Briar Cliff University - The Catholic Franciscan Learning Place

Music Department

The Department of Music maintains a philosophy of education which seeks to provide a means for spiritual, intellectual and artistic development consistent with a liberal education.

With an annual schedule of more than thirty public presentations and an accomplished artist faculty, Briar Cliff's Music Department exemplifies the unity of musicianship and educational practice needed for success in the real world. Graduates from the music department make significant contributions in their respective communities: they are teachers and administrators in private and public schools and institutions of higher education; they own and operate private studios; they work as professional concert artists, accompanists, church musicians, and directors of regional theatres; and they are graduate students at major research universities.

There are many wonderful opportunities for you as a music major -- or as a non-major -- to sing in the Cliff Singers and Chamber Choir or play in the Jazz Ensemble.

Productions

Briar Cliff’s music and theatre departments frequently join forces to put on a Broadway musical. Briar Cliff students have performed in a variety of productions ranging from standards such as Godspell, Gypsy, Kiss Me Kate, and The Threepenny Opera to Cabarets and contemporary works, including Hot Mikado and Songs for a New World. Over the years, the Briar Cliff Music Department has produced many operas and operettas. Works performed include Bernstein's Trouble in Tahiti, Mozart’s Marriage of Figaro, Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi and Suor Angelica as well as Gilbert and Sullivan’s H.M.S. Pinafore, Pirates of Penzance, and Trial by Jury.

Choir Trips

Briar Cliff’s choirs have toured to a variety of domestic and international destinations. Recent trips have included Italy, the Midwestern United States, Hawaii, the Southeastern United States, Mexico, France, Germany, the Czech Republic and a Caribbean Cruise.