Vassar has a very strong music program. S1 was accepted into a conservatory double degree program but chose Vassar and did a double major in music and a science. Vassar has only a few distribution requirements so it is ideal for a double major. Hamilton is another school to consider - we heard several music groups there and they were great! Make sure you attend rehearsals or concerts to check out the vibe, S1 knew that Vassar was his top choice after listening to their orchestra rehearse for only five minutes!
@MIttWitt just saw that you think your son might be interested in a âBA with a music performance trackâ and wanted to clarify that many BA programs do not have a âperformance track.â It is more of an academic, liberal arts major in many schools. That may include, however, lessons (often funded, very often for credit), extracurricular performance, and some inclusion of performance aspects in classes (depends on the school).
Again, when considering a BA, it can be wise to avoid schools that also have a BM program, since the best teachers and opportunities may go to the BM students. There are exceptions but just something to keep in mind.
Since many BA programs donât have auditions (but welcome music supplements) this is a lower stress route to the study of music, and can indeed result in attendance at an MM program after graduation.
I applied to a few BA programs that offer performance concentrations, specifically Duke and Notre Dame.
Two universities that offer performance track options in a non-music school environment are Emory and Washington University in St. Louis. I can tell you that the level of musicianship at those schools does not come close to audition-in music schools, but itâs an option for a musician who wants to prioritize academics over music.
Thatâs why I wrote âmany BA programsâ rather than an absolute statement. It is something to watch out for.
I pretty much qualify every thing I write because there is so much variation 
I did look up the Duke program as an example. https://music.duke.edu/undergraduate/major/concentration-in-performance
Basically their âperformance concentrationâ consists of lessons and performance in departmental enembles. Every school presents to performance aspects of the degree a little differently. As an example, Princeton offers a âperformance certificate.â
I donât think that Duke or Princeton actually offer any more performance than other schools that give credit for lessons and playing in ensembles, within a general academic music major. The ones I know best are Harvard and Tufts.
BTW Tufts has a new music major https://as.tufts.edu/music/students/undergraduate/majorMusic2. Harvard has also diversified their curriculum recently without changing the name of the concentration.
Itâs all in the details!!!
Here is an example of a general music major that does give credit for lessons and ensemble participation but does NOT mention a performance track: https://www.brown.edu/academics/music/undergraduate/concentration-requirements
Every single school is going to be a little different with this. You really have to research. If you only look for schools with a performance track in the BA, you will miss some!
@compmom is absolutely right that âitâs all in the details.â Princeton has its own peculiar vocabulary, using the word âcertificateâ for what is essentially a âminor.â The certificates seem to be of varying degrees of intensity, although Princeton describes its musical performance certificate as rigorous and likes to point out that many of its students go on to graduate school in musical performance and careers as professional musicians. (Princeton also uses the word âconcentrationâ instead of âmajor.â Heck, they also give AB degrees instead of BAsâdegrees are in Latin). There are a lot of great options out there for musicians and the important thing is what students do with the opportunities that are presented to them (and that they create for themselves) at whatever school they end up attending.
A few thoughts . . .
Regarding dual degrees, at USC in particular . . . We have very good family friends whose S has been admitted to USC as a dual degree Music (Thornton) and Comp Sci (Viterbi). While thatâs certainly a very difficult combo, they received complete support from both USC schools during the process. He was also admitted to UCLA and many other schools with the same dual degree choices.
Just to offer my own answer to @MittWit 's original question â âtop-notch academic schools with solid music programsâ which is different than the opposite âtop-notch music schools with solid academic programsâ and different than âtop-notch academic AND music programsâ or even " â which mirrors some of whatâs already been said (in no particular order), but with my own spin . . .
The top-tier of universities (listed in order of ranking per 2019 US News & World Report National Universities ) that also have prominent conservatories: Johns Hopkins / Peabody and Northwestern/Bienen (tied for 10th), Vanderbilt/Blair (14th), Rice/Shepherd (16th), UCLA/Herb Alpert (19th), USC/Thornton and Carnegie Mellon (tied for 22nd), University of Michigan (27th), NYU/ Steinhardt (30th), and Rochester/Eastman (33rd)
Some important caveats:
- Mind you, Iâm not in love with US News rankings by any means (e.g. I have no idea how they put Pepperdine higher than University of Texas for goodness sake), but itâs the best known and most cited, meaning itâs the best of a bad set of potential choices for rankings. .
-Moreover, these are overall undergrad rankings and may not be ordered correctly for a biochem or other related major.
- Yes, I know I left some very good schools off the list. I had to stop somewhere, and please know I mean absolutely no disrespect to you, your child, and/or their school if they arenât listed above.
- Finally and perhaps most importantly where this particular discussion board is concerned, this is definitely NOT how Iâd rank music programs, a process that I think is fraught with even more danger than ranking universities and that Iâd be very reluctant to do. . . . Even if one were to attempt such things in the broadest generalities, much of it depends on instrument and/or program. In other words, whatâs a reasonable grouping/ranking for classical pianists would likely be quite different than for classical bassoonists and certainly different for jazz pianists and/or composition or etcâŠ
WestofPCH those schools all have conservatories or schools of music with a BM degree (and your friend is doing a BS/BM double degree at USC).
A student who wants to do a BA in music often needs to avoid campuses that also have a BM program, because the best teachers and performance opportunities go to the BM students. There are exceptions and a need to do very thorough research.
For double degrees that include a BM, that list is useful but one could add many others, including Oberlin, Lawrence, Bard, Ithaca, Harvard/NEC and Tufts/NEC.
