<p>Hello!
My son is a Junior in high school and would like be a music performance major in percussion. We live in Michigan and would like him to stay close to home ( no more than 4 hours drive from Detroit). What experiences does he need to be a competitive applicant? He has taken private lessons for 3 years, plays in high school band, is going into his second year playing in the DSO Civic Youth Orchestras, and has a 4.0 GPA. Our income is in the lower middle range. We don't have a lot extra. He currently takes lessons at a small music store. What steps should we be taking to help him achieve his goal? What schools should we look at? Any info will help...thanks!</p>
<p>@Margun and some of the other percussion parents on this forum will know a lot more than I do about this - but I’d say check out Univ. of Michigan, Michigan State, Grand Valley State, Lawrence University Conservatory, Oberlin Conservatory, CCM at Univ. of Cincinnati, Univ. of Kentucky, Northwestern, and Indiana University. So Percussion runs a great summer music program at Princeton called SOSI. He could look into that for next summer. There are other summer programs, as well, which I’d recommend he consider participating in.</p>
<p>Do you feel like his teacher at the music shop is pushing him enough? Is it possible he might need a more advanced teacher at this point? Is there someone from the Detroit Symphony he could study with?</p>
<p>Thanks for the response. The teacher at the music store is really good, but he needs to find a place where he can work on all percussion instruments. He has been limited to snare, drum set, and marimba. I didn’t think to check with the DSO - good idea- thanks.</p>
<p>If your S wants to be a percussion performance major he needs to work on timpani also. Auditions will be on marimba, snare and timpani. If he wants to be a jazz major, then drum set will be the main instrument. S is a percussion performance major and did play drumset for 1 of his auditions because the prof asked if he played it. It was a spontaneous thing. So if drums aren’t the high priority, you should put them lower on the list. Check the DSO website and go to the percussion page and see the performers info. S takes lessons from Chicago Symphony performers. Be prepared-they are not cheap! Not sure of the distance from Detroit but Indiana, DePaul, Michigan and MSU are choices my S would go for. Northwestern is good if you really like marimba. Research, research, research.</p>
<p>Thank you for the info!</p>
<p>SJG, I live in west Michigan and my son just graduated from University of Michigan School of Music Theatre and Dance in music tech. </p>
<p>Lots of folks in Michigan don’t quite understand how fortunate they are to have UMich, a world class music school, in-state. At first, I didn’t quite realize it either.</p>
<p>A percussion prof pal of mine out east (in Canada) has told me that UMich has one of the best percussion programs around, and he regularly travels to Ann Arbor for various activities, master classes, etc. That’s about all I know about percussion, but coming from him (age old professional with very successful career) that’s good enough for me ;)</p>
<p>I would consider a few things in your shoes (with the benefit of hindsight ;):</p>
<p>1) Make the short trip to Ann Arbor now, meet with percussion profs or department head, get guidance, and get a new teacher from same</p>
<p>2) If your son’s stats are as strong as his GPA (eg. 31-32 or more on ACT composite) you will have a good chance at both merit and need at UMich – My son received a full tuition scholarship out of a gifted/talented program well regarded by Umich.</p>
<p>3) That said, schools that tend to be generous with people eligible for federal financial aid include Oberlin, which meets need (as it calculates your need, that is) and Northwestern – within your geographic range. So bear that in mind when he’s applying, though there are never guarantees – Indianna (Jacobs school of music) is a wonderful institution and has much more reasonable out of state tuition than some other schools, and also gives automatic scholarships for varying levels of GPA/SAT/ACT scores. So in our case, it would have been comparable in cost.</p>
<p>4) The combination of finding a great talent-based program at a very rigorous university that happens to accept your son, gives great aid, and meets stylistic desires is obviously a challenge made a little easier if you geographically spread out your search.</p>
<p>Once you’re at +4 hours from Detroit, you’re really not in “home for the weekend” range anyway, so you might as well be 6, 10, or more in the end. They don’t come home nearly as much as you think they will anyway, and in your case, you may find you’re missing some GREAT fiscal and artistic opportunities by ruling out places with strong percussion departments that are further afield, eg. UNT, USC-Thornton, and of course, the myriad schools available on the east costs. Just fodder for thought.</p>
<p>Good luck in your journey!</p>
