Music Performance - Jazz Emphasis

Our unique jazz curriculum integrates foundational training in the classical tradition with private instruction and coursework in jazz idioms.

  • We offer performance experiences in both large and small ensemble settings. These include Jazz Ensemble, Jazz Workshop, Vocal Jazz Ensemble, Jazz Guitar Ensemble, and Jazz Chamber Groups. Courses include improvisation, harmony, arranging, ear training, and history.
  • The Institute of Entertainment, Music, and Media Arts (IEMMA) allows you to engage in real-world and online activities while connecting creatively with other students and building dynamic relationships with industry-leading professionals.
  • Our students receive exposure and training that encompasses commercial music (pop, Latin, and other world music styles), and includes experiences in the recording studio using notation software and digital audio workstations to compose and arrange.
  • Duquesne's close association with the Manchester Craftsmen's Guild and nearly a dozen area jazz clubs provides a variety of opportunities for students to perform with and learn from nationally-known visiting artists.
  • Our graduates succeed.

Our Jazz Emphasis is designed to equip you to thrive in a variety of professional roles in today's ever-changing world of commercial music, of which jazz is an integral part.

View the 2023–2024 Curriculum

Audition Overview

Admission to the Mary Pappert School of Music also includes a formal audition. Learn more about the audition process & guidelines.

Program Type

Major

Degree

Master's

School

Mary Pappert School of Music

Academic Department

Performance (Music)

Duration

2-year

Required Credit Hours

30

Alumni Perspective

Jake McCormick smiling and holding a saxophone

The incredible jazz faculty at the Mary Pappert School of Music prepared me to be a successful, ambitious, and dependable working musician in the real world. Because of my experience at Duquesne, I am not only confident in my abilities as a saxophonist, but also as a woodwind doubler, arranger, composer, teacher, sight-reader, and performer of a wide range of musical genres.

Jake McCormick M.M. Performance - Jazz Emphasis, 2023

Program Directors

Mike Tomaro

Program Director of Jazz Studies; Professor of Jazz Saxophone

Mike Tomaro plays a tenor saxophone.

Jeff Bush

Assistant Program Director of Jazz Studies; Adjunct Professor of Trombone

Jeff Bush holds a trombone and poses for a headshot.

Upcoming Jazz Events

All Jazz Events

There are no upcoming events to display for this calendar.