He earned a Bachelor of Arts in Music from San Francisco State College in 1938 and a Master of Arts in Music from Mills College in 1941, studying with Darius Milhaud,[1] and Domenico Brescia.
[2] He taught high school briefly and then became Milhaud's assistant at Mills College.
[3] At Mills Brubeck also wrote incidental music for various French plays produced by Milhaud's wife Madeleine.
[4] In 1950 Brubeck was appointed composition instructor at San Diego State College.
He was hired as chairman of the music department of Palomar Junior College in San Marcos, California in 1953 and promoted to Dean of Humanities in 1966.