Required for all instruments except Keyboard and Composition students. Individual appointments will be emailed as well as posted in a shared Google document.

The examination covers sight reading of simple piano pieces, the performance of major and minor scales, and basic harmonic progressions at the piano. If supplementary work on the piano is indicated, one or two semesters of the keyboard skills class will be required.

Required for all new BM and MM students (except RJAM). Individual appointment times and room assignments will be emailed to you prior to Orientation.

The Musicianship Placement Exam determines placement into the six semesters of undergraduate Musicianship as well as the appropriate track. There are two components to the exam.

The first component consists of sight-singing a number of musical compositions, both melodies and single-voice rhythms, ranging in difficulty from very simple to extremely complex. The musical selections may be in any of four clefs (treble, bass, tenor, and alto), major and minor modes as well as the standard Church modes, and at the more difficult level may be selected from the 12-tone or atonal literature. The instructor administering the examination will determine which selections to ask you to sing, depending upon your prior experience with solfège. You may sing the examples in any solmization system. Conduct while performing, if at all possible.

The second component is a progressive dictation exam beginning with simple rhythms and melodies, and progressing through increasingly difficult examples, including intervals, chords, advanced melodic dictation, harmonic dictation, and chorale dictation. At the most advanced level, you are asked to take down a Bach-style chorale with harmonic analysis on four hearings. The dictation component does not include any atonal or 12-tone examples. An introductory section of the exam covers the fundamentals of music: intervals, key signatures, scales, and basic chords.

For further questions or information, email Scott Foglesong ( fpbgg.sbtyrfbat@fspz.rqhude.mcfs@gnoselgof.ttocs )

Open to undergraduate students who have successfully completed collegiate-level Music Theory courses at a college or university. AP/IB test scores are not sufficient to fulfill this requirement. Eligible students may opt in to the exam by arriving on time at the scheduled location - more details will be provided in the Orientation schedule.

The exam focuses primarily on common-practice harmonic writing and harmonic analysis.

For further questions or information regarding the exam, email Scott Foglesong( fpbgg.sbtyrfbat@fspz.rqhude.mcfs@gnoselgof.ttocs ).

Credit Earned by Exam

Based on placement exam results, students may receive credit for any semesters successfully tested out of within the four-semester Music Theory core-curriculum (MMT 112–MMT 115).

Credit for each semester is contingent upon earning credit for the previous semester. For example, second-semester credit will only be awarded if first-semester credit has been granted. After results are released, the assigned Academic Advisor and the Registrar’s Office will be available to answer questions regarding how credit has been awarded.

Students who have done extensive collegiate coursework in Music History may seek the permission of the Chair of Music History and Literature to discuss the possibility of testing out of the undergraduate music history sequence.

To take this exam, you must receive permission from the Chair of Music History and Literature (Rachel Vandagriff, einaqntevss@fspz.rqhude.mcfs@ffirgadnavr ). Your transcript will be reviewed to determine whether your previous coursework is extensive enough to warrant your taking the exam, and in which of the three historical periods listed above.

The core curriculum at SFCM includes a three-semester music history survey: MHL 202 (Introduction to Music and Culture: Music in California), MHL 203 (1750-1900), and MHL 204 (1900-present). Incoming, non-transfer students who have done equivalent collegiate coursework may request to take a placement exam in one, two, or all three of these time periods, as appropriate, and will receive credit by examination for any exam section(s) passed. The exam will test knowledge of repertoire, as well as general information about the history of music. For more information about the structure of the exam, consult the relevant section of the graduate placement exam information sheet. The undergraduate placement exam includes sections that are structured like Sections I and II of the graduate exam.

Please note that SFCM does not grant transfer credit for music-related classes. However, a student’s performance on academic placement exams may exempt them from certain required coursework. Unlike first-time, non-transfer students, credits from exempted coursework will be applied towards the total credit degree requirements. 

Once placement exam results are finalized during orientation week, the Academic Affairs Office/Registrar will communicate any earned credit through placement exams to the student and their advisor to help plan the course load.
 

Please review the full transfer credit policies here.

Optional for all students.

Students who may be proficient in French, Italian, and/or German may take the placement exam of those languages to receive advanced placement unless this is your native language.

