The purpose of this study was to determine whether students who elect to enroll in popular music courses are influenced by different motivational factors than traditional large ensemble participants. A Musical Motivation Questionnaire was distributed to music students attending six high schools that offered both traditional large ensembles and popular music courses. The results from a principal components analysis indicated the presence of eight motivational factors that influenced students' choices to participate in high school music. Statistical analyses revealed that certain motivation factors influenced students enrolled in popular music courses differently than large ensemble participants which suggests that expanding curricula to include popular music courses may motivate a new or different population of students to engage in the music learning opportunities offered in high schools.