Prospective Student Information

Programs of Study: An Overview

Though most of our teaching is done at the undergraduate music major level, we offer private brass lessons for a variety of age and experience levels. You don’t have to be a music major to take private lessons at the Blair School, and if you’re not enrolled at Vanderbilt University, we offer several options through our wonderful Blair Academy.

    • All undergraduate brass majors study privately with our four primary brass faculty.

      • Horn: Leslie Norton

      • Trumpet: Jose Sibaja

      • Trombone: Jeremy Wilson

      • Tuba/Euphonium: Bethany Wiese

    • Interested students are invited to thoroughly read our Frequently Asked Questions page and will need to visit the Blair School of Music Admissions page for official requirements, programs of study, audition information, and application deadlines.

    • Email the appropriate faculty member to schedule a sample lesson or simply have a chat (recommended, not required). The faculty are happy to meet with you in person or via Zoom to answer any questions you might have about their studio.

    • Any Vanderbilt students that are not brass majors may enroll in elective lessons (audition/interview required) for a fee, as detailed in YES. All interested students should schedule a lesson/interview with the appropriate faculty member in order to be approved for elective lessons.

      • Horn: Leslie Norton

      • Trumpet: Jose Sibaja

      • Trombone: Nick Laufer (nicholas.laufer@vanderbilt.edu)

      • Tuba/Euphonium: Bethany Wiese

    • Students who enroll in elective brass lessons for the very first time must enroll in a placement section, then are placed in a permanent section upon successful audition/interview with the faculty. Students should initially enroll in the following course sections:

      • Horn: HORN 1100 - Section 00

      • Trumpet: TRPT 1100 - Section 00

      • Trombone: TROM 1100 - Section 00

      • Tuba/Euphonium: TUBA 1100 - Section 00

    • After one semester of elective lessons, students may apply and audition to enroll as Music Minors or Secondary Majors in Music. More details are available from the faculty or in the Vanderbilt Undergraduate Catalog.

    • Lessons are offered to Pre-College and Adult students in the Nashville area on a per-semester basis. Semesters are 16 weeks long, typically with one lesson per week.

    • All students must audition for acceptance to the program before registering. Contact the appropriate faculty for more information:

      • Horn: Anna Spina (anna.m.spina@vanderbilt.edu)

      • Trumpet: Nick Laufer (nicholas.laufer@vanderbilt.edu)

      • Trombone: Nick Laufer (nicholas.laufer@vanderbilt.edu)

      • Tuba/Euphonium: Bethany Wiese

    • Some wonderful scholarships and financial aid packages are available.

    • Vanderbilt University does not currently offer graduate degrees in music. Post-Bachelor students in the Nashville area are, however, welcome to audition for acceptance into the Blair Academy (see section above).

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Audition Information
Blair School Admissions