Although the UNT campus is open, my son has started his jazz education remotely from NY for safety sake. We were able to procure from a relative an empty office room in a nearby town so that he at least gets to leave home to do his classes and work. But he’s understandably demoralized by the remote music school experience so far. At the same time, he was full of dread about the idea of being on campus in a state where the covid numbers are scary high. It’s just a bad situation all around.
My daughter is in year 2 of a Masters in performance at ACSM, CUNY Queens. She has been home since the March “Escape from NYC” adventure. Her classes are all online and she is taking it one semester at a time. Getting the many small chamber sessions scheduled has been challenging as most faculty teach at multiple conservatories and the masters students have work schedules to juggle. It appears that a high majority of the music students enrolled this fall, which is encouraging for the school.
@arkham I don’t know what the numbers are like in Denton, but we have 11 active cases in our entire county here in Central Texas. The numbers are bad in Houston, San Antonio, Austin… But overall trending down. I definitely wouldn’t say things are scary, but that’s just from my perspective.
UNT must be on the conservative side in their COVID management… I have been waiting patiently to bring S22 percussionist for a tour of the campus and music school. They are not doing any in-person tours right now, while other colleges in the state have resumed tours already.
How much is your S practicing? I am not saying anything to my D20 about her practice schedule because I know things are far from normal and its difficult to get motivated without being around peers or playing in ensembles. (As I shared above, she is taking classes from home and is currently enrolled as a performance major, but may switch to BA or even MusEd.)
@murray93 @arkham my son is a music major at UNT. I’m glad they offered both remote and in person options . Midsummer the numbers in Texas weren’t in a good place. Denton does seem to have not had as much of a spike as other places in Texas, and certainly not as bad as it was here at home in Arizona in June and July.
My son is in Denton with some in person classes. We sent him back for the sake of his mental health and because we were comfortable with the situation and still are. The current numbers in Denton county are low, and the zip code my son lives in (And that UNT is in, I believe) has only 50 active cases. The entire county hasn’t been reporting very many daily new cases, even with school recently back in session. I’ve been monitoring local news and the parents Facebook page along with what UNT publicizes, and there hasn’t been anything to alarm me yet. When we moved S in (off campus apartment) people in Denton and on campus were masked up and being respectful of precautions.
I hope @arkham son is having a reasonable experience with remote classes. My son has had a mostly positive experience with them, after the initial adjustment period for everyone in the spring. He even took advantage of the situation and took theory 3 and 4 remotely from home over the summer. He would still rather be fully in person, and having to juggle both in person and online classes in the same day is tricky at times when there’s a short turnaround between them. I think (Hope!) he’s given up on doing French diction Zoom on the shuttle between his apartment and campus and is going earlier and doing all his zoom classes from campus that day.
@Parentof2014grad Thanks for the report on UNT. I’m glad Denton is doing well and I’m not surprised to hear this. I can’t wait to get up there sometime soon and check it out! Are you able to share your son’s major and/or instrument?
My son is Choral Music Ed. He auditioned in on voice and cello. Scholarship is voice so that’s primary but he Is also taking concentration level lessons on cello (Same as voice lessons) and keeping up with that as much as is possible. He also plays piano well and has opportunities to use that in various capacities and more than I expected. He loves it at UNT. He’s a sophomore.
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My son took applied clarinet lessons via Zoom/Skype/Face Time from his UD instructor from March and throughout the Summer… so about 5 months . After the initial adjustment period, trying to figure out what worked best - FaceTime won- it was fine . According to his current instructor who auditioned him in February, he improved greatly since they met . So, I guess the FaceTime lessons worked . Not ideal, but definitely better than nothing. His current instructor who is 2nd clarinetist with the Pittsburgh Symphony, said he did an entire Summer Institute (Aria International Summer Academy where he is faculty ) , over Zoom and it works . He was warning his current students that it might happen later on and to be ready and not afraid of it . He has a few students stuck overseas who attend Zoom classes.
MPSOM - Mary Pappert School of Music at Duquesne University . What’s SLAC ? Excited to see another clarinetist around these parts . Look @mom2clarinetobsessedkid … another one 
Good to see you !
It IS indeed bizarre to see such vast differences between schools.
Is your D20 a freshman or graduating this year ? Confused . A D24?
@BenniesMom1 SLAC = small liberal arts college. She just graduated high school this past spring, so she’s a first year right now. I was not super active in the music area of this forum because she selected her school, auditioned and applied ED, and that was it. Yes, the Zoom is better than expected and she is absolutely getting something out of it. But she deeply misses out on the camaraderie with other musicians. If campus isn’t open in the spring, I’d like for her to try and petition to be there.
@Parentof2014grad That is fantastic! Wow he must be busy!!
@murray93 yes he is extremely busy. Time management is beyond important in music school in general and for him specifically, Covid has added another layer of complication to what was already complex.