<p>PS - One additional thought re: cost-savings…if you are from the east side of the state, it might be worth taking a look at University of Toronto’s school of music and possibly Western as well. U of T has a very strong music school and is a fraction of the cost even to internationals as a private school in the US (comparable to state schools). HOWEVER, the downside is there’s not much in the way of merit awards.</p>
<p>SJG I thought I posted this earlier – oh well. My son is a pianist, but percussion is his secondary instrument. He took private lessons all through high school with a DSO percussionist and also rented a marimba from him that we kept at home. They did timpani work at the hs. Son is now a jazz major at University of Cincinnati CCM and loves it. He’s down there right now for a long weekend doing some gigging. He also has a Detroit area friend who is a composition major at CCM and plays percussion in the ensembles there. Financially we found UC’s OOS tuition more reasonable than many, plus they stack academic and music merit aid in addition to reviewing financial need. The facilities are excellent.</p>
<p>sjgjdf- I just sent you a PM!</p>
<p>Thank you to everyone who has posted information. It is very helpful. I scheduled a visit to UMich for next week and registered for a performing arts college fair at Interlochen. I did check out the website for U of Cincinnati - beautiful campus. thanks for helping me get the ball rolling.</p>
<p>We attended the same performing arts college fair and found it very worthwhile. If you speak with DePaul, press them about the completion date on their music facility upgrades. There are mixed messages on these boards.</p>
<p>Great advice Hawkrn!</p>
<p>I am from Michigan and have a percussion performance major starting his sophomore year in college. I would highly recommend checking out lessons from someone in the Detroit Symphony or at U Mich. The topic of “who do you study with” came up at every college audition for my son. I would suggest Eastman, Oberlin, Ithaca (although a bit far), Indiana U, Northwestern, Lawrence (far), Peabody (again - maybe too far), CCM and U Mich in addition to other schools mentioned, above. There are a few other “lesser known” or “not as competitive” programs that seem really good too - Michigan State, Butler, Baldwin Wallace, etc. While they may not come up in percussion discussions quite as frequently, we have heard good things about all of them (and they are still competitive). </p>
<p>Auditions will involve snare, timpani and marimba (or mallet instrument), but my son was asked about world percussion and drumset at almost all of his auditions. He was asked to play these at quite a few, so have something prepared. Have your son continue to practice sight reading as much as possible. The more the better! Check the percussion department websites for audition requirements. Some even list suggested or required repertoire, such as the Peabody site. That will give you son some ideas. Also, if you have the time and resources, I would highly recommend visiting the colleges during his junior year. Request a sample/private lesson with the percussion professor(s). It will help your son decide what he likes and doesn’t like, and it made my son feel so much more comfortable on audition day. Professors remembered him, and he wasn’t quite as nervous. </p>
<p>With good academic stats, it may be worthwhile for your son to consider a few non-conservatory schools. While the music scholarships were wonderful, it helped us, financially, that my son was offered quite a bit of academic merit money at some of the schools that are not “just” conservatories. He may not end up choosing one of those schools, but it helps to have these offers when it’s time to make a decision. Good luck.</p>
<p>Just for an example - as all percussion programs will have different requirements, here are the Pre-Screening requirements from Bard Conservatory:</p>
<p>Marimba: Mallet solo (5-12 minutes)</p>
<p>Timpani: An </p>
<p>Thank you so much for all of the info. I’m so glad that this forum is here. I would be lost without it.</p>
<p>Just a note regarding University of Texas (Austin), since it was mentioned above. I know it’s not within your geographic guidelines, but if you do choose to consider it, I found (my daughter applied this past year) that, while they offered zero in terms of financial aid, and many of their merit awards seem geared to Texans (and her school guidance counselor told her not to expect anything, as an out of stater), they did in fact offer her an out-of-state tuition waiver – which would have made it incredibly affordable for us. Great place. Great music school. Great practice rooms.</p>
<p>SJG: my D just graduated in May with a BM in performance (percussion) and a BM in Music business and is now ready to start her Master of Music performance at McGill. She Auditioned and got accepted at many Universities (college) in the States but chose to come back to Canada and attend McGill
