Happy to share that my trombonist committed to Northwestern and its Bienen School of Music! He had some exciting options to choose from, and it was hard to close certain doors, but Bienen dazzled him from his first visit. It’s where he ultimately saw himself, and he is thrilled to be part of a studio that is so strong.
As a non musician, I have learned so much here. You veteran music parents truly cover the gamut of specific schools and situations, and your perspectives have been invaluable. I’ll miss some names, but to @anotheroboemom , @77mom , @compmom , @somethings , @Msumt , @Baribassmom , @bridgenail , @old_music_prnt , @TigerLily52 and others, thank you for sharing your earned wisdom so generously. And to everyone on this journey this year, thank you for your good company and empathy along the way.
For next year’s group, I agree with @jstwaiting that starting early with essays and recording will help you. December 1 comes so quickly, and there is so much on a senior’s plate. Also, if anyone reading this for future years isn’t sure how “all in” they are on music performance, consider these small powerhouse schools that reward depth in music and have BA programs with good orchestras: Williams College, Amherst College, Middlebury College, and Wesleyan University. None require supplemental essays (except for a graded school paper for Williams and Amherst), which lets a musician keep focused on audition prep. All four let you submit an arts supplement (recordings you’ll have anyway) that are evaluated by music faculty, not admissions. My son was accepted to them all. They seem like really amazing options for the right kid.
Ahhhhhhh!!! I was hoping it was going to be Northwestern; when you mentioned team teaching I got excited thinking it was Mick and company. Best decision!!! My husband did his masters under Mick 27 years ago and he still treats us like family and when my husband is looking for trombone related advice MM is often the top of the call list. What a great team and Evanston is so fun. This is huge! Big congratulations!
Congratulations!! That’s very exciting!! We are a Big Ten family and our son has NU in his list of schools for his masters, so maybe our kids will overlap some place down the line!
It’s so great to see the enthusiasm, love of music and mutual support on this board. It’s what keeps me checking in after all these years. I’m happy if I can be helpful on occasion - I still remember how fraught the process was. But I also know that with the right attitude, dedication, passion and drive, your musicians can thrive in many different environments, and they will have the opportunity to continue to develop and grow musically regardless of where they’ve ended up. And while this is an important step in the journey, there will be many more steps to come and the music is likely to take them in directions that you can’t necessarily foresee today. I hope they’ll stay with it and continue to make wonderful music. We live in a world that needs it more than ever. In any event, congratulations to everyone for making it to this milestone and for the wonderful results. You all deserve to celebrate!
Congrats everyone! You survived! Looking back, the UG experience was definitely the most intense time in my D’s “musical journey”…for me. Auditioning for grad school and professional work was less intense and was all on her. My involvement was mainly as a bank. Still you always worry…but less so as they get older.
Last piece of unsolicited advice: don’t be surprised if your kid has some doubts about their abilities or school freshman year. Most kids entering selective music programs have grown accustomed to being a bit “special” in their musical talents. My D performed throughout her city in high school. There were many talented kids. Still the talent level of her class and the school Freshman year was a little unsettling for her. She tried to hide it a bit…but it would slip out in conversations. I could feel a definite nervousness from her. I just tried to listen and reassure her that she would be fine.
People often tell kids that college will be the best years of their lives. Maybe this is true, particularly Junior and Senior year. You may do your kid a favor by explaining that…while their college experience may be the “best years”…it will also be filled with days of struggle, doubt, hard tests, difficult auditions for coveted spots amongst peers…with only a cup of ramen and a pile of laundry waiting in their room (with no parent to help). I may not be ending on a high note….but just like UG auditions…a music degree is a lot of hard, difficult work to get to the sweet days. So a little “shakiness” in Freshman year should be expected (and overcome) by many students.
Good luck all! And, enjoy the end of high school festivities.
As a counterpoint (no pun intended with this musical crowd!), I would just add that this was my bias (originally) as well. Enough so that I bought DD the same camera that you mentioned. However, she ended up using the iPhone for her prescreens for a couple reasons. First, she did A/B comparisons and thought the audio quality was at least as good on the phone as with the dedicated Zoom camera. Second, her teacher told me that his students typically use their phones and that each year they get into highly selective schools. We used to obsess over recordings for summer festivals, etc. - lights, multiple mics. In the end, for prescreens, I think she found it somewhat liberating to take a minimalist approach because she could focus more on the musical qualities.
I wonder if it is different in the jazz and popular music environment where production qualities may make a bigger difference. Don’t know; DD is a violinist.
I would add to this excellent advice to have them think about “soft skills” for the in-person audition. The audition isn’t a funeral; so walk in with confidence, tall, make personal eye contact with the jury and great them warmly. Authenticity can’t make up for bad playing; but it could just be the nuance that makes you memorable in a sea of really good players.
Now that all this is over, I would also just say I was amazed at how much musical and personal growth this process uncovered in my kid. It was exhausting, but for me it was a great father-daughter bonding experience!
I just wanted to join in on the sentiment of all the help, insight, feedback on this process. It’s a weird process for those new to it, and reading of everyone’s experiences was so helpful. Thanks for being a supportive group of normal people and not a group of internet jerks. lol
We did! My son committed around 2:30pm on Friday to Jacobs for percussion performance. After three appeals, COA ends up to be around 37k for us (26.5k merit, no need based aid).
Peabody made him an incredible offer, but after visiting ON MAY 1 just to be sure, we confirmed that he needs a different social environment. It so happens that we visited on a day when Baltimore put on a show outside Peabody, with a flower market, jazz concert on the lawn, and sunshine and he loves being surrounded by beauty. Only thing Jacobs doesn’t have is a city, but it’s not far from his older brother and us in Chicago, so he will be okay!
It was a very hard decision, because he LOVED the Peabody faculty. Maybe grad school?
We couldn’t be more excited to have him learn in the percussion studio at Jacobs though- from the first visit (we’ve been 3x) it just felt authentic and perfect. Those professors know who they are and what they have there.
Thank you! And congratulations on Jacobs—how wonderful!!
We totally empathize with finding connection with faculty at more than one school, and being hard pressed to choose just one path. Like you, we hope our son will get to work with these people in some future capacity.
Yes I would think a phone could be fine for a solo-great perspective! It’s definitely instrument dependent. Yes so much easier and accessible. Jazz auditions for top schools requirements state live rhythm section is preferred. My recommendation is for Jazz piano when playing with others and if you have to audition with live trio for piano and so needed to balance the auditioner instrument and also pick up the other instruments. I had to learn how to do that and perhaps others might need to also.
My husband did his masters under Mick 27 years ago and he still treats us like family and when my husband is looking for trombone related advice MM is often the top of the call list. What a great team and Evanston is so fun. This is huge! Big congratulations!
