The 7-year course of the TNNUA’s Music Department was established in 1997. It is the nation’s first specialized institution on music education. Sharing the objectives and program design of similar institutions in countries with advanced education in music training, such as Russia and other western nations, the school is the spotlight of much attention. Students of the Department hail from across Taiwan. The Music Department takes a maximum of 30 students per year. Currently, the Department comprises divisions such as piano, strings, winds and percussion. The entrance audition is divided into two phases: a preliminary round and a second round. The auditions are held in January and March, respectively. As to student recruitment, the Department retains a view and judgment based on diversity and flexibility to avoid becoming rigid and biased.
The Department’s faculty includes a renowned professor of piano from Moscow, Russia. Taiwanese professors are hired following a thorough review process, with the majority possessing long experience of either work or study in nations such as the US, Germany, France and Austria. The Department also invites renowned international musicians to visit the school and serve as guest lecturers for a week to several weeks, with the longest period of one year. We hope to provide students with exposure to a diversity of music cultures.
In addition, the Department seeks to nurture the awareness of students as musicians, focusing on their attitude to self-discipline in learning. To accomplish this goal, the Department regularly holds concerts and encourages students to organize concert events, allowing students to take part in the organization process, including planning, promotion, performance practices and transportation of instruments. Besides the traditional one-on-one music lessons, the Department also organizes joint concerts by faculty and students, allowing students to learn through actual work environment. These types of diverse experiences and learning opportunities help students of the Department (whether during school or after graduation) to demonstrate a professional attitude outside of school, winning public acclaim through their personal skills.
TNNUA established the Graduate Institute of Musical Performance and Composition in 2005. Through professional research and skills-learning, it seeks to nurture musicians of the 21st century with a comprehensive music appetite, familiarity in the relevant fields, and an international perspective. To ensure the most efficient employment of human and material resources, the Graduate Institute of Musical Performance and Composition was reorganized into the Master Program of the Music Department in academic year of 2010, offering divisions such as Piano, Strings, Winds and Voice. It continues to contribute to the nurturing of talented musicians and composers, as well as enriching the music education of the Department and making it more comprehensive and profound.