Indiana University- Jacobs School of Music??

College Majors Music Major
1

<p>We're heading out on a plane for audition weekend this Thursday. So far I feel like it might be a waste of time and money. My daughter contacted two teachers to see if she might have a sample lesson. These were teachers her present teacher recommended and she contacted them about my daughter. </p>

<p>One said she could observe a lesson. The other said she would listen to her play for 20 minutes and give her suggestions. It is costing a pretty penny to fly, rent a car, and stay over two nights so I'm disappointed they won't give her more. Is this unusual? At other schools, she was given a lesson - some teachers have charged, some have not but she has never been denied an actual lesson. </p>

<p>She is auditioning as a music education major- violin. They don't have a double major for performance which would be her preference. </p>

<p>I'm curious about the general atmospher at Jacobs School. Is it highly competitve? Do the music ed majors get fewer opportunities - are the performance majors favored?
If anyone can tell me what they know about Jacobs, I'd appreciate it. Thanks!</p>

2

<p>Can’t say much about her particular instrument and major, but I visited Jacobs over the summer and I enjoyed it a lot. It’s third on my list of 6 schools that I’ve applied and auditioned for. For all of the college visits I’ve had I have never even done a sample lesson at all and didn’t really know about such things until i came to this website so again I have no insight on that. But for me I like to just walk around the campus and get the feel for it. I think it’s pretty competitive with performance because half of the 1600 kids are graduate and with their extensive opera programs im sure its pretty rigorous, but im not sure about music ed. With the ensembles/orchestras etc. there might be but again that probably happens at a lot of music schools, especially ones with a high number of graduate students. best thing to do IS to just go there, and ask a ton of questions. if you can find any students thats better for you as well, i did all my touring during the summer so i could only talk to people that were there (few). I didn’t know much about it but it went up in my top schools because of what i experienced and saw…so you never know! and Bloomington is a really cool little town, on the smaller end but very centered around the arts/music.</p>

3

<p>Audition time is very busy for teachers so, while most try to fit in a student, it is not always possible, especially if the notice is short.</p>

<p>I think that observing a lesson can actually give a student a better feel for a teacher–the student does not have the person, subjective emotional investment and therefore can sit back as an objective observer. Your daughter will get a very good feel for the teacher’s style and can devote her full time and attention at the lesson to how the teacher interacts and teaches rather than having to stress about her own playing and what sort of impression she is making. Let’s face it, when you play at a lesson, nearly 100% of your mental energy and brain capacity goes into the playing rather than into assessing the teacher.</p>

<p>As for opportunities at Indiana: It is a huge school (most years, the largest music school in the US, although UNT and Berklee are close and in some years may surpass IU for music enrollment). With its size, come a wealth of opportunities. Indiana has more orchestras than any other North American school that I am aware of. Obviously with dozens and dozens of violinists and many grad violinists, orchestra placement and seating are both very competitive, but my understanding is that everyone gets an appropriate placement (which for many students is better for them than their desired placement).</p>

<p>Because there are so many activities going on at Indiana, I understand that violinists rarely lack for playing opportunities. I know that some other instruments (in particular, voice undergrads) often feel that they do not get the performance opportunities that they believe they would get elsewhere. The couple of undergrad violinists that I have heard of find themselves having to turn down optional playing opportunities due to being very busy.</p>

<p>As to how competitive the atmosphere is, I believe that there is a much broader range of talent at IU than at smaller violin schools like CIM, NEC and Juilliard. The top end at IU would be similar in calibre to most of the violinist students at CIM, NEC, and Juilliard. This means that overall IU can have a less driven feel, but, like all large schools, one can find pockets of almost anything. There are some top-notch violinists at IU that will help motivate and challenge the best. On the other hand, it is probably easier to stay out of the “race” at IU than it is at some other schools.</p>

<p>I think that you will get a good overall feel for the campus and school while there. Many love the Jacobs School, and some others do not. Many people seem to be able to make up their mind about Jacobs during their audition days–the strength of the first impression at Jacobs seems to be stronger than at other schools (either positive or negative) for many prospective students and parents.</p>

<p>I have heard very favourable things about most of the IU violin teachers. S studied with one at a summer program and with another for a few days in Bloomington.</p>

4

<p>I think that the reason the teachers don’t want to give a lesson timed so close to the actual audition day is that they don’t want to confuse the student with new input before the audition. That’s the way it was for my D at Eastman. Your D will learn a lot about the teacher through observing, and the 20 minutes of hearing her play with the other teacher will likely turn into a mini-lesson. Certainly enough for your D to get an idea regarding fit. Also, getting to the audition a few days early will allow your D to observe classes as well, so find out which classes may be open for visitors. Ditto for rehearsals. So I do think it’s a great idea to get to Indiana early, to really get a feel for the place. Good luck.</p>

5

<p>My daughter’s friend (bass player) had two lessons after his audition last year. IIRC, one was pre-arranged and one happened on the spur of the moment. In my daughter’s case, none of the teachers she listed for showed up at her audition. She did get in and got a substantial merit award, so we traveled back for her to play for teachers. It was still a problem, finding a time when everyone was in town, so we also traveled to two other cities to meet other teachers who were on the road performing. Sometimes I’m tempted to think it’s a little easier for bass players… then I remember that they have to lug those giant instruments all over the place.</p>

6

<p>Thanks everyone. We’ll see for ourselves very soon but it’s good to have a little information before going. I suppose if she falls in love with it, we’ll travel by car to get a lesson on a non- audition weekend.</p>

7

<p>We’re back and have had a lot of our questions answered. Overall it was a good experience. My daughter played for the teacher and was told that she would be accepted into her studio before the official audition. We were able to attend a studio class and my daughter was introduced to the rest of the students. The teacher is very nurturing and her students call her “Dr. Mom.” She seems to do a lot for her students, especially when it comes to getting them jobs. My daughter like the family like feeling she got from the students in the studio class. </p>

<p>While waiting around, we found a BME violin student who was able to give us an idea of what life as a BME student was like at Indiana. She was very positive. We also met with a violin performance major who was in my daughter’s studio when he was in high school. He’s doing very well at IU but didn’t know any BME students. I guess it’s a big place. </p>

<p>My daughter likes being among high level players. If she attends IU, she would have the opportunity to audition as a performance major and double major if she chooses, requiring 5 years to complete.<br>
She conflicted since she’s also been accepted at Ithaca College which touts itself as being the top music education school in the country. Indiana’s Music Ed. faculty isn’t as large but she could begin teaching her freshman year in a project school program where the teacher’s students teach underprivileged 1st and 2nd graders the violin. </p>

<p>Another perk to IU; she’s been accepted to Hutton Honors College which will get her into smaller (20-25) student classes, special living arrangements, and opportunities to meet distinguished visitors to campus.</p>