<p>My Son has only become very interested in music at the start of his Junior year of HS (he is now going into his senior year). He has very good grades (high 90's avg. and 1400+ SAT, very tough curriculum) but no real portfolio of music. He has been in the orchistra for 8 years also plays piano and guitar (guitar is his real passion). Without really knowing, he thinks he would like to major in music composition. Any suggestions on schools (north east & mid atlantic is preferable), any suggestions on things he should do for his senior year? His coarse choices are limited beacause of IB diploma requirements. My wife and I are not music people and any help would be appreciated.</p>
<p>If you have not already found <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/258796-so-you-want-music-major-one-familys-experience.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/258796-so-you-want-music-major-one-familys-experience.html</a> I suggest you read the first several posts for an overview of the process. It is written from the viewpoint of a string player, not a composer, but there is a fair amount of overlap. Beyond that, search the board for the experience of other composition majors. If you are lucky, our master indexer violadad will provide a list to get you started.</p>
<p>I recommend, since your son isn’t 100% sure he wants to major in music composition, that he aim for a BA in music. Almost every college that offers a BA in Music offers a composition focus. For instance he could study music composition at well regarded programs at Williams, Bard College (not the conservatory route), Skidmore, Goucher, Swarthmore, Wesleyan - or Princeton, Yale, & Cornell. That’s just the upper East Coast. You’ll find there are interesting composers teaching all over the place in both large and small colleges. And none of those programs I mentioned are audition based - although you would want to send in a music supplement, if possible.</p>
<p>the o dad, welcome. Again, strings and chamber music is where the bulk of my limited knowledge lies, but I’ll try and get you started. Some comp threads</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/675437-best-composition-unis.html?highlight=composition[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/675437-best-composition-unis.html?highlight=composition</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/627445-good-theory-composition-schools.html?highlight=composition[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/627445-good-theory-composition-schools.html?highlight=composition</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/586633-music-major-theory-composition.html?highlight=composition[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/586633-music-major-theory-composition.html?highlight=composition</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/497283-best-schools-music-composition.html?highlight=composition[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/497283-best-schools-music-composition.html?highlight=composition</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/457134-composition-programs-boston.html?highlight=composition[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/457134-composition-programs-boston.html?highlight=composition</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/324550-composition-major.html?highlight=composition[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/324550-composition-major.html?highlight=composition</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/722985-what-colleges-looking-music-comp-major.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/722985-what-colleges-looking-music-comp-major.html</a></p>
<p>A bit late for this year, but maybe worth a shot for next summer:
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/371572-summer-programs-composition.html?highlight=composition[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/371572-summer-programs-composition.html?highlight=composition</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/626794-composition-summer-festivals.html?highlight=composition[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/626794-composition-summer-festivals.html?highlight=composition</a></p>
<p>Not specific to composition (actually most are geared to instrumentalists), but there are some nuggets you may want to take with you as you go through the process.<br>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/707827-how-did-your-high-school-kids-balance-school-music.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/707827-how-did-your-high-school-kids-balance-school-music.html</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/733896-composition-major-prep-question.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/733896-composition-major-prep-question.html</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/608305-useful-music-links.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/608305-useful-music-links.html</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/458455-how-determine-your-childs-ability.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/458455-how-determine-your-childs-ability.html</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/531161-do-you-have-map.html?highlight=precollege[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/531161-do-you-have-map.html?highlight=precollege</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/537061-need-advice-about-prep-school-youth-orchestra.html?highlight=precollege[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/537061-need-advice-about-prep-school-youth-orchestra.html?highlight=precollege</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/495033-pushing-too-hard-burnout.html?highlight=precollege[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/495033-pushing-too-hard-burnout.html?highlight=precollege</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/674345-cello-player-what-do.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/674345-cello-player-what-do.html</a></p>
<p>SpiritManager, Hunt, compmom and compclub are probably the “go to” sources from recent experience. You can also search for past posts by MahlerSnob and WindCloudUltra.</p>
<p>BassDad - Thank you for this extreamly informative synopsis. It is a little overwhelming and underscores how late we are in this process. However if you really want something and are willing to work hard, it is never to late.</p>
<p>SpiritManager - Thank you for the advise. This will be the route my son is most likely to take.</p>
<p>viloladad - Thank you for the information. There are very many useful insights in those threads. They will be very helpful.</p>
<p>I would put in a strong plug for a summer composition program. They vary in selectivity and competitiveness, but there are quite a few of them. This will give him some training, but it will also help him figure out if this is really what he wants to do.</p>
<p>Oops, I just noticed that he’s going into his senior year. Is there a composition teacher or program he could pursue during his senior year? My son took some arranging lessons from his high school band teacher–that’s not a lot, but it’s something. Is he taking IB Music?</p>
<p>I think Hunt has the right idea. If your son is thinking about composition, he may want to see first if he really is interested in it. Being a composer requires pretty extensive knowledge of music theory as well as composition technique, and he may want to look into some sort of program in music theory to see how he takes to it. There may be courses near where you live, or he also could look into online resources. </p>
<p>Composition is one of the areas I suspect where being late may not be an impediment, though there are composers who did so from a young age, unlike performers many composers kind of came to it later on, so being late may not be a big deal.However, I would encourage your son to try and explore it a bit before making a decision, composition is a lot more then hearing a melody in your head and writing it down:)</p>