Jazz Studies
Bachelor of Music
Most programs in the UCF School of Performing Arts require an audition or interview.
Bottom line: jazz is alive, and you can study it in Orlando.
At UCF, jazz students have access to some of the best resources of any university. Studying jazz at UCF means studying with some of the top jazz faculty in the country, including Jeff Rupert, Director of Jazz Studies.
UCF is home to the chart-topping Flying Horse Big Band, a full-size jazz ensemble that has seen multiple records reach nation-wide professional jazz charts and has worked with some of today’s renowned artists, as well as an in-house recording label, Flying Horse Records.
UCF is the only performing arts school in the world that has both a 24/7 NPR jazz station [89.9 FM] and a record label.
Each year, UCF presents the UCF-Orlando Jazz Festival which invites guest artists such as Sean Jones, Conrad Herwig, Orrin Evans and more to perform on campus with our students. UCF is also in partnership with WUCF-FM, a radio station with a complete focus on jazz music.
The Jazz Studies Track prepares students for a career as a professional jazz musician. Students will take classes in applied study, music theory, history and performance. Students have the opportunity to perform in large ensembles as well as small chamber groups.
Current students can find the Jazz Studies Handbook on the Student Resources page.
Learn more about the Jazz StudioApplication Requirements
Auditions 2024
February 3, 10, 17: Scholarship auditions
March 30: Non-scholarship auditions
1. Apply to UCF Undergraduate Admissions
Prospective music majors may audition with the School of Performing Arts after submitting an application to UCF Undergraduate Admissions. Admission into this program requires admittance to both the university and school.
Apply to UCF by going to the Undergraduate Admissions website and applying online.
2. Apply for an Audition
To complete this form, you will need to know your UCF ID. Follow this link to find instructions for retrieving your UCF ID. Also, ask any teachers whom you have studied music with to complete the Teacher Evaluation Form and bring it with you to your audition. No alternate date audition applications will be accepted after the final listed audition date.
If you are unable to attend an audition on one of the scheduled days, you may submit a digital audition by choosing “Digital Audition/Alternate Date” in the Preferred Audition Date field below. A UCF faculty member will contact you after reviewing your video to let you know whether you have been accepted into the program.
3. Confirm Your Audition
You will receive an email confirmation immediately after submitting this form. We will accept submissions for a given date until the Wednesday prior to the audition.
4. Prepare for the Audition
Prepare for the audition by visiting the Audition Requirements page. Find your instrument area to see what music you will be required to perform during the audition.
5. Audition Day
- 8:30 a.m.: Check in at the UCF Rehearsal Hall (Building #19 on campus map). You will receive your actual audition time when you check in. Breakfast items will be available.
- 9:00 a.m.: Parent/student orientation begins in the Rehearsal Hall auditorium.
- 9:30 a.m.: Students are dismissed from orientation to warm up for auditions. Practice rooms are available.
- 9:45 a.m.: Student auditions begin. Students will go to the studio room they have been assigned for audition ten minutes prior to their audition time and wait in the hallway for the professors to call their name, at which point they may enter and begin the audition. With the exception of piano and percussion, auditions usually are about 10 minutes long. Piano and percussion run about 20 minutes long. Auditions are private with the student only. Parents may wait in the hall outside the audition studio or in the Rehearsal Hall.
Parents will stay in the orientation to receive information from the chair, admissions representative and student financial aid representative until about 10:00 a.m. Once the student has completed their audition, they are free to leave.
6. Notice of Acceptance/Non-Acceptance
Acceptance and non-acceptance letters will be sent out after completion of all the January and February audition dates. Admission to the Music program is only complete once the student has been accepted by both the Music Department and UCF Undergraduate Admissions.
For answers to more detailed questions, please see our Frequently Asked Questions section.
News
Lineup Announced for UCF Celebrates the Arts 2021
March 15, 2021 The arts are built on community, and together, we will Celebrate the Arts — with many outdoor events and virtual options, as well. Join the UCF community in downtown Orlando April 2–10.
JazzBluesNews: UCF Jazz student interview and album release
March 02, 2021 JazzBluesNews interviews UCF Jazz student and saxophonist Ryan Devlin about the release of his first album, “Thoughts on the Matter.”
UCF-Orlando Jazz Festival ’21 Goes Virtual
February 23, 2021 Jazz is all about improvisation and experimentation — and that is what the annual UCF-Orlando Jazz Festival will do when it improvises and goes all virtual Feb. 26-27.
