<p>I am a high school student looking for good Vocal performance programs. Does anyone have thoughts on the following schools? Or suggestions for other schools?</p>
<p>Vanderbilt
USC
UT Austin
U Maryland College Park
NYU
BU
Carnegie Mellon
SUNY Purchase or Postdam</p>
<p>This thread should probably get moved to the Music Forum - but I’d add Indiana University to your list.</p>
<p>I would add Florida State University to your list.</p>
<p>Can you afford all those OOS programs? For opera I’m surprised Cincinnati and Oklahoma City University aren’t on your list. </p>
<p>And I’ll move this to the Music Forum.</p>
<p>Welcome to the music majors forum stanatedj. Can you tell us a ltitle more about what you are looking for? There are a lot of good places for an undergraduate. What is your background and how long have you been studying voice? Have you visited any schools yet? It looks like you are focussing on universities and not conservatories. Are there specific university experiences you are looking for in addition to music?</p>
<p>More informatoin will help those on this forum with suggestions. </p>
<p>I’m surprised Oberlin, Juilliard, and the Manhattan School aren’t on your list!</p>
<p>There are a few things you should keep in mind. As an 18/19 year old performer, your voice will be going through critical changes over the course of your 4 years in school. What you need most of all is a teacher who will help you build good technique to keep your voice SAFE. Any teacher who’s students sound old beyond their years is a teacher to avoid. those students will get recognition now, but it will not pay off in the future when they suffer from a wobble, uneven tone, “mezzo-itis”, and possible serious vocal health issues. </p>
<p>This is the time to create a foundation. Your voice will really start to grow and change around 23 years old, which is after your undergraduate degree! </p>
<p>Secondary to a good teacher is the opportunity for stage experience. it’s not terribly important that you get lots of time on stage and it can often be a distraction and allow bad habits to form as you perform with constantly shifting technique. BUT coming out with no stage skills means you’ll have to catch up later.</p>
<p>That’s my advice! Keep your voice safe, even if some people would rather you sounded ‘older’ or ‘rounder’. They’re just going to have to wait until that happens naturally. </p>