<p>Can a current Duke student or someone who knows about Duke's Music program tell me more about how it ranks compared with other school's music programs? I've been playing piano for 9 years and am planning to minor in some sort of music. I'm in love with Duke, but I need to know if it has an above average Music program. Thanks!</p>
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<p>Yea, probably, but you probably won’t get a Juiliard or Peabody education at Duke. From the piano class I took last semester, the piano teachers here seemed really competent. Many of my friends are great musicians, and they have often expressed their approval of the Duke music program to me.</p>
<p>My son is a Duke sophomore majoring in music, with an emphasis in composition/music theory. He hopes to pursue graduate studies and to eventually teach. In these areas, Duke has good strength - there are 4 Ph.D. composers on faculty who received their doctorates from Yale, Penn, Princeton and Cal/Berkeley - not shabby! If your interest is in instrumental perfomance, Duke obviously provides some opportunity, but in all candor there are a host of major universities with much stronger traditions in instrumental performance than Duke and, of course, there is the conservatory route. Duke does not offer a BSM. Of course, if your interest is strictly for a minor, almost any college with a department can meet your needs.</p>
<p>How competitive are auditions for the symphony orchestra?</p>
<p>my son was in the Symphony for four years. His “chair” assignment in his section was middling as was his talent. He is a very competent string player who adores classical music and he was in regional and district orchestras in high school but not good enough for high school state symphony chairs. Some of the lead chairs are exceptional players indeed. The Duke Symphony is less demanding in time compared to the Vanderbilt Symphony at their Blair Conservatory they have there as an example…my other son is at Vandy and he gave up his instrument since he is not good enough or committed enough to play with conservatory students at their level. The Duke Symphony is an actual possible place for middling to excellent players, unlike your odds at Rice for instance which also hosts a conservatory of world class standards. </p>
<p>If you are competent you will likely find a home in the Duke Symphony. Auditions are reasonable and everyone is made to feel welcome. There are often a few adults and grad students in the mix but overall it is an undergraduate program with a good sense of community and good spirits. Sometimes there are guest artists on various instruments. Prepare to meet a few great talents in the Duke orchestra who will amaze you and prepare for a lot of fun. The students are devoted to their conductor. </p>
<p>My son took string lessons from a member of the Ciompi Quartet (he rarely missed their performances)…a great mentor for him and a true pleasure. Freshman year you can walk to Symphony practice because it is held on East Campus where you will also perform. Later you must come from West Campus. There are places you can lock up your instruments during the week. The Symphony has traditions including one annual trip for a cancer fund raiser in Beaufort, South Carolina where Duke has a cancer center. The community really turns out in anticipation annually to welcome the Duke students and the students enjoy this trip. You can see them performing on youtube. You might be surprised at how many Duke students took music lessons throughout their childhoods and they are quite good.
Academic work is so demanding at Duke that the Symphony is a relative place for friendship and creativity and a great outlet without interfering with your chances to go abroad or take a semester off if necessary. Rehearsals…hmm…I think they are weekly but perhaps they were twice a week before performances. There is usually one collaboration with Opera singers annually which is a blast.<br>
Also there is an annual competition to honor the best student musician in the Symphony. The winner gets a featured solo performance with the backing of the whole group. My only complaint about the Symphony is that the hall acoustics are unworthy and I wish Duke cared more about the facilities for performance. That said, Baldwin on East is a homey venue, East campus has its charms and the Durham community has fans who also attend.</p>
<p>Are lessons mandatory to be in the symphony orchestra?</p>
<p>Thanks Faline2 for your help! I definitely can’t wait to audition next year!</p>
<p>lessons are not mandatory. not that many in the symphony take lessons. I would say music majors, music minors, people in other majors with special musical talent take lessons, students who have accepted difficult roles in the performances might take lessons. my son took lessons to see if he could improve some as a player and because of his respect for the Ciompi Quartet teachers…who are marvelous. I thought he was gutsy to play with a master which he is decidedly not. Also you get a fraction of academic credit for Symphony and for private lessons. Mainly, our son got good memories and wonderful conversations with his teacher from Ciompi’s line up. He considers the Symphony to have been one of the great pleasures and constants of his four years at Duke, a new place to make friends on different terms and a place that was very soulful. Of course he also went abroad for a semester, but he was pretty constant in attendance. Some students take a year off if they have major distractions. And will repeat…the conductor has the respect of the students and they love him.
I should also say that many students do not take their instruments off of East Campus and limit their rehearsal time to the two nights a week on schedule…just being honest. Rehearsals are serious business but Duke students by and large are not music majors and those with lesser roles don’t practice daily. This is not true at colleges with conservatories. My son’s wish to improve at Duke was his own. He also took a couple of music courses that were wonderful for him. I should add that Duke’s Program budget is amazing. He saw many world class soloists and groups perform at Duke…Duke brings in huge talent names annually and the entire triad enjoys buying tickets. Many of the guest performers are booked into the greatest music halls in the world. Just another Duke perk</p>
<p>Thank you so much!! I was hesitant about auditioning before, but now I will definitely give it a shot.
:)</p>
<p>you won’t have any problem…warm up a bit in July and August and if you poke around on their website you will see that they want you to play something…it is all specified by instrument. They do place people in chairs by audition but they are always looking for more players as entire groups graduate annually. </p>
<p>congrats on your admission to Duke</p>
<p>may you build a ladder to the stars
and climb on ever rung</p>
<p>make three or four “homes” for yourself at Duke while you are there…the permutations about how to spend your time are rather endless and varied like the student body</p>
<p>…hope Symphony will be one of them</p>
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Thie excellent piece of advice made me smile fondly. So many opportunities: do explore and sample.</p>
<p>Again, thanks so much for your help and words of advice!!! I can’t wait for orientation!!</p>