Music is something almost everyone loves, and this badge helps you understand it more deeply. You'll perform, learn how instruments make sound, and explore music in your community. Whether you sing in the shower or play in a band, there's a place for you here.
Why it's worth it
Music is a skill you can take anywhere: a campfire, a school band, a community choir, a garage band with friends, or a quiet guitar on your porch. Working on this badge trains your ear, your memory, and your nerve in front of an audience. You'll understand why a song gives you chills, how instruments actually make sound, and how musicians get paid for what they create. And when the troop needs someone to lead a song at the campfire, that can be you.
Start this week
- Pick one song you already like and can almost sing or play. Practice it for ten minutes a day this week.
- Ask your Scoutmaster for the name of a Music counselor, and send them a short message with a parent copied to set up a first meeting.
- Check your school, library, or city calendar for free concerts, recitals, or band nights in the next month.
- Find the sheet music for your song online or at the library and mark the time signature, key, and any tricky rhythms.
Requirements · 6
Every official requirement and part, numbered to match Scouting America, in plain language. Sign off against the official wording (opens in a new tab) (updated 2025).
- Requirement 1
Sing or play a simple song or hymn your counselor picks, with good technique, phrasing, tone, rhythm, and dynamics, and read every sign and term in the score
Tip: Choose a song you like and practice it a little every day. Ask a music teacher to help you with reading the notes.
For example: Choose a folk song or a piece from your school band book. Practice the hard measures slowly first, then play it for your counselor and point out the key, time signature, and dynamics markings as you read along.
- Requirement 2
Name the five general groups of instruments and make an illustration showing how tones are made and how instruments produce sound
Tip: Make a simple chart of instrument families, and try making sound with a rubber band or a bottle to show how vibration works.
For example: Make a one-page chart: strings vibrate (violin, guitar), air columns vibrate (flute, trumpet), and struck surfaces vibrate (drums, xylophone). Show it with a stretched rubber band, a straw whistle, and a pot lid.
- Requirement 3
Listen, learn, and take part. Choose 2 of 4
Tips for this section: Pick the two choices you'd enjoy most, like going to a concert or asking an adult in your family about the music they loved growing up.
Example for this section: One plan: go to a free jazz concert and spend 3 hours with bluegrass recordings for 3a. Then ask a grandparent or other adult in your family about the music they loved as a teen, and trade three favorite songs each for 3b.
- Requirement 3a
Attend a live show, or listen to 3 hours of recordings, in two styles from: jazz, blues, country, classical, gospel, bluegrass, opera, ethnic, musical theater. Describe the sound and instruments; name composers or songwriters, performers, and titles; describe the setting and audience if live; share your thoughts
- Requirement 3b
Interview an adult family member about the popular music of their youth and their favorites now. Listen to three of their favorites together and say how they sound to you and if you knew them. Play them three of your favorites, explain why you like them, and ask their opinion
- Requirement 3c
Spend six months in a school band or choir or another organized music group, or give six public solo performances
- Requirement 3d
List five people important in American music history and explain to your counselor why they still matter. Your five must include a composer, a performer, an innovator, and someone born more than a century ago (at least one each)
- Requirement 4
Lead, compose, or build. Choose 1 of 3
Tips for this section: Try writing a short tune, teaching songs at a campfire, or making a simple instrument from things around the house.
Example for this section: Make a simple instrument like a box guitar from a shoebox and rubber bands of different thicknesses, or a set of water-glass chimes tuned to a scale. Explain why each change in size or tension changes the pitch.
- Requirement 4a
Teach three songs to a group and lead them in singing with proper hand motions
- Requirement 4b
Compose and write out a score of at least 12 measures, and play it on an instrument
- Requirement 4c
Build a traditional instrument and learn how to play it
- Requirement 5
Define intellectual property (IP) for your counselor and explain how to get and share recorded music the right way
Tip: Talk about where you get your music and how to make sure the artists get credit and paid.
