Department of Music,
Stanford University
Braun Music Center
541 Lasuen Mall
Stanford, CA 94305-3076
Tel: 650.723.3811
Fax: 650.725.2686
The Department of Music was formally founded in 1947, but music has been an important facet of the University from its inception, when founder Jane Stanford encouraged sacred concerts in Memorial Church.
We offer undergraduate and graduate programs in a variety of subjects, as well as group and private lessons for students, and opportunities for ensemble participation. The Department of Music presents more than 150 concerts and recitals each year, providing performance opportunities for students throughout the University. Over 1,000 students, most of whom are not music majors, participate in ensembles, chamber groups, private lessons, and major productions, including a fully-staged presentation of Mozart's The Magic Flute (2002).
Braun Music Center is the departmental home base, which houses our major venues, Dinkelspiel Auditorium and Campbell Recital Hall, as well as rehearsal studios, practice faciltiies, classrooms, and faculty offices. It is also home to the Center for Computer-Assisted Research in the Humanities (CCARH), a pioneer in the field of large-scale databases for music research; the Music Library, with over 110,000 books and scores, over 34,000 sound recordings, and 9,000 microforms; the Archive of Recorded Sound, with 300,000 recordings; and the Harry R. Lange Collection of musical instruments and bows. The Center for Computer Research in Music and Acoustics (CCRMA) is housed in the department's former home at the Knoll, and is one of the world's top-rated facilities for digital sound research.
The Department of Music receives support from the Friends of Music at Stanford, a community-based organization which provides scholarship support for private lessons, presents concerts for local school students, organizes financial support for ensemble tours, awards prizes to undergraduate musicians, and does much more to help the Department provide services and concerts.
Incorporated in the Department of Music are a number of special services and resources for students and visiting scholars:
Daily: 8 a.m. – 11 p.m.
Monday – Friday: 8 a.m. – noon & 1 – 4 p.m.
Closed Tuesdays at 2:30 p.m. for staff meeting.
Also open by appointment
Hours during summer quarters, intersessions, and university holidays falling within these quarters are posted on all building entryways. During these periods, the building is generally open only during weekday (office) hours.
CLOSED: Thanksgiving Week, Winter Break, Independence Day, Labor Day.
Lockers of varying sizes are available for academic-year rental (Autumn-Spring), at the end of which they must be cleared out. Lockers may be available by special arrangement in summer for students who are actively enrolled during that period. Larger instrument lockers are in shorter supply, requiring music majors and ensemble members to have priority. Private locks may not be used (and will be cut off).
Lockers are for storage of musical instruments and associated items only. Storage of non-music items is prohibited. Violation of this policy will result in the loss of locker and forfeiture of fees. Items are stored at your own risk; the department is not responsible for lost or stolen items. Contents of uncleared lockers, instruments excepted, will be disposed of.
Lockers fees are $10 for small instruments and $20 for large instruments. You will be assigned an appropriate size locker for your instrument after your fee has been paid.
Fees are billed to student accounts in the quarter you sign up. Those without student accounts must pay by cash or check at Braun Music Center Rm. 101 (see Ardis Walling).
You can sign up for a locker at any time here.
Practice rooms are available on a first come first served basis during posted building hours and are for the exclusive use of registered Stanford students, currently employed staff and faculty, and members of the University community with SUID cards (family members without SUID are not eligible).
You can sign up for a practice room at any time here.
The Music Library supports music research, composition, and performance at Stanford with a collection of 110,000 books and scores, 34,000 sound and video recordings, 9,000 microforms, and several hundred active periodical subscriptions. Most of Stanford’s rare music materials form the Memorial Library of Music, housed in the Green Library Department of Special Collections. Some music books and recordings are also located in the Green Library stacks and the Media/Microtext Center.
Information on access, borrowing, course reserves, and more is available here.
Music Library hours during the academic year, as well as during intersessions and holidays, are available here.
300,000 recordings in the Archive of Recorded Sound make it one of the five largest archives of its kind in the United States. From wax cylinders to compact discs, the collection reflects the entirety of recorded sound history. See the archive's website for information on hours, listening appointments, and research consultation
Monday - Friday: 9am–5pm
Abbreviated hours and holidays are the same as Braun Music Center.
Consult the Information Sheet for Recitals (Recitals at a Glance) which you may read online or download as a pdf.
The Department of Music has a number of facilities that are sometimes available for use by University departments and student groups. To schedule rooms in Braun Music Center, you may use the on-line Booking Calendar to determine availability and make a reservation request. Rooms available for use include: 103 (small theater - 40 persons), 105 & 106 (classrooms - flexible seating), Campbell Recital Hall (220 persons), and Dinkelspiel Auditorium (Rates depend on your Stanford affiliation.)
While reservation requests can now be made via the Booking Calendar, only those requests that are directly related to a Department of Music course or a Department of Music activity can be officially scheduled at the Department of Music. All other requests must be made through the Registrar's Scheduling Office.
Classroom, rehearsal, and performance space is very limited. Non-Music Department groups may sign up for rooms 103, 105, and 106.
You must schedule any use of Department of Music space in advance!You may only submit requests that fall within normal building hours:
8 a.m. – 11 p.m. daily
You must be finished, cleaned up, and out of the building by close.
Click here to download department forms including Financial Forms (Discretionary Funds, Travel Expenses, Paying Guest Visitors), and Payroll Forms. You must have a valid SUNet ID to access the forms page.
To apply for positions in the Department of Music, bring your résumé to the Department Office in Braun Music Center, Room 101, or fax it to us at 650.725.2686; student applicants should complete an application form (available from our receptionist) as well. We will contact candidates for interviews.
Tech Staff assist in presenting concerts. They also open and close the buildings, and work in the office signing out practice rooms, keys, and lockers. Duties may include moving large objects (pianos, sound shells, etc.), setting up and operating recording and lighting equipment, set changes, and other backstage work. Must be able to lift 50 lbs.
Hours and days are flexible, but are generally evenings and weekends. Contact Mark Dalrymple for more information.