The ranking of, say, Johns Hopkins, academically, may not be that relevant to a Peabody student unless they are doing a double degree.
Hi @MittWit Iâm also a parent of an academically minded musician currently dual enrolled at Weinberg and Bienen. I canât answer your original question about auditioning in to the BM sophomore year, but I would just ask the dean of admissions if thatâs possible, and more importantly how often it actually happens.
It seems like many of the bases have been covered, but Iâd just add a thought, which is that no matter how flexible any school is in configuring its degree options, there is no institution of higher learning that can give these kids who âwant it allâ what they really need, which is a 28-32 hour day, and maybe an 8 day week (the Beatles were on to something). I think an important threshold question going in to choosing what degree path to pursue is" how likely is the student to pursue a MM performance degree?" If the answer is âextremely likely,â for most students (not all) a BM performance degree will make the most sense, simply because of that pesky problem of there only being so many hours in a day for classes, practicing and life. Which is not to say one cannot put in the hours of practicing etc. to prepare for the MM audition while pursuing a full time degree in something else, it just takes an extraordinary amount of self-discipline and focus. I donât think itâs an unreasonable statement to say that for most 18-22 year olds, itâs more likely to happen consistently if music is more woven into the regular academic schedule.
If the answer to that threshold question is âunlikelyâ or âdefinitely not,â then a whole world of options opens up, of course. The toughest place to be on that spectrum is â50/50â or ânot sure,â so itâs a question worth spending some time thinking and talking through a bit before the application process starts. I do think itâs in general easier to âdecelerateâ out of a BM in to a BA than it is to âaccelerateâ from a BA into a BM, simply because most BM programs hit the ground running with prerequisite music courses.
Good luck with your decision process! This stuff isnât easy!
It is tough to do i an exact 50/50 as was said above. Many years ago, I completed a BM in Flute performance from Hartt and a BA in chemistry from the University of Hartford as a dual degree program which took 4.5 years and three summers of classes. There was not enough time in the day (with the rehearsals and practicing required) to do the extra requirements for a BS in Chemistry. It was the correct decision for me at the time and I was one of the first people to do it.
I think a self motivated student who needs really strong academics/ music, could do best in a strong school with an excellent music program (Vassar, Hamilton, Tufts, etc.) especially, if there are fewer distribution requirements so those basic music courses can be fit into the first semester. As mentioned there is no preference given to the BM students for teachers or opportunities at the BA schools.
Then there is a âsurprise factorâ. S1 and S2 both went to Cornell for graduate school (not music) and found an awesome 98 member orchestra (all students) awaiting them there. The orchestra had only three music majors but was performing at at extremely high level. The orchestra traveled abroad two years - once to Dublin to play Mahlerâs 5th and once to Argentina to play Mahlerâs 6th. Both Mahler symphonies were performed in their entirety - it was very impressive! So that emphasizes the need to really delve deep in to the programs and listen to the groups when you visit - you may find a âhidden gemâ in a school you did not consider at first.
Lastly, apply to several type of programs, the dual degree, the double major, the âsurpriseâ school where you you just loved the music you were hearing and the people and vibe of the place. Keep an open mind as you figure out what works for your individual goals and think about how âflexibleâ it would be to switch paths and try new musical/academic experiences as you grow and change.
Brown and Amherst have flexible programs without gen eds, and Bennington. I am not sure what other schools doâŠ
@WestOfPCH are you sure your friendâs son was admitted to both Thornton and Viterbi? I believe both of the schools require you to put their school as your 1st choice major. My son was struggling with this since two years ago. He applied to RHP as a junior and reapplied to USC as a senior. He had to put his music major as 1st choice otherwise he would not be allowed to get to the slide room and submit his prescreen materials. Viterbi wouldnât consider you if you put their major as your 2nd choice.
@pdxtigermom I will double-check when I see them Monday Night.
Best combination of academic rigor, prestige and respected music programs.
Johns Hopkins/Peabody,
Northwestern/Bienen,
Rice/Shepherd
Vanderbilt/Blair,
UCLA/Herb Alpert,
USC/Thornton
Carnegie Mellon/CMSM.
@Riversider â your list comports with S19âs list. I would add that Jazz Performance (at least for guitar) is not available at Rice/Shepherd, Vanderbilt/Blair or Carnegie Mellon/CMSM.
@lkbux64 Blair offers a concentration in jazz, though you would need to combine it with another music degree.
@albertsax, true, but unfortunately, they expressly exclude guitar. Otherwise, it would have been on my sonâs list. He really liked Vandy when he visited.
@Riversider Rice actively discourages double degrees. It should not be on our list.
UCLA is not automatic: Students may petition to be reviewed for a minor and/or double major on an individual basis. Contact the Office of Student Services and Enrollment Management for an outline of criteria required for the petition.
USC can be tricky.: USC offers a wide range of majors and minors and we encourage students to double major (note - not double degree) or pursue major-minor combinations. However, applicants are not able to choose a combined program at the time they apply for admission. Applicants apply for, and are admitted to, only one major.
In Thornton: Students can take either a single major program or double majors in several combinations such as piano and composition, string, or percussion instrument. The two majors must be offered by different departments but lead to the same degree (for example, Bachelor of Music).
You should add Oberlin College/Conservatory, Eastman/Rochester, Lawrence University/Conservatory, Harvard/NEC/Berklee, Tufts/NEC, and Bard College/Bard Conservatory as programs which fully support double degrees.
Totally agreed with what @SpiritManager said, been there done that.