Facilities

Presser Hall and McMahan Hall

The University has provided excellent facilities for the School of Music in Presser Hall and McMahan Hall, and it is important that all students treat the buildings and their equipment with respect. The following guidelines for maintenance of the facilities, its pianos and other instruments, classrooms, practice rooms, technology resources, and the regulation regarding food, stands, chairs, the lab, and the the like, are established for the continued benefit of all students and faculty.

Hallways and Staircases

All hallways and staircases in Presser and McMahan Halls must be kept clear of any objects at all times.

The Presser Courtyard

The Presser Courtyard cannot be used for practice and rehearsal between the hours of 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. on weekdays.

Classrooms

When Presser and McMahan classrooms are used for rehearsals, it is the responsibility of those rehearsing to put everything in the room back in order following the rehearsal.

Student Lounge
Presser 204 has been furnished for students’ use. Students are asked to take care that the furnishings remain usable. Individual practice is not allowed in the lounge.

Practice Rooms

General public spaces (student lounge, hallways, staircases, and bathrooms) cannot be used for practicing.

Most practice rooms are located on the third floor of Presser Hall. Any Stetson music student can use any practice room any time it is available. When practice rooms are in use, practice room doors must be kept closed. Practice rooms with a grand piano (Presser 306, 321, 323, 336, and 338) are reserved Monday through Friday for piano majors. Specialized practice rooms—for organ (Presser 315 and 326), percussion (Presser 313, 332, and Presser basement), double-bass and tuba (McMahan 109)—are accessible only to those students receiving applied instruction on one of the instruments specified. Generally, students are entitled to two practice hours per day. Students may not “hold” a room with books, music, backpacks, or other objects, except for water or restroom breaks. If the practice room is left unattended for 15 minutes, the practice room is considered available and may be used by another student on a “first come, first served” basis. Aside from water, no food or drink is allowed in practice rooms. Personal items cannot be stored in practice rooms; nor should personal items be left unattended. The School of Music is not responsible for any lost or stolen items. Students should contact the Front Office with any questions or concerns.

Stands
Music stands that are anchored in practice room spaces and kept on stand racks in select classrooms and rehearsal spaces are not to leave those spaces. Stands used for rehearsals in Presser and McMahan classrooms must be returned to the location from which they were borrowed. A limited number of stands is available for students to borrow for personal practice in Presser where stands are not kept—these stands must also be returned to the location from which they were borrowed. All students are encouraged to purchase their own portable stand to ensure that they have access to this equipment for individual practice, chamber ensemble rehearsals, and gigs.

Instruments and Other Valuables
Students are not to leave any instruments and other valuables unattended, especially in the hallways, staircases, and practice rooms. Instruments and instrument cases should remain in lockers when not in use. Lockers should be locked at all times. The School of Music is not responsible for any damaged, lost, or stolen items.

Lockers
Lockers are available in Presser and McMahan Halls. Staff in the Music Office will assign lockers. At the end of each academic year, lockers must be emptied, and locks must be removed, otherwise office personnel will remove the locks and dispose of locker contents.

Building Hours
When school is in progress, Presser Hall and McMahan Hall are accessible by student ID card beginning at 6 a.m. Doors are open to the public from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Both buildings are closed at 1 a.m. each day and must be vacated at that time. During holidays and between sessions, building hours will vary.

Music Office
The Music Office houses the Offices of the Dean and Administrative Assistants in the School of Music. The office is located on the East Side of the first floor. Students needing information of any kind or wishing to see the Dean should inquire at the Music Office. The office is open 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays.

Bulletin Board
Important announcements are posted on the bulletin board in the north corridor of the first floor and on the monitor in the main lobby. Students should check daily for announcements.

Pianos
All pianos that have damp-chasers (indicated by a power cord attached to the piano) should be plugged in at all times. 

Harpsichords
The School of Music owns three harpsichords of high quality, and their use is strongly encouraged for the performance of period music. The University Organist has been assigned the responsibility for oversight of these instruments and should be contacted if there is the need to move them. Those individuals permitted to perform on the harpsichord are faculty members and those students who have studied harpsichord. The performer will tune the instruments before rehearsals and performance, if possible; if not, a piano technician should be engaged.

Food
The only room in Presser Hall or McMahan Hall in which food can be served is Presser 132 (Tinsley). No food or drink (other than water) is permitted in any other classroom.

H. Douglas Lee Chapel

Care must be taken in the scheduling of H. Douglas Lee Chapel since it is also used by other organizations on campus. All questions are to be referred to the Executive Assistant to the Dean.

  • Most music events are scheduled prior to the beginning of each semester and appear on the master calendar.
    • Concerts and recitals
    • Special ensemble rehearsals
    • Performance classes
    • Recital hour
  • Organ lessons and regular practice hours are scheduled through the organ professor at the beginning of each semester. This faculty member informs the Music Office of the times selected.
  • Practice times for students performing on the Thursday Student Recital are established as 11:30 am to 2:30 pm on Wednesdays. Students sign up for times on the bulletin board outside of the Music Office.
  • Evening and weekend practice hours are available for additional organ practice and for faculty and student preparation for recital appearances. Please consult the Event Management system for available times. Students may reserve day or evening rehearsal times with the following limitations: 8-14 days preceding the recital, one hour per week; 1-7 days preceding the recital, two hours per week. A reasonable number of additional hours are available on weekends. Priority is given to those who have reserved times in advance according to these established procedures. Faculty will not preempt these scheduled times without prior consultation with those who have reserved the hall in advance.

Music/Theater Rehearsal Hall

The Stetson Opera Theater Rehearsal Hall is located in Cummings Gym. Opera rehearsals may be held in this facility as well as various rooms in McMahan and Presser Hall.

Hollis Center

Various Music Experience (MUSX) classes, such as Movement, and Exercise for Musicians, are held in the Hollis Center Dance Studio.

Multimedia Laboratory and Music Studio

Digital Arts classes for the music technology minor are held in the Davis Multimedia Lab (Flagler Hall) and the Presser Hall computer lab (Presser 204A). The Multimedia Lab is available for lab work when it is not in use by classes.

Music Library

All physical music instructional library materials—CDs, DVDs, LPs, reference materials, books, and scores—are housed in the DuPont Ball library. With the exception of reference material and collected edition scores, all materials are available for check-out by students. Access to information on the library holdings is available online. In addition to its substantial physical holdings, the University subscribes to or owns vast electronic resources, including Oxford Music Online (a reference tool, which encompasses the Grove Dictionary), listening services (Naxos and Classical Music Library), and others.