My son graduated from the New School Jazz Performance section in 2011. He is a drummer with some local bands in Brooklyn now and doing the kind of music he wants (Sort of indie/folkie/rock type stuff). Working as a barista in Soho to pay the bills. He is slowly starting to make a name for himself and playing with some bigger names, but it is a long haul. The most valuable thing about the New School (and we knew this going in and knew that this is a VERY left wing school), is that he would make connections better if he was where he would eventually want to be. Connections and networking are the most important part of music performance (imho). If we had to do it all over again we would have paid for more serious lessons in HS including classes in theory. Most kids that are making a living doing this don’t finish school and are of with bands once they know what they want. This may not help if you are classically inclined.