Yes my D is quickly learning this. I think the practice expectations are higher than she thought and she is struggling with how much practice time is appropriate. I think it would be helpful for her to cue off of the energy, commitment, and experience of the older music students, but right now she doesn’t have that luxury at home.
Late to the party but I will second @ClassCompMom 's assessment of NEC. Just left there after setting up my D in her apartment. It seems at this point that the school is doing a good job and she is enjoying being able to practice at the school and had good chamber experience already. Orchestra starts tomorrow. She is so glad to be back in Boston. It felt good to be there and see the city doing well. Her apartment is deep in Northeastern territory and there are tons of students around, almost all adhering to the rules. And I’m sure you have heard about the group of students from that school that were immediately sent home for violations - good examples for the others.
Here’s hoping for a successful year (which has a very different definition this year doesn’t it??)
Yes standards seems much higher - with all of the music theory he’s taken - even at a local university - D thought he’d do well in placement, but he was floored with what was on the test. He’s definitely having a some panic attacks but couldn’t agree more about time management - and using technology to keep organized when you’re used to going in person to classes. Unfortunately all academics and even his studio are online 
- only chorus rehearsal is in person next month. Thank goodness for ensemble!
The music building at my kid’s school is closed. My kid is a doctoral student in music. Unable to finish at the moment.
We are puzzled by the discrepancies among schools.
@Go Forth, do they have mats under the instruments? How does a face mask protect others when breath is coming out of the instrument? (face masks don’t really protect us, right?) Is there a fan blowing aerosol out into the larger space? Is anyone using a face shield?
There were documented cases of people more than 17 feet away in a restaurant catching COVID from one diner. It was all about ventilation and the direction of air. So I am guessing that the schools that are open are moving air properly.
Glad so many are able to play and good luck to all.
It’s great that so many kids are able to be at school in person. My older daughter is studying in person. She is a senior so three of her classes are in person. They are very small. Ranging from just her (composition lesson) to three people in her conducting class. The practice rooms are open. Her choir is virtual and a few of her other classes. It’s strange but they seem to be making it work.
My younger daughter just started at Berklee. She is at home. They are also making it work. I still feel she would have been better off if she could have gone to live in the dorms. Just from a social and collaborative standpoint. She has made friends but is the type of person who needs to feel comfortable before she jumps in all the way. She is going to pack up her equipment in a few weeks and go to stay with my older daughter for several weeks. They will both drive home together for Thanksgiving and finish up the semester here.
I’m hoping they have the kids back to the dorms in January. If not I think that she will move up to Boston and just move into an apartment.
I have seen over the last month or so, several live-streams on YouTube of European orchestra performances. Frankfurt Radio Symphony is one. They look very much like what UNT is doing with the wind symphony. No masks, except when the concertmaster walks out, he or she is wearing one, and soloists put them on after playing for the bowing and accolades portion. No mats or anything special equipment-wise for wind instruments that I have seen. Much smaller ensembles than the usual size for a symphony, and socially distanced, with a socially distanced audience, or no audience at all. I’d expect the masks UNT is using provide some protection, as the nose is covered.
My son is not a wind player but feels like the music department at UNT is being careful. Choir at is doing shorter rehearsals, and there is extra time. between ensembles using the rooms to allow for air exchange and cleaning. There’s more, obviously.
It is definitely interesting the different approaches to safety.
Nice to see a post from you @goforth hope your son is doing well.
Thanks to GoForth! Do those wind players simply make a hole in a cloth face mask? Or special kind face masks?? Anyway, I see no plexiglass or face shields that I had imagined months ago, even for a conductor. Theater seems new so there maybe a very good ventilation system.
My son’s college town re-opened all indoor businesses with a very limited capacity last week and he already had two gigs. We saw one of his performances at the jazz club by purchasing a streaming ticket. I could guess that there were very little “live” audiences at the club. So, the club sells all show tickets with a streaming option. I was very surprised that those musicians were playing just very casually, no plexiglass or social distances on smallish stage in a combo setting but with face masks, EXCEPT horn players. Only handful of jazz program students moved back to a college town so they are considered as a small music bubble to play together. I am very glad that he can play music “live” with other musicians but I am not lying, I am worried… Live music is still impossible in his home town here for awhile.
I really hope that his school starts testing “all off-campus students” regularly who access to practice rooms in campus and a town keeps maintaining the virus spread so businesses / economy can go on without another shutdown.
This is how Temple/Boyer is doing Wind Symphony. https://www.instagram.com/p/CErn7lDnYwY/
Small ensembles and LOTS of plexiglass. All non-music classes (and even some music ones like theory and piano) are online. Lessons and ensembles are still in person, plus access to practice rooms… S is very happy to be there and playing. He is living off campus and one of his roommates is also a percussionist so at least they aren’t lonely.
Commanding Conservatories in the Time of COVID-19: How 9 Music Schools Are Adapting As They Reopen This Fall—
https://www.wqxr.org/story/conservatories-covid19-music-schools-reopen-fall/