Please contact the instructor below at least 24 -hours before the scheduled test day to sign-up for a placement exam spot during Orientation:

• Italian Language Optional Placement Test
  Please email instructor at least 48 hours before the scheduled test day to sign up Stefania Filigheddu ( fsvyvturqqh@fspz.rqhude.mcfs@uddehgilifs )
• German Language Optional Placement Test
  Yvonne Hagemann ( luntrznaa@fspz.rqhude.mcfs@nnamegahy " rel="nofollow"> luntrznaa@fspz.rqhude.mcfs@nnamegahy )
• French Language Optional Placement Test
  Muriel Barton ( zonegba@fspz.rqhude.mcfs@notrabm )

SFCM gives humanities (HMS) transfer credit for foreign languages completed at accredited American colleges, provided the student received a grade of C or better. Students do not need to take the foreign language placement examination if their college transcript indicates completion of foreign language studies.

Required of all incoming graduate students.

The exam determines whether or not you will need to take a one-semester refresher course in the basics of music theory (Theory Review MMT 604).

If you have very little prior experience with music theory, it is possible that the department will strongly recommend that you take an undergraduate music fundamentals course prior to taking the one-semester graduate refresher course.

You will be asked to write a four-voice setting from a figured bass line, provide a four-voice harmonization of a given melody, perform a harmonic analysis of a given chorale-like example, and analyze musical forms. The exam does not cover counterpoint or post-1900 practices.

For further questions or information, email Scott Foglesong ( fpbgg.sbtyrfbat@fspz.rqhude.mcfs@gnoselgof.ttocs ).

Required of all incoming graduate students.

The exam determines whether or not you will need to take a one-semester refresher course in dictation, sightsinging, and musicianship (Musicianship Review MMT 602).

The first component consists of sight-singing a number of musical compositions, both melodies and single-voice rhythms, ranging in difficulty from very simple to extremely complex. The musical selections may be in any of four clefs (treble, bass, tenor, and alto), major and minor modes as well as the standard Church modes, and at the more difficult level may be selected from the 12-tone or atonal literature. The instructor administering the examination will determine which selections to ask you to sing, depending upon your prior experience with solfège. You may sing the examples in any solmization system. Conduct while performing, if at all possible.

The second component is a progressive dictation exam beginning with simple rhythms and melodies, and progressing through increasingly difficult examples, including intervals, chords, advanced melodic dictation, harmonic dictation, and chorale dictation. The dictation component does not include any atonal or 12-tone examples.

The Music History Placement exam will determine whether you are placed into the graduate refresher courses MHL 602 and/or MHL 603, or whether you may pass directly into upper-level seminars.

The exam lasts 2.5 hours, and includes four sections:

1. General questions about the history of Western classical music from 1700 to 1900, and from 1900 to the present
2. Listening and score identifications and discussion covering Western classical music repertoire from 1700 to the present
3. Information literacy skills
4. Questions about your experience with music history course work and reflective essays (2)

Because the exam is designed to test material learned at the undergraduate level, no advance preparation is necessary. It’s a tool for placing you in the classes that will best serve your needs.

N.B.: If you did not take undergraduate music history courses that covered Western classical music from 1700-2000, we recommend that you consider skipping the test and enrolling for MHL 602 and MHL 603 (one per semester). These courses earn you credits that count toward your degree.

On the test, all of your answers and words must be your own. If you use phrases, sentences, or paragraphs from elsewhere (a textbook, any online source, etc.), or if your answers are the same as any other students’, you will receive zero credit.

As a courtesy, we do offer some study tips.

Section I: General Knowledge about the History of Music
This section includes roughly forty questions (fill in the blank, multiple choice, and short answer) that test your general knowledge of Western classical music history of the 18th-19th and of the 20th-21st centuries (with an equal number of questions for each era).

Section II: Score Identification and Discussion
In this section, you will be asked to identify around fifteen musical excerpts, roughly half from the 18th and 19th centuries and half from the 20th and 21st. Within the exam you will be given an audio clip, score excerpt, or both, for each question. For each excerpt, you will be asked to name the composer, genre (symphony, opera, string quartet, etc.), and date (within 25 years). In addition, you will be asked specific questions regarding musical features such as texture, form, text setting, etc. All excerpts will be taken from repertoire published in the Oxford History of Western Music, College Edition score anthologies, Volumes 2 and 3, plus the following composers from Volume 1: J. S. Bach, Buxtehude, Corelli, Handel, and Vivaldi.

