Yes. My dd is a violinist, too, (only a 10th grader). She will probably apply with Mendelssohn or something comparable. She will not be competitive for conservatories or even top music schools within a U (though academically, she is opposite of your ds and is taking precal and AP chem in 10th). We are still unsure of where she will apply. She has no dreams of being in a top orchestra, just wants to focus on becoming the best violinist she can be. Teaching/ local freeway orchestra/ and gigging are in her future.
My friend got into mannes on Mendelssohn! To play Mendelssohn well is actually very difficult. I really think it matters more how you play. People can go in w Sibelius and not be good. A clean Mendelssohn with beautiful phrasing is a huge achievement
Saint-Saens is at the end of Tier 1, with Sibelius and Tchaik roughly next up. My daughter is playing Glazunov for auditions, which I guess is sorta unusual (hoping maybe panel will be tired of hearing Tchaik and Sibelius). Hopefully TooManyViolinsts will chime in as she is remarkably well informed. I still think Eastman, Oberlin, Peabody are great schools and his teacher may be spot on. (If he chooses a conservatory.) Possibly ask the teacher where he could be by prescreens next Fall? What’s next?
I see you said this was the plan for rep.
Possible he could use Saint-Saens for pre-screens, and start something else aimed at Auditions? It is 8 months until September, and a year until has auditions.
Well he still has work to do on Saint saens. And he just started Paganini and his second Bach. And Peabody also requires Mozart. So I don’t see him learning a whole other concerto by September. His teacher is really flexible and open. But I do think she knows best and she felt Saint saens is the best piece to show his strengths. Having sent lots of stduents to conservatories I’ve never heard her mention these tiers before.
You and her teacher are the only 2 whom I have ever heard praise for auditioning with Mendelssohn. Typically, the response is that it is played by competitive players by 14. (And having sat in on a competition last summer where a 14 yo won $10000 playing Mendelssohn, I believe it. She played it masterfully.)
Well maybe you are talking to the wrong people then! There is a girl in his youth orch that applied with Mendelssohn and got through every prescreen she applied to. I actually didn’t come Here to ask about his rep though as I am 100 percent confident in his teachers choices and decisions. I just wanted to ask about academics and am very grateful for the schools that were recommended and advice I got. I’m curious what tier is Mozart 4/5? Why do major orchestras ask Those concertos? Because it is difficult to have such a pure sound and musicality to play Mozart. It’s more difficult Than playing Sibelius. And Mendelssohn opening is very similar in difficulty phrasing wise.
It is hard to separate. His rep will matter for stand alone conservatories and his coursework and gpa will matter for admissions to many universities. For your avg LAC or non-selective state U, his gpa will be fine. Some schools are moving back toward requiring test scores even though they have been test optional through 2026. (Google articles like this one https://brittany.consulting/2025/02/colleges-that-are-no-longer-test-optional-updated-february-2025/ Schools that are test optional are not going to look at just gpa but rigor of coursework associated with gpa. (I’d have to go back and reread, but it didn’t sound like he was taking a rigorous academic load.) To understand that part better, I encourage you to look at their common data sets.
LACs might be a better fit for him than competitive top Us in terms of admissions if he isn’t auditioning to a freestanding conservatory. Some Us are slightly different in terms of admissions, though. UMiami is no longer test optional except for Frost music majors. That information is on their website. But, that level of leeway is not going to gain admissions to a school like Vanderbilt. Even test optional, everything matters there. But, Peabody doesn’t require being admitted to JHU. That is more like a stand alone conservatory.
That is why Bach is required everywhere and Mozart at places like Peabody. But, the entire audition matters.
FWIW, I trust the people who have told me that bc they are more current on auditions than her teacher. (And toomanyviolins is one of the people I trust. She is very well informed.) Our DD’s violin teacher’s last conservatory student was in 2008. But, our dd has to have scholarships, so we are looking at a different approach than you are and are less concerned about school names. She will be applying to Us where she will be academically competitive for freshman scholarships while still being accepted to their music program. The $$ is a necessity in addition to the music program.
