The Best College Music Programs for Metal

Metal has been treated as the musical outcast of society for as long as it’s existed. But despite mainstream judgment that’s often cast it as the unwanted outsider, interest in metal has grown tremendously since Black Sabbath pioneered the genre over fifty years ago. Artists that were once considered dark, strange or taboo have pushed the boundaries of what music can be to an entirely new level. Anyone who loves metal will tell you all about the rich artistry, creativity and immersive culture that’s spread across the entire world.

Metal has slowly been inching its way into widespread acceptance in the music world in recent years. Because of this, students today can do more than just blast death metal in their dorm room; you can pursue music education and study your favorite genre in academia throughout the world. Some colleges nowadays offer programs that explore metal as a course, while others even allow students to major in the cultural phenomenon that’s given us moshing, headbanging, throwing the horns and, more recently, hoisting up invisible oranges.

So, if you’re up to more than just crushing through your writing assignments whilst cranking metal in the background, you can take the leap towards studying metal as part of your college education by picking a college from this list and enrolling. And if you ever get stuck with your coursework and need some help, this source has excellent essays for sale for college students. They’ve been a life-saving choice for me back when I couldn’t tear myself away from my music studies to finish up my other coursework in time.

Now, without further ado, here are the institutions that include metal in their curricula.

1.  New College Nottingham, England

Compared to other colleges that include heavy metal in their curricula or in a subject or two, this school took the idea one step further and created a Heavy Metal Music Performance degree. If you choose to study there, you can enroll in a program that studies everything about the genre we love; its history, its censorship throughout the years, its genealogy, and critical discussions surrounding the best musicians in the genre. The program even explores the relationships bewteen metal and philosophy and metal and religion.

Musicians will also revel in the chance to study the art of metal composition, and those with more of a business mind can learn about the industry side of things. The creator of the course, Liam Maloy, has boasted that metal has finally gotten its place in music education, but laments the fact that it continues to lack academic credibility when compared to other genres. This program is a concrete step towards changing that.

If you choose this program, you should be prepared to join songwriting classes and perform on stage at the forefront of metal education. The course is not a simple one if you want to finish with high grades: once you complete the two-year program, you can earn a full degree at the Nottingham Trent University, the institution that accredited this program. At the end of your studies, you’ll have to write a thesis that demonstrate your progress. If you’re struggling with the writing or research part of college, don’t panic: here’s an excellent source of effective and timely thesis help for all students, including those who study music.

2.  University of California, Los Angeles

The renowned public research university in Los Angeles currently offers over 125 different majors to its students. The UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music was founded back in 2007, supported by the Herb Alpert Foundation, and right now comprised of musicology, ethnomusicology and music departments. In January of 2016 the school became the only accredited education program for music in the University of California System.

The department teaches classes in several music genres including jazz, techno, and heavy metal. At UCLA you won’t obtain a degree in heavy metal, but you will have the chance to obtain a Bachelor’s, Master’s, or PhD in music education in ethnomusicology, music history, the music industry, music science or music technology.

UCLA is one of the most popular universities in the United States, so getting the chance to study there is a high accomplishment on its own. The programs are complex and demand a lot of work, so you might want to check out this service to buy an excellent essay if you ever need some professional assistance to get you through the day.

3.  Miami University

Did you know that first-year students at the Miami University who study music can enroll in seminars on subjects like ‘Technology and the History of Heavy Metal Music’? This class explores heavy metal’s evolution throughout the years, and even though it doesn’t provide you with a degree in metal, per se, it’ll teaches you about metal’s influence on society, politics, and philosophy.

4.  McGill University

The collaboration between the Blue Oyster Cult and the Dean of the Schulich School of Music at McGill has yielded quite a unique opportunity. You can take part in a graduate seminar course in music theory that mixes heavy metal education and Bruckner.

The bottom line

Metal’s longevity and the breaking down of taboos has made the genre one of the most prominent and, finally, respected, in modern music, but it’s still rarely studied in academic institutions. Thankfully, some institutions, like the ones above, have finally wised up and now offer a proper metal education to those who crave it.

Author’s Bio

Ray Campbell is a professor of music education. His most recent publications explore the topic of heavy metal and its influence. Ray shares his research data and thoughts on the music industry in various blogs and articles online.