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2025 Best Music Performance Bachelor's Degree Schools in California

16 Colleges in California
493 Bachelor's Degrees
If you pursue a bachelor's degree in music performance, you won't be alone. The field of study is the #94 most popular program in the country. This means there are lots of options to choose from when you decide to get your degree.

In 2025, College Factual analyzed 16 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Music Performance Bachelor's Degree Schools in California ranking. Combined, these schools handed out 493 bachelor's degrees in music performance to qualified students.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Our Methodology

Choosing a Great Music Performance School for Your Bachelor's Degree

Best Music Performance Bachelor's Degree Schools in California Your choice of music performance for getting your bachelor's degree school matters. Important measures of a quality music performance program can vary widely even among the top schools. To make it into this list, a school must excel in the following areas.

A Great Overall School

A school that excels in educating for a particular major and degree level must be a great school overall as well. To make it into this list a school must rank well in our overall Best Colleges ranking. This ranking considered factors such as graduation rates, overall graduate earnings and other educational resources to identify great colleges and universities.

Other Factors We Consider

In addition to the above, you should consider some of the following factors:

Our full ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best schools for music performance students working on their bachelor's degree.

More Ways to Rank Music Performance Schools

Rankings by Location Check Out Other Locales
More Music Performance Rankings Other Ranking Categories

The music performance school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we've developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of the Best Music Performance Bachelor's Degree Schools in California.

In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.

Best Schools for Bachelor’s Students to Study Music Performance in California

Learn about the top ranked colleges and universities for music performance students seeking a a bachelor's degree.

10 Top California Schools for a Bachelor's in Music Performance

1
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
14 Annual Graduates

Every student pursuing a degree in a bachelor's degree in music performance has to look into University of Southern California. USC is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Los Angeles.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from University of Southern California

2
27 Annual Graduates

University of California - Los Angeles is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting a bachelor's degree in music performance. Located in the city of Los Angeles, UCLA is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from University of California - Los Angeles

3
13 Annual Graduates

University of California - Irvine is a great option for students interested in a bachelor's degree in music performance. UC Irvine is a very large public university located in the city of Irvine.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from University of California - Irvine

4
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
8 Annual Graduates

University of Redlands is a wonderful choice for individuals pursuing a bachelor's degree in music performance. Located in the small city of Redlands, University of Redlands is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from University of Redlands

5
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
80 Annual Graduates

CSULB is a fairly large public university located in the large city of Long Beach.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from California State University - Long Beach

6
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
8 Annual Graduates

Located in the large suburb of Valencia, CalArts is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from California Institute of the Arts

7
15 Annual Graduates

UC Santa Cruz is a fairly large public university located in the small city of Santa Cruz.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from University of California - Santa Cruz

8
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
48 Annual Graduates

Located in the city of Northridge, CSUN is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from California State University - Northridge

9
8 Annual Graduates

Located in the city of Riverside, Cal Baptist is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from California Baptist University

10
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
46 Annual Graduates

SDSU is a fairly large public university located in the city of San Diego.More information about a bachelor’s in music performance from San Diego State University

Best Music Performance Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best Music Performance Schools in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Washington 521 67
Oregon 343 28
Nevada 201 15
Hawaii 172 0
Alaska 87 4

View All Rankings >

Music Performance is one of 17 different types of Music programs to choose from.

Related Major Annual Graduates
General Music 710
Music Theory & Composition 173
Music Technology 86
Jazz Studies 41
Other Music 41
Voice Performance 35
Stringed Instruments 30
Musicology & Ethnomusicology 18
Keyboard Instruments 17
Music Pedagogy 7

Notes and References

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