Advice for a composition major?

College Majors Music Major
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Hi all!
I posted last year about studying composition at conservatoires in the US, but due to my cluelessness around how to use these forums didn’t manage to reply to most of the advice given. I’m giving it another shot now:

I am a composition/piano/harpsichord student living in the UK, and I will be graduating in 2018. At the moment I am looking at mainly UK further education options for a music (composition) degree: Oxford, Royal Northern College of Music, however I am very interested in studying composition in US conservatoires, as I have close links with the London Conservatoires (RCM, RAM etc.) and am looking for a musically more diverse and actively innovative course compared to what I have seen at some of these places.

Because I have limited knowledge about US conservatoires, it would be great to know the general opinions on the different courses, the kind of information you can’t find on the website; obviously such things may be subjective and/or vague, but it would be interesting to know the different ‘feel’ of colleges, and the overall reputation they have for new music.

As a composer I have a fair bit of experience, I have had orchestral works performed in major London concert halls, and have written and had performed works for a variety of chamber and electroacoustic ensembles. My work is definitely based around the western ‘art music’ tradition (whatever that is…) and such contemporary classical music is something that I would like to learn more about, but I am also heavily influenced by hyperconsumerist pop music (PC music?), ‘world’ music (especially music from chinese background), and fluxus art/music movements. I have often felt that my non-classical (for lack of better term) musical interests are often sidelined by musical institutions I am a part of (Royal College of Music junior dept, specialist music schools…), and I am hoping that exploring American conservatoires might broaden my options in terms of finding a school that will give me access to information on a broad spectrum of musical genre.

Some additional details: financially, to be completely honest I would rely on receiving some form of scholarship or alternative financial aid, a lot of these US conservatoires are very steep! Any advice on conservatoires with deep pockets for enthusiastic students would be much welcomed.
A college with a strong electronic music department would be really interesting as well, I have some background in electronic music but it is a field that I feel I have much to learn in …
The colleges that have peaked my interest are NEC, Peabody, Eastman, and Oberlin, but this is all from online research
It’s also quite important to me that I am in or near a sizeable city with an interesting music scene external to school.
Also if anyone has any advice towards contacting professors; this will sound daft but I don’t know where the boundaries are in terms of requests for advice from professors at colleges I’m interested in; I have contacted plenty in the UK but often through mutual friends, or after they heard my music at an event. I feel very shy about being forward about these things… is it common practise in the US to contact music professors in advance of applying?

Sorry, a lot of info here! Any help or advice is greatly appreciated

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For the best financial assistance, you’ll want to apply for a DMA, or PhD, if possible. There are some MM programs with financial support, but not as many. Check out NYU, USC, Yale, Princeton, UC Berkeley, Michigan, Indiana, Northwestern, Columbia, and UCSD for a wide range of programs/aesthetics with financial support. Oberlin doesn’t have a grad department for composition. NEC, Peabody and Eastman do offer aid but until you’ve applied and gotten your offer, and perhaps counter-offered, you won’t know how much.

A good way to go about researching is to look into programs where composers you like teach, or composers you like have attended. There are many many options. And, yes, do write to the professors!

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First, I want to clarify: are you currently an undergrad, or a high school student? I couldn’t tell though the level of your accomplishments would argue for the former. I have some suggestions in the UK as well as the US once I know the answer to that :slight_smile:

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Thanks for your responses!
I should have clarified, I’m in high school at the moment, I’ve just been very lucky to meet the right people and get some great opportunities. This does mean that a DMA/PhD is out of the question for now. My grades are strong however I’m not taking SATs so I think this rules out most university music courses in the US, though as I mentioned, I am looking at some in the UK…

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Oh, you’re in high school! Yes, forget everything I said in my post above. You need to look at an entirely different list. Yes, you need to get an undergrad degree first. One program which offers full aid to international students is Bard Conservatory - you’d have to do a double degree, but it would be worth looking at - and its proximity to NYC is invaluable. And, yes, Oberlin is a good choice. As is USC. If you need financial aid, NEC, Eastman and Peabody are going to be more difficult. You could apply and see what happens, but don’t expect much aid. You should check which programs give need based aid to international students, or give lots of merit aid. Also look at Indiana University, University of Michigan, and Northwestern. Most of these schools, except for Bard, will require the SAT however. You can take it in the early fall. You could also consider Curtis and Juilliard - Curtis does not charge tuition, and Juilliard will offer substantial aid to the right applicant.

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You asked about conservatories, which have Bachelors of Music degrees, but I am going to mix in some universities and colleges with BA degrees, because composers can really think about both types of degrees. There are really countless places to think about, but your diverse interests make it a little trickier.

I think you might want to look at Berklee in Boston (which has merged with Boston Conservatory). And both Berklee and New England Conservatory have double degree programs with Harvard. I know a Boston Conservatory composer who is taking classes at Berklee as well, and is therefore able to cover her many musical interests. All three at expensive but give merit aid. With your resume, you could at least try for enough aid to be able to go.

Miami Frost and University of Southern California are often mentioned along with Berklee- but I don’t know how their aid stacks up.

