University of the Pacific’s Conservatory of Music is launching five new degree programs, marking one of the school’s largest academic expansions in decades as it continues a period of rapid enrollment growth.
The new offerings include a Bachelor of Music in Musical Theatre and four graduate programs: Master of Music in Performance, Master of Music in Jazz Studies, Master of Music in Conducting and a Master of Music in Voice Pedagogy.
The programs will enroll their first students in fall 2027.
According to Dean of the Conservatory of Music Peter Witte, the five new programs represent a 25% increase in the conservatory’s curriculum and together are projected to grow music major enrollment another 25% within four years.
Faculty members developed each degree in response to longstanding academic and industry needs.
Director of Opera Theatre James Haffner said the addition of the Bachelor of Music in musical theatre will attract dedicated musical theatre students will expand Pacific’s artistic possibilities, bringing a diverse range of talents that will broaden the university’s repertoire, create new performance opportunities and foster greater collaboration across the conservatory.
Pacific is the first California school to offer a Bachelor of Music in musical theatre that is accredited by the National Association of Schools of Music.
“The launch of our bachelor of musical theatre marks an exciting new era of performer training at the conservatory, complementing our distinguished opera theatre program while building on our long tradition of producing musicals,” Haffner said. “We are not simply preparing students for careers on the stage; we are preparing the next generation of artists who will help define the future of musical theatre.”
The program expands instruction beyond traditional classical and operatic traditions to include contemporary musical theatre and commercial vocal styles. Students will take coursework in music, theater and dance, creating new opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration and annual productions in Long Theatre.
The degree builds on the national acclaim Pacific earned for a musical produced by its opera theatre program. Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “Carousel: A Concert” was named a national finalist for the 2026 American Prize in Theater/Musical Theater Performance. Haffner was also named a finalist for the American Prize in Directing—The Charles Nelson Reilly Prize in the college/university division for the same production.
“Our new musical theatre major has been a long-time dream. Jim Haffner helped make it a reality, one that expands the breadth of musical cultures that Pacific celebrates,” Witte said. “In creating these five new programs, faculty designed ways to become more musically inclusive, and to do so in a way that brings 25-30 graduate students to campus as student leaders and models.”
The Master of Music in Performance degree, proposed by Professor Brittany Trotter, will prepare advanced musicians for leadership roles in future higher education and/or performing settings all while enriching the undergraduate educational experience. Graduate students will perform alongside undergraduates, allowing the conservatory to present more advanced repertoire and provide mentorship within ensembles and studios.
The Master of Music in Jazz Studies, proposed by Professor Patrick Langham, builds on Pacific’s longstanding reputation in jazz education by attracting experienced performers and strengthening the conservatory’s legacy in the discipline, which includes educating jazz icon Dave Brubeck ’42.
The graduate certificate in voice pedagogy draws on the expertise of Assistant Professor of Voice Heidi Moss Erickson, whose work bridges vocal performance and voice science. The program is designed for singers and voice teachers seeking advanced study in vocal health, anatomy and pedagogy.
Witte said the Master of Music in Conducting, proposed by Professor Vu Nguyen, responds to growing demand for advanced conducting instruction, particularly following California’s Proposition 28, which significantly expanded funding for arts education in public schools.
The conservatory will begin recruiting students for all five programs this year with the first class of students enrolling fall 2027.
The expansion builds on several years of enrollment momentum. Since 2022, undergraduate music major enrollment has grown for four successive years. Music majors are expected to account for approximately 8% of Pacific’s incoming undergraduate cohort this fall, compared with 3% four years ago.
Building on the conservatory’s ongoing partnership with Gabriela Lena Frank, winner of the 2026 Pulitzer Prize in Music, and the addition of several faculty appointments in recent years, these five new degrees advance President Christopher Callahan’s charge to see Pacific as a national university.
Leave a Reply