The Yale School of Music offers music lessons to students in Yale College, the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, and the graduate professional schools.
Lessons are available in flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, horn, trumpet, trombone, tuba, percussion, harp, harpsichord, piano, organ, guitar, voice, violin, viola, cello, double bass, and jazz saxophone. YSM does not provide instruments for lessons, so students must have access to their own instruments.
Note reading ability is required to take lessons.
Students interested in composition, choral conducting, and orchestral conducting can find classes in the Department of Music and in the School of Music.
Individual Instrument / Voice Lessons
The Yale School of Music offers music lessons to students in Yale College, the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, and the graduate professional schools.
Lessons are available in flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, horn, trumpet, trombone, tuba, percussion, harp, harpsichord, piano, organ, guitar, voice, violin, viola, cello, double bass, and jazz saxophone.
YSM does not provide instruments for lessons, so students must have access to their own instruments. Note reading ability is required to take lessons.
Students interested in composition, choral conducting, and orchestral conducting can find classes in the Department of Music and in the School of Music.
AUDITION INFORMATION FOR Fall, 2026
Auditions will be held during the first week of school for lessons. Applicants will be notified of audition procedures in late August. Specific dates for auditions will be posted in August.
Lessons information for Fall Semester, 2026
*No lesson applications will be accepted after September 15, 2026. Please note lessons for voice and piano are in extremely high demand and may fill up before the application deadline.
All students wishing to apply for music lessons must first submit a Music Lesson Application.
In-person auditions:
Piano: Friday, September 4
Voice: Wednesday, September 2 and Thursday, September 3
Cello: Monday, August 31
Violin: Tuesday, September 1
Auditions for other instruments will be by video submission.
Undergraduate music lessons for credit
Pending the results of online auditions and faculty availability, YSM will grant credit lessons to select students. Students may be required to play a final jury each semester and will receive a narrative final grade report along with a P or F grade. There is no additional charge for lessons for credit; students enrolled in lessons for credit are also required to enroll in an eligible course offered by the Department of Music. Students may choose from courses in Groups I, III, and IV of the music major as well as introductory (1000-level) MUSI courses. These courses may be taken prior to or concurrent with credit music lessons, and two semesters are required. Guidance for music theory placement is available on the Department of Music’s web page.
The following are the approved co-requisite Music Department courses for Fall, 2026:
MUSI 1006 Musical Genius
MUSI 1111 Musical Pitch and Time
MUSI 1137 Western Philosophy in Four Operas
MUSI 1154 Music and Celebrity from Orpheus to Gaga
MUSI 1175 Listening to Music
MUSI 1185 American Musical Theater History
MUSI 2107 Commercial and Popular Music Theory
MUSI 2122 Counterpoint for Vocal Arranging
MUSI 4102 Writing (About) Music and Meaning
MUSI 4105 Improvisation & Composition at the 18th-c. Keyboard
MUSI 3350 History of Western Music: Middle Ages and Renaissance
MUSI 4330 Musicality and Meritocracy
MUSI 3481 Jazz in Transition, 1960 - 2020
MUSI 4405 The Sound of Freedom
MUSI 4410 Musical Ethnographies
Students wishing to apply for credit lessons must first fill out an application for lessons. Students approved by YSM faculty for lessons for credit must have returned the lesson request form in addition to registering for the course with the Yale College Registrar.
Non-credit lessons
Non-credit-lesson students are not required to take any music theory courses, are not required to play a final jury, and do not receive a final grade. Students can choose to receive six hours of non-credit instruction per semester ($350) or 10 hours of instruction ($550).
Undergraduate students who demonstrate musical potential and financial need are eligible for a scholarship from the Cynthia Redding White Dixon Memorial Fund through the Department of Music. For information about applying for a scholarship, please contact Registrar Kristine Kinsella at kristine.kinsella@yale.edu.
There is no refund for lessons missed, and the full year will be charged unless students drop the lessons before the deadline using the Lesson Drop Form.
Returning undergraduate students
Returning students must also complete a Music Lesson Application. Returning students do not need to re-audition unless requesting a new teacher or a change in lesson type. All students taking lessons for credit must also register for the class in their regular schedule as well as any music theory co-requisites needed. Please contact Professor Kyung Yu (kyung.yu@yale.edu), Director of the YSM Lessons Program, for specific audition requirements for your instrument