Best LAC music departments

Thank you @rayrick (and everyone else!) Just for clarification, is the Wheaton on your list the one in Massachusetts or the one in Illinois?

Wheaton in Illinois. It has a very strong religious affiliation, so if you were concerned about that with regard to St. Olaf, it would likely be even more of an issue for you with Wheaton.

By the way, with regards to St. Olaf, my understanding is that a good half of the student body is not particularly religious at all. I was talking to one parent who has a gay, non-religious kid there who is having a great experience. It’s on my son’s short list, and he does not have any particular religious convictions. To be honest, however, we visited when there were no students on campus, and he’ll need to go again while school is in session and perhaps do an overnight before he’ll be convinced it’s really the place for him. We’re hoping he’ll be invited for a live music audition in February, which would provide him an opportunity to do that.

Just an opinion but…

When looking at schools we of course looked at st Olaf. But we started realizing a trend in the area towards “choir schools”. Luther and st olaf have amazing choirs. Most of my D’s music teachers in schools attended those 2 schools. There is a strong choir commitment by these Lutheran schools as a part of their history, tradition and spirituality And by Lutheran I mean garrison Keillor Lutheran - meaning you mind your own business and you don’t proselytize. The st Olaf choir has a xmas show in the cities that’s televised yearly. It’s part of the fabric of the community’s xmas traditions. And of course these schools produce some great soloists with such a rich tradition in music. So the large number of students for some of these schools probably reflect the commitment to choirs.

Enjoy your visit to st Olaf in February. Just don’t forget your parka, hat, mittens, scarf and long underwear.

I know very little about Luther, but with regards to St. Olaf, while I know their choirs are a big deal, their instrumental music is also superb. They have two full orchestras and two full symphonic bands, and their top orchestra won a national award for best college orchestra last year. I’ve heard recordings and they are stupendous.

The University of Rochester has an excellent music program and allows any undergraduate who has met the prerequisites for a given course to study at their conservatory. In terms of LACs, Hamilton has an excellent, if seemingly underrated, program.

U of Rochester is a good suggestions. Baldwin Wallace - Berea, Ohio