Trombone practice at dusk

About Us

FacilitiesFaculty & LeadershipPerforming Ensembles

The John J. Cali School of Music is a comprehensive, professional school of music centered on preparing the creative leaders of tomorrow. We are dedicated to a premier artistic and academic education offering exceptional training in best-in-class facilities.

Choosing from majors in performance, jazz studies, composition, music education, and music therapy, our students study with world-class musicians dedicated to exceptional artistic and personal growth, mixing rigorous coursework with focused private lessons and challenging repertory. Our students perform in prestigious venues like Carnegie Hall, often sharing the stage with professional ensembles like the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra. What’s more, international tours have taken them from Austria to Australia. Tuition is also very affordable and Montclair State enjoys a ranking as one of Forbes’ 25 Best Buy Colleges in the Northeast.

The Cali School of Music makes its home in Chapin Hall, a 1928 Spanish Mission Style building at the main entrance to the campus. The School of Music is named in honor of the John J. Cali family whose generous $5 million gift provides scholarships and faculty support. It was renovated and expanded in 2009 to include large rehearsal spaces and the 225-seat Jed Leshowitz Recital Hall  accommodating nearly 600 students in its classrooms, large rehearsal spaces, 4 floors of practice rooms, and a music tech computer lab.

Though Montclair State University serves more than 20,000 undergraduate and graduate students, The Cali School of Music treats our students to a small school experience within a larger school environment, offering a supportive community that serves the musical and academic goals of young musicians.

The Cali School is just 12 miles from New York City, an abundant resource of working professional and internationally renowned professors. It’s just a quick train ride for faculty and students to the cultural capital of the world. Close by, the town of Montclair bustles with restaurants, galleries, movie theaters, performing arts companies, and the nationally recognized Montclair Art Museum.

There really is something for everyone here at Montclair State University’s John J. Cali School of Music. We hope you will join us!