I’m brand new here, have a musically and academically strong junior D starting to look at schools. At this point she’s open to the full range, from conservatory to large university to LAC with broad/deep music (and musical theater) programs. She’s probably most interested in LACs but we’ll be traveling east (from Iowa!) this spring to visit for ex NYU and Berklee plus Bard, Williams, Vassar, Wesleyan, maybe others.
In addition to talents in more “classical” piano, vocal, and musical theater, she’s also a relatively accomplished singer-songwriter who loves performing and has recorded quite a bit in her “bedroom studio” (and even shared/sold some of it!) So my specific question right now is - does anyone know of high-quality (academically and musically) LACs that have recording studios available to students for a variety of uses? A “good” location for singer-songwriters that like to get out and perform would be a plus, but please don’t limit answers to “the best college towns”.
Most ( if not all) quality music programs will have a recording studio available. Your best bet is to go online and check each schools facilities and their specific usage policies. For example UCLA just built new state of the art recording facilities. Not an LAC, kind of expensive for out of staters, but LA is the best of all possible worlds for singer songwriters. http://www.schoolofmusic.ucla.edu/evelyn-and-mo-ostin-music-center
And, of course, there is a school cross town that has a fantastic pop music program.
I think it’s called USC .
I am sure that they have equally spectacular places to record.
If you’re going to do a northeast LAC tour, you might want to add Skidmore to your itinerary. Beautiful music facilities, happening music scene in general (lots of campus bands), and a really great town in Saratoga Springs. It’s not at the same academic level as Williams, Wesleyan and Vassar, but it is a solid school academically. They also have a $12K/yr music scholarship available, though they only give out 5 per year and it’s very competitive to get one.
Thanks everyone for the suggestions. Yes Ithaca and Skidmore are on the consideration list too, and she does want to visit Berklee to get a feel for a “non-LAC” option. There are so many good programs, and yes there’s a great deal to be found on the school web sites, but a real benefit of this forum seems to be the actual experiences of students/parents. That’s where I thought we might find some first-hand advice re “yes, such-and-such college has a studio that students use all the time, and the recording arts students volunteer their time!” or “sure there is a studio but it’s only open to conservatory students … or only used for the college recording visiting artists”, etc.
It’s mostly parents who post here. So the “actual experience” with on campus recording is going to be limited. I can tell you that as an undergrad and grad D paid recording arts students to assist in the studio as well as recording live performances… They are a busy bunch and their time is valuable(that’s how they make money while at school). But your D;s milage may vary. Good luck!
Many (most?) schools will have recording facilities.
I would maybe add Sarah Lawrence and SUNY Purchase since they are close to NYC.Then any of the colleges you listed should be great for her. I also suggest looking at “Colleges that Change Lives,” a book, website and national fairs.
For conservatory, Berklee/BoCo of course, maybe BU (I know a vocal performer who did their music school and is now in the “entertainment business.”) Miami Frost, Berklee, Belmont and USC seem to come up the most often for popular music.
She can major in music, minor in music, major in something else entirely and do music privately, double major, or do a double degree. If she has other interests, that will be a big factor in her decisions, as will location, size, and “vibe.” The biggest decision may be conservatory/music school versus college/university. She can apply to all options and decide in April of senior year: changes continue throughout that year! She can also apply to schools with double degrees to maintain flexibility of choice.
Bard requires a double degree for all conservatory students. Oberlin and Lawrence are good places for double degrees. Tufts/NEC and Harvard/NEC (MM).
As for your original question, yes, most will have recording studios
Great, it sounds like most will have recording studios, so principal question answered, thanks again all.
@compmom yes, she does have a lot of thinking to do about options on school types, and how to combine her music interests with other interests. True double degree programs certainly seem like viable options at Bard, Oberlin, Lawrence, etc, though the corresponding question arises for those schools regarding music options for students NOT enrolled in the conservatory - are they more limited in some ways than at other non-conservatory schools. But that I realize is covered elsewhere in these forums, and something we’ll be learning about as we move through the process and conduct visits.
A non-conservatory student at Oberlin would find it difficult to access many of the conservatory facilities. That said, conservatory students well versed in recording might be able to help in a more mobile type of recording in a non-conservatory location of which the possibilities are many.
Bard College itself - not the conservatory, would serve your daughter well for all of her interests except one - Musical Theater. There is a student run group but that is not the focus of the Performance department, despite having incredible classes in theater, music and dance. I would recommend the college because it would give her more flexibility to pursue her various interests and aesthetics, then pursuing the double degree with the conservatory, which is more strictly classical. The performance teachers in the college are wonderful, and for some instruments and for composition, they do cross the line from conservatory to college. And voice is all taught in the college itself for undergrads. A ton of singer songwriters at schools like Bard, and plenty of recording opportunities.
@compmom, yes, but because of the requirements for graduation it’s easier to be more flexible in your courses as a single or double major in the college itself, then when getting the two degrees from the college and the conservatory. For a musician interested in a wide range of musical styles, recording and voice, as well - I would recommend the BA route only. Basically as a double degree student, half or more classes each semester are in the conservatory and two are in the college (more or less.) And Bard does have distribution requirements and some required classes (Freshman Seminar.) This page has some sample five year plans for the double degree to give you an idea: http://www.bard.edu/conservatory/undergraduate/curriculum/
I think I may have misunderstood this from iasetter above:
“True double degree programs certainly seem like viable options at Bard, Oberlin, Lawrence, etc, though the corresponding question arises for those schools regarding music options for students NOT enrolled in the conservatory - are they more limited in some ways than at other non-conservatory schools.”
