Is there such a thing...

College Majors Music Major
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<p>PennsylDad, I was hesitant to reply to this thread because of not knowing enough about your son’s piano playing or his academics to make useful suggestions. But I disagree with a few comments and I thought I would make a couple of comments myself. First, classical piano is an extremely competitive performance area. There is a very large pool of high level applicants to U.S. music conservatories and music schools in universities coming from all over the world. Since the number of students accepted at each school is not that large, and there might be hundreds of applicants for piano, many very advanced pianists will be applying to places that are not considered the very top tier or be as well-known in addition to the big name schools. Secondly, even schools that do not have names as reknowned as Juilliard, for example, may have reknowned piano faculty who are in great demand (some of these teach primarily graduate students). So I think that these days, there will be tough competition for audition based admission to a number of schools outside of the level of those schools you mentioned where your son was not confident of gaining admission. </p>

<p>In response to the replies, I wanted to mention that I disagree with funkydrummer about Michigan, they have a highly competitive piano program, not significantly different than the schools your son mentioned. And in response to other comments, I would not underestimate Boston U, Vanderbilt, Lawrence or DePaul in terms of competitiveness for classical piano performance. Like I said, there are a lot of strong applicants these days. (My comments are about classical piano, I know nothing about jazz piano programs). </p>

<p>I do not mean to be discouraging. But I think it would be important for your son to ask his piano teacher for suggestions of schools that he has a reasonable chance for acceptance. Also, I recommend visiting a few schools and getting sample lessons in order to get more information/feedback. I assume that at this point, he is already working on audition repertoire? Is he preparing for classical and jazz auditions? </p>

<p>The question of how he wants to prioritize interest in jazz vs. piano or commit to one or the other should be addressed. Depending on the answer, that will possibly reduce the number of schools he would want to consider quite a bit. I imagine the number of schools in which a student could balance those two areas would be relatively small. I am thinking that he might be more likely to find that kind of flexibility in a liberal arts college with a strong music department.</p>

<p>In addition to these considerations, it is important that the prospective piano student find a teacher who is a good match for the student. No matter how reknowned is the school or teacher, the match of student and teacher is going to make a huge difference in how the student progresses and feels about the program/school. </p>

<p>Anyway, good luck to your son in finding the program that is the best fit for his interests.</p>

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<p>PM’d you PennsylDad…</p>

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<p>Oops, in previous post, I meant to say The question of how he wants to prioritize interest in jazz vs. CLASSICAL piano or commit to one or the other should be addressed.</p>

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<p>Basically, to study both jazz and classical piano, your son would have to be top of his game on both. No other way to make that work.</p>

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<p>I agree with Allmusic with regard to audition-based music programs, but I have heard of a few liberal arts colleges that have a non-audition music major (probably for a B.A.) in which a student can be somewhat individualized in their performance focus and perhaps include both classical and jazz. However, such schools might have higher percentage of nonmusic course requirements than PennsylDad’s son was looking for.</p>

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<p>Take a look at James Madison University , although I am not sure if any of the piano faculty also specialize in Jazz. The program is a BM in the School of Music.</p>

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<p>Rigaudon,
Thanks for your thoughtful responses. Our son has been preparing audition pieces for classical though somewhere in his mind is the question of whether he would be more likely to gain admission as a jazz musician. He has teachers in both areas. At some point, obviously, he’ll need to make a decision.
We’re hoping to have him do a lesson with a faculty member at a local conservatory so we can get a more realistic picture of what his chances are. Right now we’re thinking that although he’ll most likely audition at a handful of conservatories, our best course is probably a solid academic college with a strong music program and academic flexibility. Vassar seems one very good candidate. Amherst is a possibility, though it might be a reach for him to get in. Other schools that meet these criteria?
thanks again for your help!</p>

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<p>I’m sure the jazz astute can answer in more detail than I can, but part of the equation may be the ability to switch and intermix between jazz and classical. It may require a decision on his part as to where he wants the focus. In many programs, they are distinct areas and separate audition criteria. </p>

<p>Smaller programs may offer a bit more flexibility, but quality of peers is a prime concern, especially in jazz ensemble work.</p>

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<p>Once again, check out Luther/St. Olaf/Concordia/Wartburg/Augsburg/Augustana. The upper midwest is riddled with top-notch music programs at high-quality schools.</p>

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<p>I just sent you a PM, PennsylDad.</p>