For example: Bring a list of where you get music: streaming, radio, videos, downloads. For each, talk about whether the artist gets paid and why copying a friend's files or uploading a song you didn't write isn't fair to the creator.
- Requirement 6
Careers or hobbies. Choose 1 of 2
Tips for this section: Ask a music teacher, band director, or local musician about how music fits into their life or career.
- Requirement 6a
Research one career related to music: training and education, costs, job outlook, pay, duties, and advancement. With a parent's or guardian's OK you may search online or at a library, interview a pro, or visit a workplace. Discuss your findings with your counselor and what makes the career appealing
- Requirement 6b
Explore how you could turn this badge's skills into a hobby. Look into needed training, costs, and supporting groups, and talk with your counselor about short- and long-term goals you might set
Places to visit
Ask an adult to set it up, and go with your family, den, patrol, or crew.
A community orchestra, band, or choir rehearsal
Rehearsals show how musicians fix mistakes, tune together, and follow a conductor, which you don't see at a polished concert.
How: Have a parent email the group and ask if a Scout and a parent can sit in quietly on a rehearsal. Many community groups welcome guests.
An instrument repair shop
A repair technician can open up a horn or a guitar and show you exactly where the sound is made.
How: A parent can call ahead and ask for 15 minutes on a slow afternoon. Bring two or three questions about how instruments work.
Where it can lead
- Music teacher or band directorTeaches students to play and leads ensembles; usually needs a music education degree.
- Audio engineerRecords and mixes sound for concerts, podcasts, and films; many learn through technical programs and hands-on work.
- Military musicianEvery branch has bands that play at ceremonies and concerts; musicians audition to join.
- Music therapistUses music to help people recover from injuries, manage stress, or communicate.
- Instrument repair technicianFixes and adjusts band and orchestra instruments; often trained through a certificate program or apprenticeship.
Ask yourself
- What kind of music makes you feel the most like yourself, and why?
- Which part of practicing is hardest for you, and what helps you push through it?
- How did it feel to perform for someone, and what would you change next time?
- What did you notice at a live performance that you'd never noticed in a recording?
- Where could music fit in your life five years from now?
Good questions to ask your counselor or a working musician
- How did you get past stage fright when you first started performing?
- What does a good practice session look like for you?
- How do musicians actually earn money today?
- What's one habit you wish you'd started earlier as a musician?
- How do you learn a piece you've never seen before?
Helpful reads
- Earning a merit badge, step by step, From picking a badge to getting the final signature: how to find a counselor, set up meetings safely, work the requirements, and keep your progress., Youth · Families · 6 min read
- Contacting counselors, experts, and organizations, Email and phone scripts, who to ask for, how to follow up, and how to say thanks, with a parent copied every time., Youth · Families · 7 min read
- Choosing your next merit badge, How to pick a badge you'll actually finish: start with what you care about, balance Eagle-required and just-for-fun badges, and make the most of camp., Youth · Families · 6 min read
For leaders & parents
- Let scouts lead songs at a campfire program to practice performing.
- Encourage scouts to share a short performance at a troop meeting or court of honor.
People & places that can help
- Merit badge counselor — Talk with them early; they can explain what's expected.
- School music teacher or band director — Help with technique and reading music.
- Library of Congress (opens in a new tab) — Historic recordings and music history collections.
- Public library — Books, videos, and a librarian who can help you dig deeper.
- U.S. Copyright Office (opens in a new tab) — Plain explanations of who owns a song and how copyright protects creators.
- Carnegie Hall Education (opens in a new tab) — Free music-learning programs and resources from one of the world's best-known concert halls.
- American Music Therapy Association (opens in a new tab) — What music therapists do and how people train for the job.
Pairs well with
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Tips, examples, and questions are ideas from experienced leaders, not extra requirements. Your unit leader or counselor decides when a requirement is complete.