Right, I was saying she may look seriously at the double degree programs and we have some understanding of how that works (including the fact that at Bard ALL the conservatory students are double degree).
But I was also saying if she decides not to do a conservatory, then would that make it actually more difficult to participate in music options at certain schools b/c they are largely “reserved” for conservatory students. It sounds like to a degree that could be the case (e.g. Oberlin, which we’ve heard from others as well), but it’s not always necessarily so (e.g. @compmom and the comment above about wide open options as a college-only - not conservatory - student at Bard).
@compmom and @iasetter - I understand what both of you are saying. I think it’s absolutely true at many schools which have a School of Music or Conservatory that there would be fewer high level options for those not majoring in performance. Bard is an oddball in that the music program in the college was well established for decades before the conservatory came along. The Conservatory is classical only. And no undergrad voice. For those students interested in jazz, world music, electronics, vocal music - all those classes would be in the college itself. And most of the music analysis and history classes are actually college classes, not conservatory - which has only a few courses reserved for conservatory only students (the music theory sequence called Conservatory Seminar, and the aural skills classes.) The college has its own Music Theory courses taught by preeminent musicologists and composers. The Conservatory students fulfill many of their music requirements taking classes from the College professors. The difference is the one on one with the professors for lessons. As a Conservatory student, from the very first one studies privately with a teacher - either for performance or composition, as a full credit class. In the College one can take private lessons for half credit, or group seminars. And most of the performance teachers are a different group - except for composition. In addition, the Conservatory has its own ensembles, and it’s a rare College student who can successfully audition into them. Often, if they’re that good, they’re encouraged to just take the plunge and go for the double degree.
The other issue with the double degree is that sometimes the student finds that really all they want to do is music - and the second degree must be in another field. One friend of my son’s ended up dropping the BM degree in his third year and just got a BA in music from the college instead and ended up with a Masters in Conducting. There can be financial implications for that route however, if there is Merit Aid from the Conservatory.
Anyone with questions about Bard should always feel free to PM me.
I wasn’t really trying to say anything I just misread that sentence because the sentence structure linked “true double degrees” with non-participation in conservatory opportunities so I wanted to make sure that iasetter knew “double degree” meant being in the conservatory and the college. That seems silly now, of course iasetter knows that .
Iasetter, the best thing to do is to really thoroughly check each school that has a conservatory. Many will indeed have better music opportunities for students in the conservatory.
To me, a student who is good at and likes both music and academics can either do a double degree, or can attend a college or university and do music there. This can mean majoring in music (some colleges offer BM’s with more access to academics than others, some colleges have excellent BA programs in music though they are not performance degrees). It can mean majoring in something else entirely but still taking lessons, practicing and performing either in on campus extracurriculars or off campus.
You don’t mention your daughter’s other interests. If she has other strong interests, or even if she is generally academically inclined and wants to explore majors the first year or two, an LAC that does not have a conservatory might be the best way to go. In an area where she can gig.
She could do a music major for her BA (theory, w/ solfege , dictation, music history, ethnomusicology, composition and technology etc.). Or she could major in something else, as I said, and do music on the side.
If she truly wants to be immersed in music, then either a BM program or a double degree would be best.
If it seems like it could go either way, apply to all options. My daughter did this and decided between conservatory and college on April 30 of senior year!!
Great advice, thanks @compmom and @SpiritManager, I suspect my daughter also may be keeping options open, and making a late decision! Re other interests, it’s wide open. Journalism/lit/writing maybe, she’s strong in STEM but not likely to make a career of it, some form of purpose-driven law is possible eventually, maybe international studies/policy (we’ve lived in the developing world, she’s fluent in Spanish).
And so as we head east in April, we’ll try to make a quick swing NYC-Boston and back. Tentatively the list includes NYU and Berklee/BoCo, and an route Bard, Wesleyan, and Vassar - we probably don’t have time for more than that, or a longer distance swing (like to Ithaca, which could be a great fit too). So within that general loop, do you have other suggestions of don’t-miss, especially LAC? Amherst and Williams are certainly on her think-about list, but the other three LACs I mentioned seem to be the better choices for all-around quality music programs (and of course Bard being unique)?
Note we’re not focused exclusively on the east, it’s just where we’re traveling shortly and so doing the homework to make visits worthwhile. There are certainly great schools all across the country, and the Upper Midwest and West coast are also well-represented on the list of options.
Sounds like a solid and doable list. Maybe add Barnard to it while you’re in New York? Bard, Vassar and Wesleyan all sound like great choices for her to me.
Good idea on Barnard, do you mention that b/c they have a great music program within Barnard or b/c of the opportunities with Columbia? It does appear the overall open connection for academics is strong and effective, but does the same hold with ensembles and other music/MT opportunities?
I just misread that sentence because the sentence structure linked “true double degrees” with non-participation in conservatory opportunities so I wanted to make sure that iasetter knew “double degree” meant being in the conservatory and the college. That seems silly now, of course iasetter knows that .