<p>Can’t see mentioning music lessons unless he is giving them. Garland has spotlighted how my kids handled the music part of the resume, but I would also mention if any leadership positions were involved.</p>
<p>My son included his music lessons on his activities list (the infamous brag sheet). He arranged it, on the advice of a successful Ivy League applicant (our school does not know much about top admissions) as a reference form that was easy to find information in. That way, if an adcom was puzzled by the sparse, cryptic words allowed on the Common App, they could flip to the sheet and scan that section.</p>
<p>The schools know what it means to be a varsity captain of a sports team, first chair cello, but they would not be familiar with some of the local groups my son worked with or some of the innovative additional activities he found.</p>
<p>I don’t think music lessons mark one as privileged. Our school district has scholarships for music lessons. My husband and I are lower middle class and we sacrificed tremendously for our sons’ music lessons and instruments. We drive 10 year old cars, one TV and one computer and buy very little, so our children can have opportunities. It depends on what you think is important.</p>