Best of luck to your daughter! Sounds like she is in a good spot . I trust his teacher 100 percent as I said so I really put all the rep and teaching part in her hands, she just doesn’t know him academically as well so that was why I came to ask this question here.
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Has he tried the ACT? My son took both with accommodations and honestly it’s such a long test for them with accommodations so I’d definitely not try to push to bring that score up because it’s like torturing them but if he hasn’t taken the ACT I’d definitely attempt that at least once. My son did WAY better on the ACT.
He hasn’t done act, maybe it’s worth a try. Is it also math and ela?
I believe Mozart is required at Curtis.
If you Google Violin Repertoire along with Dorothy Delay this list is what is being referred to.
Apologies for delving into rep and such.
I feel like I am repeating a conversation I had with my daughter- but a gap year spent moving rep forward with a great teacher means more choices (again, if you and he were to head the conservatory route). More choices for schools, more chance of merit money. There is no negative besides the risk of the student not doing the work, which would save the college tuition and help clarify his choices. It’s true what was said above about Mendelssohn. Most kids on a professional track have played it by 14. Doesn’t mean if perfectly and artistically played it would not serve.
Best of luck to your son!
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The gap yr is a solid suggestion. It is one that TMVs made to me regarding our dd. Our dd, however, is currently not open to the suggestion. There are no real downsides for a music performance major.
I, too, am in the TMV fan club. If she chimes in mlucchi, I agree she is super knowledgeable, she has been a great resource for our family!
Preteens playing Mendelssohn is sad to me. I see the kids in my son’s program butchering through the musicality in all sorts of concertos and Bach. Also sometimes kids that played medelssohn by 14 are driven to practice by their parents. Then they get to college and screw up, or decide to do something else. Mendelssohn at 12 doesn’t equal succes later.
Def no gap year here! We already argue about how he practices enough.
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I see I am getting called out here – sorry all, had to have a minor surgery that took me out of commission for a bit.
Regarding the repertoire thing, it is a combination of what you play and how well you play it. If you play Mendelssohn at 16 but you have also already played Wieniawski and Dvorak and Saint Saens and Paganini, you are going to be fine. (This is actually how my son’s precollege teacher often does it.)
But if you are applying to college and only made it up to Mendelssohn after playing Kabalevsky and Bruch, you are definitely going to be behind technically. Most of the people who play Mendelssohn for their auditions fall into that latter category – and it is usually too hard for them, out of tune, and not so great. That is what folks are talking about…not the rare person who plays a gorgeous Mendelssohn, and then also rocks a very challenging Bach fugue and a crazy caprice.
I have seen a perfect Mendelssohn get someone into both NEC and Curtis. But it has to be perfect, because technically it is just not as challenging of piece as Sibelius or Tchaik.
A good Saint Saens is going to be a strong contender for second tier level conservatories such as Oberlin, Eastman, Peabody, Indiana, San Francisco, etc.
The listed rep looks like a bit of a mismatch to me. Generally I would not touch Bach C major until the entire rest of the Sonatas and Partitas are completely learned and you are technically ready to play the C major fugue. I guess you could learn just the easier movements, but most conservatories are expecting to hear a first movement and a fugue, not the latter movements.
I was warned that Paganini 16 is the absolute last choice for auditions and you should not do it unless you cannot play any other ones.
Will jump in more later!
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My son actually did play Mendelssohn last year. He did also barber and lalo. He is doing The allegro assai and the largo. I actually didn’t come to ask rep help tho, his teacher is amazing and has been through this a lot and knows the process and him very well. 16 is his first Paganini. She said he may be able to learn others by sept but that what he is doing now. Anyway my question was about academics. Bc he’s not good at thsoe. But I already got a lot of good advice for that I think!