Conservatory of Music

Welcome to the Conservatory—where your career in music always takes center stage.

Music is your life. It's one of the biggest reasons you wake up in the morning. Your heartbeat sets the tempo for your next composition and you simply can't imagine doing anything else with your life and career. You belong at Capital University.

For over 100 years, we've been preparing students for a wide range of music careers. Our renowned music program celebrated it's centennial throughout the 2018-19 academic year with a series of signature performances featuring distinguished local and national musical talent. Throughout our history, our graduates have established themselves as professional performers, teachers, conductors, composers and music business and industry entrepreneurs. Many enter the world of audio and video production, arts administration and law, while others go on to attend some of the most prestigious graduate schools in the country. 

Find a Major

Bachelor of Music
Composition
Jazz Studies
Music Education
Music Industry 
Performance
Music Technology

Bachelor of Arts
Professional Studies – Music Technology 

Master of Music in Music Education 
MMME Home
Choral Emphasis
Kodály Emphasis
Instrumental Emphasis
Jazz Pedagogy Emphasis

See what we're doing

We average over 200 events at the Conservatory each academic year and cordially welcome the community to most of them. Many events are free and open to the public, so come and experience the music on our historically rich and beautiful campus. 

See Upcoming Events

Invested in your success

Meet our faculty and review audition requirements

Thomas Zugger, D.M.A.

Dean
(614) 236-6274
tzugger@capital.edu

See Bio

Performance opportunities for everyone

The Conservatory offers a wide range of opportunities for students to perform—from on-campus recitals and concerts to national and international tours, festivals and competitions. Regardless of your major, you can audition for any of the nearly 50 ensembles offered through the Conservatory, exposing you to the real world of musical performance. Here, there are no silos. Everyone performs with everyone. Everyone supports everyone. Music education majors perform alongside vocal performance majors. Opportunities abound, from bands and choirs to jazz groups, rock and electronic ensembles, a rich array of student- and faculty-led chamber music ensembles, studio ensembles and the Capital orchestra. There’s no question you will be challenged. But you'll be shaped into the musician you always wanted to be. You’ll be celebrated for your accomplishments. And you’ll become part of Capital’s influential network of artists who change people’s lives through music, from the thriving capital city of Columbus to New York, Chicago, D.C., Nashville—even Beijing and beyond.

Find an Ensemble Right for you

Life-Changing Skills and Experience

As a Conservatory student, your curriculum will include core music studies, classes that are specific to your chosen career path, a relevant liberal arts core curriculum that will teach you to think, broaden your perspective and prepare you for the real world, and electives that are designed to help you achieve your goals. In some instances, you can also develop a minor course of study or another major outside of music.

Music is the common language of the world. World music is woven into the Conservatory curriculum. But you may also decide to immerse yourself and study abroad at our partner residencies in Hungary and Germany. Or you could tune in to the internship opportunities across the United States, like BET (Black Entertainment TV) recording studios in New York, OmniSound Studios in Nashville, Horse-Drawn Productions in Chicago and many, many more. Or you can stay in your own backyard with a residency at The Recording Workshop in Chillicothe, Ohio. Regardless of where you are, your learning experience in Capital’s Conservatory of Music will be rigorous and active. You’ll graduate with the knowledge, experience and contacts you’ll need to start building your career and impacting lives through music.

Everything at Your Fingertips

Like anything in life, you need access to the right tools and facilities to succeed. The Conservatory is proud of its impressive performance halls, including the 180-seat Huntington Recital Hall and the 900-seat Mees Hall Auditorium. At your disposal, you will also have spaces that are dedicated to choral, vocal and instrumental rehearsal, piano practice and chamber rooms, audio recording and production studios and suites that are second to none, computer and keyboard labs, smart technology and so much more.

And while we're talking instruments, the Conservatory’s instrumental inventory is mind-boggling. Our world percussion collection is second to none. Our Hugus Memorial pipe organ, with its 70 ranks and 4,000 pipes, was designed specifically for Mees Hall Auditorium. Or how about our state-of-the-art recording studio with computers, MIDI instruments, microphones, mixing boards and electronic keyboards? Wind and string instruments. Drum sets. Steinways. You name it. They're all here, just waiting for you to bring them to life.

360-Degree Tour of the Conservatory

Beyond the Classroom

Capital is proud to call Columbus — the thriving metropolitan capital of Ohio — home. The Central Ohio music scene — and really the arts and culture scenes in general — is thriving. At Capital, you're just minutes away from the Columbus Symphony Orchestra, the Columbus Jazz Orchestra and the award-winning Pro Musica Chamber Orchestra, as well as Opera Columbus and Broadway Series. There's also plenty happening right on campus, including Conservatory-sponsored workshops, recitals, clinics Opera Music Theater performances like Chicago, Pirates of Penzance, Cosi Fan Tutte, and The Magic Flute, and acclaimed events like the annual Christmas Festival, Honor Band and Reading Band Clinic, NOW Music Festival, Jazz & World Music Festival and the Early Music in Columbus concert series. In any given year, more than 200 performances fill the halls of Capital’s Conservatory. When will you step into the spotlight?

Remember, this is your world. So don't wait another minute to start shaping it with your music. We share your passion for music, and we want to help you bring it to life at the Conservatory. But the first step is yours. Schedule a visit or an audition. Talk to faculty member. Explore our programs.

Inclusion Programming Policy
Conservatory of Music performances require at least one piece by a composer from a historically underrepresented population. All program notes, oral or written, will include biographical and contextual information on the composer. Read our Inclusion Programming Policy.