Preparatory Music Program
Shenandoah Valley Preparatory Music became a program of EMU’s department of music in 1988 and is dedicated to providing the highest quality music education to all students in the central Shenandoah Valley regardless of age, race, ability, financial circumstances, or ethnic origin through private and/or group instruction in a variety of musical areas as well as through performance settings. Under the direction of administrative director Sharon M.D. Miller, musical instruction is given to over 400 students in the following areas:
- Instrumental music instruction: violin, viola, cello, double bass, piano, flute, guitar; Suzuki violin, viola, cello, piano, and flute.
- Musikgarten: ages infant to 7 years. Call 540-432-4277 or email prepmusic@emu.edu for information about class openings.
- Shenandoah Valley Youth Symphony and Junior Strings: grades 3-12
- Harrisonburg City School After-School Violin Program: grades 3-12
For more information contact prepmusic@emu.edu.
Registration Information
Preparatory Music office phone: 540-432-4277
Preparatory Music office email: prepmusic@emu.edu
Our students and performances
Believing music can enrich everyone’s life and is to be shared, performances are arranged in formal and informal settings on EMU’s campus and throughout the community to provide quality music education to the residents of the greater central Shenandoah Valley area. Participants come from as far north and east as Woodstock and Luray and from as far south as Waynesboro and Lexington. Students also travel from West Virginia.
Upcoming Events
- Musikgarten Demo Classes
Call 540-432-4277 to RSVP for the free demonstration class at 10 am on Oct. 17. Registration for spring semester classes will open on Dec. 13. - Instrumental Lessons
Fall registration deadline is Oct 4. Registration for spring semester opens Dec. 6. - Fall Recitals
Preparatory Music student recitals will be held November 2-4 in EMU's Martin Chapel. - Children's Concert
The Shenandoah Valley Youth Symphony will be presenting their Children's Concert on October 28th at 3:30 pm in Lehman Auditorium. Members of the Symphony will demonstrate their instruments, and then the entire orchestra will perform Tchaikovsky’s “Swan Lake” and “Can-Can” from Orpheus in the Underworld by Offenbach. All ages are welcome. The event is free. - Youth Symphony & SVCC Concert
On November 18, at 4:00 pm, the Shenandoah Valley Youth Symphony and Shenandoah Valley Children's Choir will present a joint concert in Lehman Auditorium. $7 donation requested for scholarship funds. - Baroque Festival Workshop
On February 2, the Preparatory Music Program will hold its first Baroque Workshop from 9am-3pm. String, piano, and flute students ages 8-18 will have opportunities to hear a performance by Baroque music specialists, learn some tips for playing in an more authentic style, experience playing their piece on a period instrument, and learn a few Baroque dances. Registration form available in late October. - Teen Coffeehouse
Preparatory Music Program students will perform a variety of instrumental ensemble music in EMU Common Grounds coffee house on February 10 at 5:15 pm.
2018-19 Preparatory Music Calendar
Contact us
Interested in learning more about music lessons at EMU? Contact the preparatory music program offices at 540-432-4277 or prepmusic@emu.edu. We’d love to hear from you!
The EMU music program offices, both preparatory music and the undergraduate academic program, are located on the lower level of Lehman Auditorium. On the main floor of Lehman you’ll find a mainstage auditorium that houses performances, weekly chapel, university events, and more. On the lower level you’ll find the music program offices (through the glass double doors), faculty offices, a recital hall, individual practice rooms, and more.
