Liberal Arts Schools with strong classical percussion

College Majors Music Major
1

My son is a junior. He is a percussionist, has been first chair in the H.S. Band since he was a freshman, he participates youth orchestra, made All State and I believe would love to have a career in an orchestra, however he realizes that this is an incredibly difficult feat for any instrument, but especially so for percussion due the the small number of positions in each, so he has decided against pursuing that path. Additionally, he acknowledges that he does not have the self discipline to practice the way that he should and has been amazed at how little has gotten him as far as it has; he knows that it will not continue that way forever. Obviously this is NOT the set of characteristics that makes for a performance major and he knows it. So… he has decided that he would like to pursue a career in optometry, but would like to stay immersed in percussion at college.

Does anyone have any suggestions or advice with regard to how we should proceed? He has thought that maybe he could major in music and take the pre requisites for optometry during the summers or as his electives; I am just wondering if there are things we are not taking into consideration?? I understand that being at a school with a conservatory would not necessarily be helpful due to the competition and lack of access to the best percussion professors for lessons? If he chose a performance degree and got accepted into a conservatory, would he be able to take these pre-reqs or would the program be too demanding? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

We have a preliminary list but would really like to begin making some visits:

Bard

Boston University

NYU

Columbia

Gettysburg

Queens College

Johns Hopkins

Temple

2

Bard would be best for a double degree through the conservatory, as a percussionist would really want to study with So Percussion and the master teachers they bring in. He could definitely fulfill the requirements for an optometry degree without any problems. My recommendation is that he apply for the double degree - he can always decide in the spring of senior year what direction he wants to take - if he has the choices.

If he has the grades for Columbia you might look at Yale, where he would study with some of the top grad student percussionists in the country, although probably not with the School of Music professors. How about adding Williams and Vassar to the list? Both are known for good music programs.

As for his self discipline for practicing - he’s only a Junior in high school - the odds are that could change dramatically in the coming years.

3

He can also take the prerequisites for optometry after graduating. Here is a chart of the prerequ’s for several schools: http://www.opted.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/ASCO-Prerequisites-May-2016.pdf You may have seen it…

Your son, and you, might want to watch the film “Talent has Hunger” about Paul Katz, cello teacher at NEC, and his devotion to his students even during periods of low motivation and insufficient practice. To me, the film shows Paul Katz almost as a perfect role model for parenting a talented music kid (or any kid) in the ups and downs of adolescence and young adulthood.

My personal bias is that your son should do what he loves for undergrad years, and then deal with his future career path. Orchestral jobs are not the only route for musicians these days (there are percussion PhD’s making a living without going near an orchestra), but a BM gives access to many kinds of jobs, in and out of music, and to grad and professional schools, including optometry.

It would seem that his best route might be to start in a conservatory and take whatever non-conservatory classes he needs along the way, or once adjusted, he could consider adding a double degree program. He can also, as I said, do optometry prerequ’s after graduation.

In other words, keep options open.

A counterargument would be to attend a university or liberal arts college and major in music, or major in anything really, and continue percussion lessons and performance on the side. In that case, he does have to make sure opportunities aren’t limited by the presence of a conservatory, and if they are, choose other schools.

Peabody used to have a great essay entitled the double degree dilemma, with examples of music students and their best choices. I’ll see if it is back on the site.

4

Furman University in Greenville SC

5

The essay is still not available. After all this time, I emailed admissions at Peabody to ask what happened to it : )

6

I agree you should explore Furman. While not a conservatory, it has a strong music program which allows a student to somewhat easily double major. There is actually a music/medicine track. http://www.furman.edu/academics/music/ProgramOverview/Pages/Music-Bachelor-of-Arts.aspx

7

Oberlin, Bard, Lawrence, Ithaca, Tufts, U. of Rochester, Johns Hopkins/Peabody all have double degree programs, as do many other schools. Bard requires a double degree for all conservatory students.

8

Thank you so much for this great advice. We have pursued the idea of the liberal arts route with a strong percussion/music department because I guess I was under the impression that there would be no room for any of the prerequisites if he were to be accepted into a conservatory on a demanding performance track. It is reassuring to hear that this could be a possibility.

