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Conservatory

Conservatory Facts

450

undergraduate students

426

concerts and performances

62

full-time faculty

140

graduate students

30+

performing ensembles

53

part-time faculty

Pursue your passion

Where creativity and craft is cultivated

Shenandoah Conservatory nurtures young musicians, actors, dancers and artistic leaders in an atmosphere that values creative expression, attracts elite guest artists and faculty, and offers students personalized instruction. Conservatory faculty and students says it's a place where creativity and craft is cultivated and gains added maturity.

Perform at the Highest Level

Experience the world-renowned Shenandoah Conservatory. Study with master teachers – more than 100 professionals in music, theatre, dance and arts management. Embrace extensive performance opportunities with top-tier facilities from theatres, concert halls and dance studios. Unite with fellow artists and join an alumni family that takes center stage from Broadway to the concert halls of Europe.

Fully accredited by the National Association of Schools of Music (NASM), Shenandoah Conservatory offers more than 60 degrees at the baccalaureate, master’s, artist diploma and doctoral levels and produces more than 300 performances each year. Enroll in a dynamic curriculum and start preparing for a meaningful career in the arts.

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Theatreconserv-cta-theatre
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Performing Arts Leadership & Managementconserv-cta-artsmgmt
 

Why Shenandoah Conservatory?

Elizabeth McDowell

Class of 2018

Studying music, and especially performance, is not always easy, but having the right school and the right people around you can make a world of difference. At Shenandoah, I’ve developed my skills as a performer and watched how great professors can potentially influence their students, both in and outside of class. My career goal is to become a concert pianist and a college professor. I am so eager to see what my future holds, and the role that Shenandoah will have in taking me there. 

Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance

Music

Elizabeth McDowell
Elizabeth McDowell
Frances Beard
giles
Jacob Moyer
Maya Loncar

American Icons

American Icons is a conversation among artists established in the fall of 2013. The American Icons series seeks to bring Shenandoah Conservatory students into closer contact with artists who are not only iconic, but who reveal through their life and work a wild openness of heart — a way of being as an artist that is grounded in integrity and embraced in collaboration and generosity of spirit.

Deborah Voigt

Deborah Voigt, one of the world’s greatest sopranos, is Shenandoah Conservatory’s 2015-16 American Icon. Here, she talks with Shenandoah Conservatory Dean Michael Stepniak, Ed.D., about her journey as an artist and a person. The delightfully plainspoken Voigt, who also taught a masterclass at the conservatory, touches on a wide variety of topics in this April 27 interview, covering everything from her artistic development and influences, issues with weight, and having a healthy relationship with the body to the importance of resilience and how challenges never end, no matter what level of success one achieves.

Admission to Shenandoah Conservatory is highly competitive.

Not only must students be academically admissible, they must also complete and pass the mandatory audition/portfolio review and interview process. Audition dates are limited and may fill and close well in advance of the audition date.

 Conservatory News

Shenandoah University American Idiot Production Image for Piece about BFA Musical Theatre Program

Musical Theatre Makes Top 10

Shenandoah University's Bachelor of Fine Arts in Musical Theatre has generated a lot of heat in the social media universe, thanks to to its inclusion ... Read More...

Conservatory Faculty

Caring and Accomplished

Shenandoah Conservatory’s prestigious faculty is dynamic, creative, and passionately committed to the highest levels of artistic excellence. A deeply caring community, they mentor students with a wealth of professional expertise, balancing rigorous expectations with compassion and wisdom. At Shenandoah, you will study with, and perform for, award-winning composers, Metropolitan Opera singers, Grammy Award winning conductors and international competition winners. You will learn from leading scholars in music and premiere works created by accomplished dance artists and cutting-edge directors. Shenandoah Conservatory’s faculty embodies the highest levels of professional accomplishment and the deepest commitment to furthering the artistic growth and creative aspirations of students in every discipline.

Meet the Conservatory Faculty

More Conservatory Alumni Spotlights

Conservatory Alumni

Dave McKee

David McKee: 30 Years On the March

Music education is at the very heart of Shenandoah University's renowned Shenandoah Conservatory. It was one of the first four-year degrees offered by the conservatory and the program is known for ... Read More...

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We're an All-Steinway School

Great music stirs the heart and inspires the soul, and Steinway pianos are celebrated as the instruments used by renowned artists to cultivate their talent and produce great music. Similarly, uncompromising excellence in performing arts education sparks the imagination and inspires the future.

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All Steinway School
Areas of Study