<p>My son will be auditioning for piano performance on January 27. He has also applied to UR for the double degree program. Are there music major/double degree parents or students out there that would be willing to share their experiences on the program, audition process, shuttle bus, etc.? Any input will be appreciated.</p>
<p>Thanks,
Chris</p>
<p>Chris,
I don't know much about Eastman, but I am from Rochester and my kids take lessons at Eastman, so if you have any general travel-related questions I could help maybe.</p>
<p>Thanks for the offer weenie. Do you have any suggestions for reasonable places to eat lunch and dinner right around the school of music? We will be staying downtown but are a little too cost conscious to eat at our hotel. Also, do you park in the ramp by the school when you take your kids? Is that the best spot?
Thanks,
Chris</p>
<p>Chirs,
I usually parallel park on Gibbs St - but it is a challenge, and it is a 2-hour limit. The ramp is your best bet.</p>
<p>For downtown eating, I highly recommend Dinosaur Bar B Que or Veneto.</p>
<p>Dinosaur's web site:
<a href="http://www.dinosaurbarbque.com/%5B/url%5D">http://www.dinosaurbarbque.com/</a>
Everything there is great. It's a REAL casual place, but very highly regarded. Very reasonably priced - lots of food. </p>
<p>Veneto web info:
<a href="http://www.rochesterdines.com/newsrev/features/0124veneto.html%5B/url%5D">http://www.rochesterdines.com/newsrev/features/0124veneto.html</a>
Veneto is walking distance from Eastman, Dinosaur is a little farther. (At Veneto I recommend the Farfalle with prosciutto and alfredo.) </p>
<p>Rochester has GREAT restaurants - don't eat at your hotel. Two great coffee shops in the area - Java's (right next door to Eastman - turn left as you come out of Eastman) and The Spot (down East Ave a bit). Both of them serve sandwiches at lunch time. If you go down Gibbs St towards East Ave (not East Main), turn left on East Ave and walk across a little highway, you get to a neighborhood called the "East End." It has lots of bars and restaurants. (Veneto is there.) There is a diner across the street from Eastman (called Center Stage Cafe - lunch/breakfast only) which recently changed hands, so I don't know how the food is now. The Park Ave neighborhood (which is close to downtown) also has lots of good restaurants, including Jines which is a diner we eat breakfast in often.</p>
<p>Ignore the panhandlers - unfortunately there are a few down there. Also forgive Rochester's sometimes bad appearance in the winter. When the weather is nicer there is a lot of sidewalk cafe action around down there - it's nice.</p>
<p>Good luck to your son!!</p>
<p>Chris,
I should add, Dinosaur is super busy on weekends, go EARLY. Veneto is also busy, make a reservation there.</p>
<p>weenie,
Thank you very much! Dinosaur looks like the perfect place for us. Hopefully his audition won't run too late in the afternoon. We are both very excited to experience Eastman when there are students around. It was pretty quiet when we visited last summer. Thanks also for the good wishes.
Chris</p>
<p>Hey, are those restaurants like right outside the campus? i heard that tacos are big at colleges. is it the same here? and do many students cook on their floor?</p>
<p>No... Maybe... No...</p>
<p>Dino BBQ is a couple mile walk (along the Genessee, but I do not suggest you travel alone :))
The closest is The Distillery which is an amazing restaurant...</p>
<p>All the fraternity rushes have Taco Bell :) (But you aren't allowed to do that until your second semester...)</p>
<p>Pianomom -- how was your son's audition? What were your impressions of Eastman and did you get any positive feedback? Also, what other schools did he apply to? Just curious as to what you think his chances are. Hope he did well!</p>
<p>violinmom,
I'll start with this summer. My son is currently a double degree sophomore at Lawrence. Last spring he expressed his desire to transfer to a more intense/competitive piano program. His teacher (an Eastman graduate) recommended a particular professor at Eastman. My son contacted this professor and lined up a visit and lesson in July. He really liked the teacher. He was not so hot on the atmosphere on the Eastman campus and felt he had little chance to get in, but thought he'd give it a try. He loved the U of Rochester, the curriculum, the campus, and every single person he spoke to. He would have transferred that day if he knew he could get into Eastman. </p>
<p>Piano majors must be prescreened by sending their app., resume and a cd. We honestly did not think he'd get an audition. I had thrown out the folder we were keeping so we were extremely surprised when he got the email saying he was scheduled for the end of Jan. </p>
<p>The undergrad piano program is very strong, with excellent teachers, piano pedagogy and piano literature, and he felt this would satisfy his goal of being the worst pianist they let in to the best possible program. He was one of three undergrads auditioning that day for piano. He did fairly well. He also attended the studio class of the professor with whom he'd like to study. That was very exciting for him and he was very impressed with the level of playing. Every one was friendly and helpful. He had a completely different opinion of Eastman after visiting when the students and faculty were there. Eastman/Rochester moved from number three to number one that weekend. He thought the Student Living Center (we even ate in the cafeteria) was very nice and that the shuttle to the River Campus is no big deal. </p>
<p>We also attended a DMA piano accompanying recital and the opera while we were there. I would say his chances of getting into that professor's studio are slim to none, but he gave it a good try. He also feels that he will definitely try again when it's time to audition for grad programs. </p>
<p>My biggest piece of advice is to not visit Eastman in the summer and save it for when school is in session.</p>
<p>The other schools he's auditioning at are U of Michigan this week and Oberlin in March.</p>
<p>pianomom,
Glad to hear his audition went well! Rochester can be a bit of a tough sell in the winter, but it is much livelier down there when the students are there. Really, it is much nicer when the weather warms up a bit! :)</p>
<p>Good luck to him.</p>
<p>hi...i bet it's still manageable...i'm gonna spend half of winter doing training in the indoor tennis courts! lol...o yeah...and do my regular coursework...sure...</p>
<p>Thanks Weenie,
We both had a much better impression of Rochester this time around. We got very lucky with the weather. It was 42 degrees on the audition day. We saw two girls in shorts and flip flops at the River Campus! You are fortunate to have so much going on in your city.
Chris</p>