Spiritmanager, Columbia might be a reach, so that means Yale will probably be out of reach for him, but we do have it on our radar. We will look into Williams and Vassar

Compmom, I have not heard of the film, “Talent has Hunger.” I am excited to watch it! My son will finally have some time after All State this weekend so I will make sure to find it. I agree completely that he should choose to do what he loves for undergrad and then focus on the rest once he has gotten some college experience and exposure too. there is plenty of time to grow up, and I have spoken to him many times about the importance of loving what you do for a career since it is something that you will be devoting so much of your time to every day. I think he has some confusion because he hates the prep for NYSSMA/ALLSTATE. He finds the practicing of the same pieces over and over monotonous and I think he wonders if he would feel frustrated in the same way at college if he were to pursue a degree in performance. However, he did just remark that he really liked being part of an Orchestra after is NYSCAME experience so I am not completely sure if he really knows what he wants. I don’t blame him; they are so young to really know what they want or what will make them happy as an adult! (Thank you for emailing them regarding the essay; I think I may have seen it a while back but would love to show it to my son).

Carolinamom, Furman U was not even on my radar; I will definitely look into it.

I really feel like Oberlin would be such a good fit for him, however he wants less cold weather if possible and likes the idea of being near a big city. He does not want to look at Oberlin, Lawrence or Rochester :frowning:

Again, I cannot tell you al how much it helps to reach out with questions and get the benefit of such great knowledge! Thank you thank you!

9

You might private message @margun if she’s still on CC - her son is a classical percussionist finishing a double degree and they explored lots of different options for undergrad.

10

Thank you: Is it ok to do that?

11

My son is a senior percussion major performance/music ed double major at Eastman. Percussion is a difficult road.

Lots of time in the practice room is expected. 5-6 hours a day. Mallets and reading are key. If you are seriously thinking the conservatory route I could give you the steps we followed to get there. We live in Central New York in a very small school district and were able to get my son there.

12

@percussionboymo Keith Lockhart is a Furman alum FYI.

13

What is your son’s academic profile?

What summer programs has he performed in or is slated to perform in?

Does he have a private instructor?

14

My son is not a kid who practices hard. He does what he has to do in order to be prepared and so far he has been able to do far less than he should; I am not sure how that is. He loves performing; practicing, not so much. I could see him burning out in college with all that is required (5 or 6 hours a day!), however he just got back from Allstate and loved every minute of it. He said they had breaks in between rehearsals and despite the long, long days, he kept reporting that he was having a ball so I am honestly confused about how to guide him. He is a great sight reader and LOVES mallets. He currently has a 98 average with AP US, AP Chem, IB music, IB English, and IB Spanish, but hopes to improve second quarter. He only got a 29 on his first practice ACT and he has just begun ACT tutoring.

He has only attended Manhattan School of Music for a couple of summers and he a member of MYO (a local youth orchestra), as well as our High School Honors Band where he is “first chair” percussion since his sophomore year.

15

I recommend he attend a summer percussion program between Junior and Senior year. It will clarify for him if he wants to be absolutely immersed in music for hours every day, or not.

16

That is probably a good idea; two weeks at Manhattan School of Music was just a taste I guess.

17

Percussion intensives are short only 1 or 2 weeks. Check out New York State summer school for the arts school of orchestral studies. You have to hurry auditions are soon. 1 month in the summer of playing in an orchestra in saratoga springs. Kids work with the Philadelphia Orchestra. He’s work with Don Liuzzi (principal timpanist) and Chris Deviney (principal percussionist) Both fantastic gentlemen who do great with the kids…

18

nysssa.org

19

I think this is the right url for NYSSA: http://www.oce.nysed.gov/nysssa/orchestra. However, he would need to be a NY state student: To be eligible to attend NYSSSA a student MUST be currently in Grades 8-12 (or currently enrolled in Grades 6-12 for the School of Ballet ONLY) and a full time resident of New York State (Summer or occasional residency does not meet residency qualifications). Students who are not currently in the required grades or who reside out-of-State are not eligible to audition for NYSSSA.

20

This is a New York kid. She referenced NYSSMA a couple times and All State was held this past weekend in Rochester with the concert at Eastman. That is why I suggested NYSSSA . My own son attended twice. I know the program.