a project builds on the student’s prior experiences at Lawrence,
and why it may be a logical conclusion to his or her music major
- In general, this project should not simply comprise work the student has done for
any course, but instead it should involve some work done beyond and outside of
the prescribed curriculum for the music major. In some instances, work done for an
elective independent study (e.g., not one used to satisfy a curricular requirement)
may be acceptable
- Final approval of the proposal should be obtained by the end of the term prior to
the one during which the project will be completed
- All projects must include some formally written component. This may, in some
instances, simply serve as a relatively brief context for projects that do not essentially
comprise written work (e.g., recordings, radio or television broadcasts, films or videos,
multi-media installations, manufacture of musical instruments, etc.)
- Though interdisciplinary projects are encouraged, the theory, history, or practice of
music still should be a major focus of all acceptable proposals. For example, “the
effects of performance anxiety on the human digestive system” would be a biology
project, and would not be acceptable; on the other hand, “effective strategies for
coping with performance anxiety” could be perfectly acceptable (even if it deals largely
with discussions of what one should or should not ingest prior to a performance)
- Once the project has been completed, a Lawrence Conservatory faculty member
should certify that the project has met a minimum satisfactory standard of quality