<p>From previous posts I assumed that Fredonia has a better program then Crane. However, my daughter's private teacher tells her otherwise. Does anyone have any additional information? Also, where does Hartwick fit in?</p>
<p>clarinetmom, you might want to contact Momof3Stars. Her daughter auditioned (music ed/horn) at both SUNY Potsdam and Crane. </p>
<p>Her experiences might help to confirm yours.</p>
<p>I'm a student at Crane, feel free to send me a PM.</p>
<p>Otherwise, it depends on what your major is, the ed. program at Crane is one of the strongest, however, from what I hear Fredonia is much more intense in theory and aural skills.</p>
<p>Your D's choice may end up depending on the clarinet faculty at the schools. Has she had a lesson at both Crane and Fredonia? Or is distance from home a factor? After visiting and numerous trips to Crane for area all-state, honors choirs, etc. my D decided not to apply, she just got negative vibes. I think part of this is that she knows many students and teachers who have gone there and for us, it is the "local" music school and D. wants to go somewhere different than "everyone" else. I think she felt that for her, it would almost be like a continuation of high school (many high schoolers from here also attend SUNY Potsdam for other subjects). On the other hand, I know several kids from her high school who have attended or are attending Crane and have loved their time there. D visited Fredonia 3 times (including audition day) and loves it there- the school of music, friendliness of faculty and students, reputation, etc. She is currently struggling with her final decision. Sorry to have no experience with Hartwick. D has a friend who is debating between there and SUNY Oneonta (not for music), and loves them both, Hartwick offered her a great merit scholarship.</p>
<p>I can pretty much echo what MusMom said word for word, total agreement.</p>
<p>In my D's case, we loved the horn teacher there but Crane was just not for us. You would have to understand my D. She is not your typical music student, even though she is a Horn player she tends to think outside the box more musically and our impression of Crane is that it is a very serious place, with a yearn to be conservatory like. At Fredonia we found a totally different atmosphere, the students and faculty were serious about education (and music ed in particular) but still had a wonderful way of not taking themselves too seriously. We both felt immediately comfortable there.<br>
As MusMom said, we also know people who have gone to Potsdam and loved it. I know of one girl in particular that had no other options (she was not accepted anywhere else, not a music student) and felt forced to go there and ended up loving it. You really and truly have to visit to decide, if there is one thing I have learned on this journey it is that.</p>
<p>Also, if this means anything to you. One of the first things that we learned at Crane that caused us to discount them was that my D loves theater, particularly musical theater. If this is something that is in your heart as well (even if it is playing in the pit orchestra) there are limited opportunities at Potsdam to participate in this. At Fredonia all theater and dance are open to people of all majors and there is A LOT of it to go around. I believe they do at least 2 musicals a year and 2 theater productions a year. Also, at Fredonia all music students are required to be in Choir their first year and since my D loves to sing but is not a "singer" this is a great way for her to keep up with that passion without having to make it a choice. </p>
<p>Whatever you do you will be fine. I do think it is imperative to visit and meet the clarinet teachers at both places.</p>
<p>As far as Hartwick goes, I don't know much other than a friend's D auditioned on flute there. They did not offer much in the way of scholarships so she is not attending. She will probably attend the College of St Rose. For the private tuition price Ithaca would probably be a better choice but that is JMO.</p>
<p>Your private teacher's opinion on Crane is probably based on Crane's reputation. Did the teacher go to Crane herself? I find that once a Craneite always a Craneite. Crane graduates are notoriously loyal to the school, so that should tell you something there. Same with Ithaca, my D received enormous pressure about Crane from Crane graduates (plentiful around here) and enormous pressure about Ithaca from Ithaca grads (our entire JH/HS music staff). Her JH music teacher (who is also my younger D's teacher) was even lobbying my younger D about why oldest should go there!! She did want to go to Ithaca but the cost was too high and in the end her HS band director told her if he had done it over again he would have gone to Fredonia rather than Ithaca. He said the debt he is in is not worth what he got out of it even though he loved his time there. Just food for thought for everyone here.</p>
<p>I don't want to appear anti-Crane, because I am not (after all, my Dad is a "Cranie"!), but, in addition to Euphgal, you may want to contact "Baritonevoce", or look up his posts. He will be transferring from Crane after this semester.</p>
<p>Thanks for all the input. Fredonia is getting a new clarinet professor so we don't know who it is yet. "A" is going to band camp at Fredonia this summer with the retiring professor, but will at least get a feel for the campus. My daughter's private teacher went to Ithaca and loved it so that will definitely be on our list. How early should you do a private lesson? She is only in 10th grade but logistically it would be easier to start soon.</p>
<p>10th grade seems early to me for scheduling a practice -private lesson, especially since, as you can see, teachers move around a bit, retire, etc, and also because your daughter will become a stronger player over time; if she just wants to get a feeling for the campus and the studio generally and the logistics work out, however, it might be worth contacting the teacher to inquire. D's first experience with a sample lesson came a little too early (even though it was spring of junior year), and was a bit discouraging although just visiting the campus and meeting the teacher and students was fun and got us started on the process. The lessons she took later that summer and early fall were much better and she got more out of them.</p>
<p>
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...at both SUNY Potsdam and Crane.