I would actually suggest Harvard too. They just changed their music curriculum to provide access to more students with diverse interests. This is a negative take on the changes, sorry http://thelogjournal.com/2017/04/25/what-controversial-changes-at-harvard-means-for-music-in-the-university/ But I have read and heard mostly positive reviews- some very positive. Harvard has incredible financial aid, and with your accomplishments you would definitely have a chance, and for an manageable additional cost you could do the double degree with NEC, which is a BA/MM program. Or just study with an NEC professor privately.Harvard also has a strong electroacoustic studio. HUSEAC.

Oberlin would be another multi-faceted environment, and since the conservatory is part of the college, you could get aid there as well. Also check out TIMARA there. Cleveland is not far. Oberlin itself is in the midst of farmland.

Brown is another possibility. Freedom to choose courses and a small but diverse music dept. with a composition strand, very strong in electronics. There is a strand in the music major for composition and for technology. Check out their MEME program.

Princeton has a performance certificate and a program with the Royal Academy (I think, but check which conservatory) in London, and allows for some diversity of interest.

Barnard and/or Columbia would be a great choice. Barnard is a women’s college where students study at Columbia. Columbia has an excellent music department and excellent aid as well. Yale isn’t too far from NYC either. The presence of the School of Music has its pluses and minuses.

Sarah Lawrence is close to NYC and has independent work, some composers have done well there. SUNY Purchase is also close to NYC and the cost is relatively low even for non-residents.

McGill is a great place for grad composers, don’t know about undergrads. It is relatively affordable.

Sorry to focus so much on elite schools, but the aid is best there and they might work well for you.

For avant-garde new music in the UK and Europe…not so much for diverse interests that you mentioned but potentially interesting…

The Royal Conservatory of the Hague

Many schools in Germany (Cologne, Berlin, Stuttgart, others) are tuition free and excellent for new music.

The University of Cork, Leeds and Huddersfield are all interesting programs.

I know of a few composers who did undergrad in Graz, with Pierre Luigi Billone.

I know of rambled here and hope it is helpful!! Given your accomplishments, I do think it is okay to contact professors or music departments.

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Laurenstardust, you have disappeared again! Hope all is well…

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Thank you thank you for both replies! Sorry I’m so late in responding. Things have been quite hectic for me recently…

I am very tempted by US university degrees, I have read about the changes at Harvard, and for me they seem actually quite exciting and progressive. Unfortunately I’m not taking SATs, I can’t imagine them accepting me without those, but there’s simply not enough time in my schedule to take two sets of final exams in 2018, so I would probably have to take a gap year for SATs, which wasn’t initially part of the plan… It is such a pity though because there seem to be a real variety of uni music course options

Your suggestion of Berklee is very interesting, I imagine they are more open minded than many conservatoires. Most of the people I know who have ended up at Berklee have been studying jazz, I know quite little about what they do on a ‘new music’ front, but I would be interested to find out more about that course. Also or both Berklee and NEC I am attracted to the fact they are in Boston.

For places in Europe, a professor of mine recommended conservatoires in Berlin, however I recall there is a German aptitude test as part of the application which leider at the moment I would definitely not pass! I guess I could learn, it’s just a matter of time

Curtis and Julliard, both extremely prestigious. I have the impression that Curtis is a more conservative course, and perhaps a little less but still the case with Julliard? But I’m happy to be proven wrong. I have heard about the generous scholarships Julliard offers, and obviously Curtis.

These are all very interesting options you have mentioned, many I haven’t considered yet; thank you! I will do some more research, perhaps reach out to some professors in the meantime

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The SAT is not like a final exam- as long as you remember your math. You might not find you need to study for it at all, and it would only take a few hours. There are sample tests online you could look at. And, yes, Juilliard and Curtis are not known as cutting edge avant garde composition havens. Are there any particular composers with whom you’d be interested in studying? That might help you with your search. And check out the ethnomusicology departments, as well. For instance, you might find Wesleyan an interesting choice, with their fabulous World Music program, and cutting edge electroacoustic and jazz musicians teaching there. Not a conservatory at all, however - which shows how you need to be open about where to look.

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I agree with Spirit Manager about the SAT’s. The best thing is to read the booklet or online for test strategies, meaning, is it good to guess or do you lose points etc. If you don’t take SAT’s many selective schools in the US don’t require them. Here is a list: http://fairtest.org/university/optional Though if you need merit aid the school might want scores.

Look at the Royal Conservatory of the Hague maybe…if German is an issue.

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ps I PM’ed you

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Thanks for the advice - I will look into SATs!
SpiritManager: to be honest I’m wary about saying any specific composers I want to study with; though there are many that I look up to and love the music of, in my experience that has had less correlation than I would like with their abilities as teachers.
In the UK I know the students of many of the notable London teachers, so I can get a general idea, but unfortunately I don’t know any composition students studying in the US, and am woefully uninformed about specific teachers in the States …

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I think that in general, a university versus conservatory might work well for your, financially and musically. Oberlin Conservatory would be the exception that I know about, in terms of both, but I don’t know how many grants they give to internationals.

Freestanding conservatories are expensive and merit aid is often not enough.

At the undergrad level, the teacher isn’t as important as at the grad level, for some. The general aesthetic of a school can be important, but even then, I still believe that diversity in student works is a good sign at the undergrad level.

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