<p>I am a undergrad music theory/composition major, and I have realized that I have a pretty strong interest in grad school. I am interested in orchestral conducting, but my primary instrument is voice. Are there any good grad schools that will allow a non-instrumentalist to be a orchestral conducting major?</p>
<p>I don’t believe that good grad schools for conducting care too much about what instrument/voice you have studied. They will want evidence that you read music with great facility–i.e. not that you can decode rhythms and note names from a page, but rather that you can hear a score in your head as you read through it for the first time. You will need to demonstrate interpretive maturity, discipline, and passion. The school will also probably look at your leadership skills. Vocalists can lead, can interpret, and can read, so I would hope that any good grad school would consider vocalists as candidates for orchestral conducting. </p>
<p>Common sense would dictate that pianists would find score reading much easier than other musicians because pianists are accustomed to reading so many notes at once for two or more clefs, unlike clarinestists, vocalists etc. that read and play a single note at a time. However, there are tons of conductors that have minimal piano skills. Pianists, like vocalists, obviously don’t play an instrument that is standard in an orchestra, and thus have a disadvantage relative to a violinist who can talk easily about bowings etc. and who has spent thousands of hours playing in an orchestra by the end of a BM. However, there are tons of conductors whose primary instrument is piano. </p>
<p>An advantage for the vocalist: you hopefully have ready access to the most expressive instrument for demonstrating phrases–many conductors like many instrumental teachers frequently resort to singing the musical idea they are working on.</p>
<p>Here’s a well-composed excerpt from UCLA’s website about admission to the orchestral conducting grad degrees:</p>
<p>What do you look for in potential candidates for your program?</p>
<p>Successful candidates for the MM and DMA programs in orchestral conducting will demonstrate mastery of their chosen instrumental, vocal or compositional fields, fluency in the literature and materials of music, a gift for leadership, an intense interpretive passion, the foundations of a sound conducting technique, excellent organizational skills and the potential to make a major contribution to the profession. Advanced keyboard skills and the ability to coach and accompany opera productions are highly desirable</p>
<p>As you can see, your field can be “instrumental, vocal or compositional”: you cover off two of those (compositional and vocal) which is probably more than most candidates cover.</p>
<p>Most programs in orchestral conducting are very small: typically only one or two students are admitted per year. Thus admissions are very competitive. Most good programs will require a DVD of your best conducting.</p>