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</p>
<p>I just realized that that should have read "at both SUNY Potsdam and Fredonia." </p>
<p>Mea culpa. Feel free to headslap me.</p>
<p>clarinetmom, depending on how wide you cast your net, anytime is "ok" for arranging a trial lesson. Academics, extracurriculars, maybe employment can make free time hard to come by. Arranging a lesson time/day around student/parent/faculty availability can be tricky. </p>
<p>Given nycm's valid comment, you and d in consultation with her current private instructor can have a fairly good indicator if she is ready. A lot depends on her current level of ability. An early lesson may help pinpoint potenially weak areas or technique, and allows time for corrective actions. </p>
<p>It may be hard to squeeze in a lesson on "open" visit days at a college, just because of the number of students unless you arrange it early; many times a personal visit works better than a published open house date. </p>
<p>Anytime, anywhere will work, if artist faculty is performing locally and you can arrangement it. But with the rising costs of gas and airfare, consolidating school visits and lessons will often make the most sense.</p>
<p>I would suggest making preliminary contacts as early as possible contingent on the number of lessons/schools within your list.</p>
<p>In our neck of the woods, Fredonia is the school our music kids go to, but as with Crane for the above posters, my D was turned off by going where everyone else went. She went to music camp at Fredonia so she could meet the horn teacher and see the campus, but although she loved the teacher, she just did not want to be in Fredonia. She ultimately did not audition there. One of her best friends is going there next year for Clarinet...that is the only place she wanted to go and the only place she auditioned (yikes!). My D auditioned at Crane, but off campus, and we had visited fall of Jr year, so she didn't remember it well. From Crane, she got the impression that it was a bit more Performance major oriented than she wanted. Ithaca was a top choice, but after the audition, just not a good fit for her. She has decided to go to Mansfield University in Pennsylvania (where NYers get a Good Neighbor tuition rate). The emphasis there is definitely on Music Education vs Performance, which is very important to her. The program is large enough to offer choices, but not big enough to get lost in the shuffle. They also have a big marching band for those that have that in their blood!</p>
<p>One question I kept asking my D was "What is your ultimate goal? ". She kept regularly saying that she wanted to teach General Music to elementary students. That goal resulted in her looking for different things in a college program than the student who dreams of conducting a high school band or orchestra or someone who really wants to be a performer.</p>
<p>hi - i am so happy to find a student at Crane. My daughter, a junior in HS is a violist and wants Music Teacher Education. She knows-has heard from her teachers-that Potsdam has an excellent Mus Ed program. She doesn't think she wants to go there in fear that it is too rural and too small. We will visit in the summer, but until then i don't want her to count Crane out. Can you describe the surroundings/what life is like there? What year are you in and how has your experience been?</p>
<p>Does anyone know where ClarinetMom's D ended up going?</p>
<p>My son will be attending Crane this coming September, double majoring in Music Ed and Performance. We have made several trips up and my son has attended camp there. My D will be attending Crane Camp this coming Summer as well. </p>
<p>To answer some of the questions posed it should be noted that SUNY Potsdam is the smallest SUNY school in the system. It is only 10 miles from SUNY Canton which is larger. While the Potsdam area can be considered rural let me say that Frednoia is not exactly the big city. You will pass cows in pastures on the way to both. I have seen way more rural than Potsdam for sure. It's a nice small town and is one of the aspects that attracted my son.</p>
<p>We are lucky in that he has wanted to attend Crane for years.</p>
<p>As Sagiter said, both Fredonia and Potsdam are quite rural. However, Fredonia is about 45 min from Buffalo with shuttles throughout the day so there is that as well. If airport and train access are a factor in anyone's decision you may want to consider that too. My D and her friends have gone to Broadway show tours, concerts, Buffalo Bills games, hockey games, shopping at the Galleria, museums, etc. UB is not far and they always have great guest lecturers and anyone can attend. </p>
<p>Also, my D took her car to college with her and I am so much more comfortable with her almost entire drive being on the NYS Thruway rather than on secondary highways. Ofc that was not our only factor in deciding but it was a bonus. Even comparing Fredonia to Ithaca, I cannot say I would have necessarily let D take her car had she gone to Ithaca as the hill there is pretty steep and I would not want her driving it in bad weather.</p>
<p>As far as size of town and what is there I was shocked at how little Potsdam had considering there are so many colleges within the area. That isn't something that everyone cares about though. </p>
<p>Long and the short of it all is if you are trying to decide between the two a visit to both schools is extremely important. I think anyone will notice the extreme differences between the attitudes of both schools. Almost all of my D's classmates at Fredonia also auditioned at Potsdam and pretty much they all have the same reasons for choosing Fredonia. I am sure at Potsdam you will see much of the same thing, most auditioned at Fredonia and chose Potsdam for mainly the same reasons.</p>
<p>Momof3stars:
If I remember correctly, clarinetmom's D is still in HS</p>
<p>Momof3stars again:
Yup, look at post #7!</p>