Your son seems to be interested in the same types of schools as my son, who is headed to Williams next year. Had he not been accepted early decision, my son would have applied to many of the other schools you named.
Your matches sound good. You also might look at Bates as a high match. Safer matches, on the border of match and safety, might be Skidmore or Connecticut College. My son loved all three of those. With his interest in music, your son might especially like Skidmore.
Clark University would be a fabulous safety school that offers good merit aid. My son liked it when we visited.
All four schools I suggested to you have no frats, an intellectually vibrant atmosphere, and an inclusive student body that would feel “authentic” to your son.
Of the matches and safeties you named, I think Brandeis and U of Rochester have more of an inclusive and non-fratty/bro vibe than Franklin & Marshall and Lafayette. Son definitely would have chosen Skidmore or Connecticut College above F&M or Lafayette for reasons of personal fit, if admitted to all four, although all are about equal in terms of academic level and selectivity, and all offer great professors and academic opportunities for students.
We did not look at UVM, so I can’t comment on it. My son’s equivalent state school was SUNY Binghamton, which vibed well except for being so large.
Lawrence percussion faculty is superb – my kid (non Con applicant who wanted to continue with music) had an hour long meeting with him during a visit, and was overwhelmed by the opportunities and support for a drummer.
If math testing is his issue, maybe consider taking a practice ACT test to see if he gets an even more impressive composite score there? Math is less heavily weighted for the ACT. If he is the type of person who finishes tests early and sits around waiting for the rest of the class, he might be outstanding at the different format.
Have you looked at Brandeis? They have a vibrant Jewish population, lovely campus and a lot of great music ECs. Another option might be Fairfield U - it is Jesuit but does not feel very religious.
I would take Cornell off the list even though he is legacy. Probably too big and frat culture for him.
Just looking at the reaches for now, it seems Tufts and Vassar are good fits for him. Since he is planning to apply ED anyway, it is worth noting that both these schools offer ED1 and ED2, which would give him an extra shot in the early round if the first doesn’t work out.
^^I was going to suggest Vassar also. (It’s been co-ed for decades.) Very artsy.
I have heard that it is slightly easier for males to get into most LACs.
If he wants to be involved in music, but not major in it, he might be better off at a school that does NOT have a fantastic percussion program - easier to get performing opportunities.
I think Skidmore would be a great match school for him. Their acceptance rates are dropping, and while it might be a low match, it is no longer a safety for his stats. My D attends and loves being a big fish in a small pond and has found challenge in many of her classes, something that we originally worried about.
St Olaf would be a perfect low match* in most respects: no frats, very down-to-earth, steong academics, very musical, you can practice seriously without being a music major.
*If expressing interest ( for instance, fill out the request info form, email questions or interview, send music supplement…) it’d be a safety.
( Nobfrat, and D3 sports, so if anything, musicians are the popular ones, or as a student put it ‘being a guy in ole choir here is a bit like being a football player at Notre Dame’… except of course there’s a different vibe to being a popular musician from being a popular athlete, just as being a popular chess player doesn’t turn you into a popular lax bro :p).
The one sticking point would be the fact it’s religious and Lutheran (mainstream Christian and pretty liberal but still), which translates as three mandatory courses, one on Bible and the community (not specifically Christian seminars, I think one dealt with dystopias from the apocalypse to hunger games, another one dealt with African Americans and faith…), one about ethics in your area of study (like bioethics, cyberethics…), and one of your choices among religion classes (including some relating to Judaism but also many other faiths, as well as many other themes). I don’t think they have crosses in classroom. There’s a chapel on campus though. I think there’s a rabbi but you’d have to check. There’s a Jewish organization that coordinates with Carleton and organizes trips with UMN’s Hillel. But all in all colleges like Muhlenberg and Dickinson will have more Jewish students (but these two aren’t at the same level for music at all). If you can consider it, I’d advise you schedule an official visit and beforehand contact admissions as well as the Jewish association.