smiller446

My daughter is in the process of developing her list of potential Music Schools and her private teacher mentioned the Hartt School at the University of Hartford. D plays flute and piccolo. Any insight on Hartt is apprecaited.

jazzzmomm

My son just auditioned there for jazz. The majority of students auditioning on his date were classical. I believe that is their larger program. I would love to know more about it, too--audition days are exhausting and don't always leave time for tours and information sessions. The teacher who auditioned him left it open for him to come back and sit in on classes, which I thought was very thoughtful of him. Very upbeat environment in the music school itself. Seems like a good place to be with other serious musicians.

violadad

My son is viola performance BM '07 Hartt grad in the process of applying for grad schools with a viola/chamber performance concentration. He began his Hartt undergrad work in Sept '02, and was admitted as a 5 year dual degree (performance/music ed) candidate. He chose not to finish the remaining ed requirements, which would have required an additional semester beyond the original to concentrate on performance, his first love.

He/we can't say anything negative about his experience at Hartt (other than the food quality/meal plans). He was at home the minute he saw the school, and worked with fantatic peers and faculty. He described it as a cooperative, non competitive environment. During his last two years, he was a full scholarship recipient in Hartt's Performance 20/20 program, and was fully engaged in an extremely high level of chamber groupings and musicianship. There is an on-site magnet school, with both a String Project and Band Project; participation is required for music ed majors, optional but recommended for performance majors.

Admission to the Hartt program is highly competitive, and requires admission to both U/Hartford and Hartt. John Wion recently retired as the primary flute
instructor. Janet Arms, a former student of Wion's with impressive credentials has taken over Wion's studio. Greig Shearer is the other flute instructor.

The music building is dated and could use an update, but it is by no means substandard. Ground has been broken on a slightly off-site facility to house the theater and dance programs, as well as the Community Division. Freshman dorms were redone a year ago, and a new upperclassmen door opened this past September. The two suite complexes are serviceable, but nothing spectacular. The campus is fairly compact, in a residential section of West Hartford, but borders (within 2 miles) a less than stellar section of Hartford proper.

Talent aid is auditioned based, and is a direct function of your audition. It can range from paltry to full scholarship; my son was initially offered 1/2 tuition, but based on his growth he ended up on a full scholarship his last two years. U/Hartford's policy had been to NOT allow a combination of a Hartt performance award with a university academic scholarship.

You can use the "search this forum" for other Hartt posts, as I've commented on the program in numerous threads. Feel free to ask me any general or specific points if you want additional info.

thumper1

The flute teachers at Hartt are outstanding. Greig Shearer is principal with the Hartford Symphony and a highly regarded soloist, ensemble player, teacher and mentor. In my opinion, you can't get much better than that!!

musicmom

Son was accepted to Hartt on tuba and offered 1/2 tuition scholarship based on his audition. He didn't end up attending but it was a tough call.
The building ARe a bit dated. Son didn't seem to even notice that!

The admissions folk and students we met were open and encouraging.
Seemed like a great place to me (the tuba player's mother).
We did find that UHartford did not offer academic awards on top of music merit awards. That would have been lovely.

jazzzmomm

musicmom and violadad--did your kids hear from Hartt soon after audition, or did you wait until April? I've heard conflicting information.

thumper1

My son also auditioned at Hartt...but he did the early audition which was the first weekend in December. DS heard by Christmas including his aid. I'm not sure how the remaining auditions went...but I thought it was a deadline school...in other words students heard in april.He didn't go to Hartt, but it was a nice option, and the merit aid he received was excellent.

violadad

My son's was an early February audition, and he did not hear till April. I think the only quick response is from the early December audition; all other dates will not find out till April. At least that's how it was a few years back.

jazzzmomm

Thanks, that's what we thought!

jazzguitar

While I know nothing about the classical department, I actually wouldn't recommend it for jazz. I have played with a few people that go there now and although they all seem really enthusiastic, the playing ability, I found, was less than spectacular. The best jazz musicians I know are looking elsewhere. I'm sure that it could be tremendous for anyone (as college does not determine how good/what type of a musician you will be), but I really wouldn't rank its players in the same class as nec/msm/new school/mich state/unt/etc...

musicmom

jazzzmomm-

Our son also did the early audition at Hartt in December.
I remember it well......BIG snowstorm that weekend. Son made the tripwith his Dad by car from NJ to Hartt the night before audition. So they were there when the storm hit Sat. Son auditioned but many others couldn't make it.
The drive home in the blizzard took 8 hours. I think they thought it was an adventure....I was an anxious wreck.

Anyway, he had his acceptance and merit award just before Christmas.
He did not have to respond until the 'regular' time in May I think.

Mitra

Hello everyone,
I have been admitted to the Hartt School as a piano performance major.
I am the only musician in my family, and everyone is asking me how prestigious Hartt is, and how many people are admitted.
Does anybody know what the acceptance rate is for the music program? I have seen many posts about acceptance to theater, but nothing for music.
Thank you!

gms5287

You know...I always see Hartt mentioned on this forum. All the time! So much that I had checked them out, and read into them a lot, but ultimately, I've taken them off my list for graduate schools, why? Because I read nothing but horrible horrible awful things about the city of Hartford! I never see it mentioned on here that Hartford has been rated the 2nd most dangerous city in the country, or at least something around there. The crime rate is very high, and just does not seem like a pleasant place to live. Can someone please bring some insight into this, because I go to Florida State right now, and I thought Tallahassee was a dump, I'm actually shocked at the idea of a "prestigious" school being somewhere in an even worse dump than Tallahassee, Florida.

notfromme

We visited the campus a few years ago for my older d. If I remember correctly, the school is located in a nice area surrounded by beautiful homes. But, I will admit, the city of Hartford was somewhat of a let down.

rudysmom

gms5287,
Have you visited Hartt SOM? Larger cities always have high rates of crime. Philadelphia is now called killadelphia. There are many prestigious schools located in inner cities with high crime rates.

And as far as Tallahassee and FSU, I certainly wouldn't consider that a dump. In fact, it was one of the prettiest towns I've visited in recent years. We just visited last week and we thought the campus was immaculate. Tallahassee appeared to be a great college town. Here in Chicago, Univ. of Chicago is in a dangerous area (muggings plus worse) and Northwestern CAN be a marginal area (Evanston) with both unsafe to walk alone at night. So it all goes with the territory.