I don't know if I should quit music....

Pre-College Issues High School Life
1

<p>I'm a high school freshmen. I do love music, but I don't love practicing violin or piano. (In piano I am especially bored with the music...) However, as quitting music means quitting my membership in an advanced youth orchestra and in an honor program, I loose stuff that looks good to colleges, right? </p>

<p>In short: I love visual arts and I want to be an artist but I don't know if I want to stop music or take it less seriously because it will look good on colleges and I don't outright hate it. I would want to quit so I can spend more time and art and be generally happier, but I don't want to at the same time; I've been doing it for so long! </p>

<p>I'm just so conflicted because I feel obligated to do it for my parents, for college, and to sharpen a skill, but I also don't have any true passion for it. I do enjoy the youth orchestra though. (I do not enjoy the AP music theory class that I need for the honor program.)</p>

<p>My mom says quitting would I be a shame because It would waste my 'talent'...I sort of agree, given that I can play fairly well. </p>

<p>I am an artist. Visual arts is my passion, and my main reason for quitting (at least one instrument) is to have more time for what I truly love. I hope that when I improve enough, I will have so many art things to do, like online commission work, that I simply don't have time for music anymore, so I feel less guilty for quitting. (Which is not the case as of now.) Thing is, I could get to that stage more quickly if I spend more time on my art than music. I also want to be an artist, so shouldn't I put more time in that? Well, I do draw a lot more than I play music but I could use the extra time. </p>

<p>Thankfully, my grades are not a problem. I'm kind of worried for algebra II, but I did okay on the last test. </p>

<p>Perhaps I shouldn't quit; just take music less seriously? A worry is that I will ruin my relationship with my mom...I didn't win a scholarship in piano this year because I was less prepared (spending more time drawing) and she said she didn't care but she wouldn't look me in the face for days. </p>

<p>So, any advice? I'm grateful for the tiniest bit of help; this is the thing that is stressing me out the most right now...</p>

2

<p>I think that you should continue music because of how good youve become. You should keep your talents for at least the end of high school. You could try doing visual arts in your free time as a hobby</p>

3

<p>If you read a thread I started a day or two ago, you’ll see that I’m in a similar predicament. However, I haven’t taken music as seriously until now as you have.
Ultimately, you must weigh the pros (you’re good, your parents will be happy, boost to app) vs the cons (you won’t be as happy, you can’t do something that you like more, time). No one can make the decision for you but yourself. </p>

4

<p>Unless you are planning to become a professional musician, the only purpose of all that music is to enrich your life, and so from what you say it has lost its purpose, and is keeping you from what you’d really like to do. Tell your mom if it’s so important to have a pianist in the family, maybe she should start playing.</p>

5

<p>Thanks for the advice :)</p>

<p>The thing with my parents is that they want me to succeed, and learning music will help with that. They’ve paid for a ton of lessons…Quitting would make me feel guilty, since they gave me the opportunity to learn for my own benefit. </p>

6

<p>Since you say you enjoy the youth orchestra and are bored of piano, I suggest you drop piano and continue with the violin. You will still be pursuing music but you will also have more time for your endeavors. People’s interests change as they grow up. If you are confident that piano isn’t something you want to be doing anymore, and have been feeling like this for some time (not just that you had a bad week or something) I think you should move on. </p>

<p>I don’t see how continuing piano will help you “succeed”. Succeed at what? Are you saying you plan to do this for three more years just to impress colleges? Will you check the box that says you plan to pursue it in college as well, go through auditions, and tell your interviewers how excited you are to pursue piano at college–or will you admit to them that you’re planning to drop piano like a hot potato the day you get an acceptance letter because it wasn’t about the music, it was about what you could put down on your application that you think will impress them?</p>

<p>My daughter dropped piano because she became too busy with other things. She wasn’t anywhere near your level of accomplishment, but I am still kind of sad about it. But she hated practicing and she is very excited about the things she is doing instead, and actually she is spending a large part of the time liberated on visual arts, even though she says she doesn’t want to be an artist. </p>

7

<p>I didn’t read all of your paragraph, but DON’T QUIT. I did sophomore year and as a junior, I’m going back. I hate practicing and I thought I wouldn’t miss it but I really do. I used to have private lessons and I was in the youth symphony orchestra. Hopefully they will offer me my spot back!</p>