The Master of Sacred Music (MSM) degree is a two to five year post-baccalaureate degree that combines academic and musical studies. The closure of graduate programs in organ performance across America has made the MSM increasingly the de facto degree for advanced studies in church music; MSM graduates who wish to continue their studies have the option of academic (PhD or ThD) or applied (DMA) tracks. Most MSM programs are limited to choral conducting and organ performance, as these two applied fields are the primary occupations of church music directors. Piano Performance is usually taught as a subdiscipline or acquired separately.

There are eight Master of Sacred Music programs in the United States. These programs are located at the Boston University School of Theology

Boston University School of Theology

Boston University School of Theology is the oldest theological seminary of American Methodism and the founding school of Boston University, the largest private research university in New England. It is one of thirteen theological schools maintained by the United Methodist Church...

, College of Jewish Music's H.L. Miller Cantorial School, Hebrew Union College - Jewish Institute of Religion's School of Sacred Music, Emory University

Emory University

Emory University is a private research university in metropolitan Atlanta, located in the Druid Hills section of unincorporated DeKalb County, Georgia, United States. The university was founded as Emory College in 1836 in Oxford, Georgia by a small group of Methodists and was named in honor of...

, Luther Seminary

Luther Seminary

Luther Seminary is the largest seminary of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America . Located in the Saint Anthony Park neighborhood of St...

, Southern Methodist University

Southern Methodist University

Southern Methodist University is a private university in Dallas, Texas, United States. Founded in 1911 by the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, SMU operates campuses in Dallas, Plano, and Taos, New Mexico. SMU is owned by the South Central Jurisdiction of the United Methodist Church...

, the University of Notre Dame

University of Notre Dame

The University of Notre Dame du Lac is a Catholic research university located in Notre Dame, an unincorporated community north of the city of South Bend, in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States...

 and Yale University

Yale University

Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...

's Institute of Sacred Music

Institute of Sacred Music

Institute of Sacred Music could refer to:* Pontifical Institute of Sacred Music, in Rome.* Yale Institute of Sacred Music, at the Union Theological Seminary in New York...

. Boston University's program is the oldest (BU is also host to the oldest higher education program in music in the United States) and Notre Dame's is the youngest (admitting its first students for Fall 2005). An MSM program at Union Theological Seminary

Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York

Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York is a preeminent independent graduate school of theology, located in Manhattan between Claremont Avenue and Broadway, 120th to 122nd Streets. The seminary was founded in 1836 under the Presbyterian Church, and is affiliated with nearby Columbia...

 was dissolved when UTS' Institute of Sacred Music was dissolved and moved to Yale.

Related Programs

Several institutions of higher education offer masters programs in Liturgical Music or a Master of Music programs in Sacred Music. These are distinguished from MSM programs by their primary focus on the applied music components. An example of such programs can be found at the Catholic University of America's Institute of Sacred Music, which recently converted its masters and doctoral programs in liturgical music to MM and DMA programs in sacred music.

External links

• Musica Sacra - Official Journal of the Church Music Association of America.