Section III: Information Literacy Skills
This section will ask you a few short questions about the academic integrity policy at SFCM. You will be asked to apply the policy in specific scenarios, provide your definition of academic integrity, and explain why academic integrity is important.

Section IV: Questions about your experience with music history course work and reflective essays (2)

This section is divided into two parts:

1. In this section, you will be asked to list the music history courses you have taken in previous degree programs and the grades you earned for each. 
2. You will also be asked to reflect on your own experiences with music history, first spanning the period prior to 1900, then from 1900 to the present, with particular focus on how music historical knowledge relates to your practice as a musician. 

If you have further questions, email Rachel Vandagriff ( einaqntevss@fspz.rqhude.mcfs@ffirgadnavr ). Students who have gotten their BM from SFCM in the last two years should hear from the registrar over the summer prior to beginning their next degree regarding their placement. If they have not heard from the registrar, they should contact Prof. Vandagriff to check in about their placement requirements.

Optional for MM and Advanced Certificate vocalists who want to be excused from APP 210 Basic Phonetics. You should NOT take this exam if you have never studied phonetics and IPA.

The exam includes the following:

• The International Phonetic Alphabet - You will be asked to transcribe English words (real or invented) into IPA upon hearing them pronounced, and to identify simple English words written in IPA.
• Basic Articulatory Phonetics - You will be asked to answer multiple choice questions regarding the physical formation of vowels and consonants.

Open to MM, PSC/AD students.

Students who may be proficient in French, Italian, and/or German may take the placement exam of those languages to receive advanced placement unless this is your native language.

Please contact the instructor below at least 48-hours before the scheduled test day to sign-up for a placement exam spot during Orientation:

• Italian Language Optional Placement Test
  Stefania Filigheddu ( fsvyvturqqh@fspz.rqhude.mcfs@uddehgilifs )
• German Language Optional Placement Test
  Yvonne Hagemann ( luntrznaa@fspz.rqhude.mcfs@nnamegahy )
• French Language Optional Placement Test
  Muriel Barton ( zonegba@fspz.rqhude.mcfs@notrabm )

You will be asked to perform a formal analysis of a musical composition, which will be in a larger homophonic form—i.e., a compound form such as Minuet & Trio, a rondo form, sonata-allegro form, or something similar. You will also be asked to provide some terminology and to answer a number of questions related to the formal analysis of a particular musical composition.

Required for all degree levels: Bachelor of Music, Master of Music, Professional Studies Certificate, Certificate, Advanced Certificate, and Artist Diploma.

Required for all non-native English speakers, including those who received ELP waivers.

This assessment will determine placement into or exemption from MHL 601 (graduate-level writing), HMS 100/101 (undergraduate-writing) as well as placement into HMS 212 and HMS 213 (remedial English writing) and/or HMS 210 and HMS 211 (remedial English speaking). 

If you have had some prior training in solfège, it is a very good idea for you to go back over your solfège books and practice sightsinging both melodies and rhythms. Simple "rustiness" can sometimes affect your placement adversely, so a bit of prior practice can be helpful. Remember that we do not require you sing in a particular solmization system for your exam, although we use the fixed-do system here at SFCM. Review basic conducting patterns and practice singing while conducting--again, only if this is a skill in which you've already received training.

Dictation is a skill which really needs to have been acquired in a classroom or formal setting. It can be difficult to "practice" dictation on your own. However, sightsinging practice can be extremely beneficial in helping to freshen dictation skills.

A solid review of harmonic principles, especially voice-leading and chord construction, is encouraged for anyone planning on taking the Music Theory exams--either undergraduate (optional) or graduate (required). This website contains a substantial series of lecture notes covering classic Western harmony; those notes may be very helpful to you. They can be accessed by clicking here.

The standard textbook used for harmony at SFCM is:

Aldwell and Schachter: Harmony and Voice-Leading, 3rd Edition.

For formal analysis, this website offers substantial resources including lecture notes, audio lectures, and other materials. Please note that some of these resources may be password-protected (due to copyright restrictions) and cannot be accessed unless you are currently enrolled in a theory course at SFCM. However, most of the resources are freely accessible. You may access the analysis resources by clicking here.

Here are several textbooks you may find useful:

Wallace A. Berry: Form in Music
Leon Stein: Structure & Style

If you have had some prior keyboard training, we strongly urge you to review your scales (major and minor) and basic chord progressions (cadences), and to sightread piano music at your level as often as possible.