When she auditioned for her BM she had to play Marimba + another mallet instrument, Timpani, Snare and drumset. These were auditions in Canada and also in some big ones like Juliard, Manhatten. We had the financial burden as well which played a big part in where she went. Yes who you study under is extremely important but so are the connections your prof has. That made all the difference with our D. She met people, studied with people she may never have without his help. Reach out for special help lessons also, our D contacted Dame Evelyn Glennie prior to her performing here and arranged for a private lesson. She learnt so much in those 2 hours and every time she has mentioned that lesson during auditions as she has been asked what private lessons she has taken and people take a second look. For the MM perfomance she auditioned on Timp, Marimba + another mallet instrument, Snare, Multi-percussion and world percussion. If your S wants to get his taste buds going on world percussion have him look up KOSA, we know the head of it personally and it is a fantastic program. At any rate I didn’t give you anything new but we believe the best thing our D did was consider the connections her prof had outside the main school system. As one of her present profs told her, 90% of your connections will be from outside the university and to cultivate them. Good luck to your S but next you and him will be trying to explain just what a percussionist is. In one orchestra concert we saw her play 9 different instruments and in another all she played were crash cymbals (167 crashes in one piece). lol :)</p>
<p>Thank you so much for all the info! This process is overwhelming, so I took a break for thinking about it. School is back in session and I find myself wanting to research. We have a year to figure this out. So, previously I mentioned that I would like my son to apply to schools that were approx. no more than 4 hours from Detroit. I have a reason for this and the closer to Detroit, the better. I have read many of the posts regarding percussion and I think I understand which schools we should look at, but I have financial concerns. It seems that most of the posts mention traveling to several schools and studying with “important” percussionists, attending expensive summer camps, and auditioning at several schools. I will not be able to afford to apply to several schools, send S to expensive camps, or travel around the States investigating schools. Does this mean that my S will not be looked at as a serious contender/competitive applicant? What is the most important (camps, lessons, sample lessons)? I want to be able to give S a chance. Any advise or comments welcome.</p>
<p>sjgjdf - please know that most of us don’t really have the money to do these things either - but we do them anyway - because, in the end it’s an investment in your child’s future - and it usually pays back dividends in a multiplicity of ways, in which finances are only one aspect. If your child is accepted to a good program where he is desired, the odds are that he will receive financial support either in terms of merit or need based aid which will more than compensate you for the money you’re considering investing at this point.</p>
<p>There are definitely ways to minimize the expenses - summer camps offer scholarships - your son can travel alone by bus/trains and stay overnight in the dorm for free. And if you truly can’t afford application fees - there are fee waivers. It is all possible - even on a limited budget. Perhaps you could even find a local sponsor who would help support these college visits - or sponsor him for a summer workshop. The hardest part, sometimes, is asking.</p>
<p>For my daughter, getting to know the teachers was the most important. She will study with the teacher she selected for four years, and it was very important to her that she get along well with the teacher as well as respect his/her playing. She did a combination of things to get to know prospective teachers. She attended some music camps, and took lessons with several others. Two summers of music camp were close to free, due to scholarships. For some of the lessons, she traveled by train on her own.</p>
<p>Spiritmanager brought up something extraordinarily important. ASKING.</p>
<p>Always Be Asking For Money. Always. </p>
<p>I know that in the early stages of this adventure, I held the reigns and was not very adept at rooting out scholarships or grants. D did start out with an LAC that gave her a substantial scholarship, but that was rather serendipitous. Then,at the beginning of D’s sophomore year, our family was knocked out at home by the economy and at school a certain hurricane wiped out D’s apartment, all of her belongings, and her school. In a weeks time, we learned how to beg for funds and assistance. The day after the calamity, I placed calls to every school she had ever been vaguely interested in and five days later she was offered in state tuition to an OOS U and financial assistance through individual sponsors. Simply because we begged. And when I say “we” D’s efforts were 90% of that solution. She discovered the art of “asking”. She also discovered that the schools and summer programs that offered the most opportunities (specifically for her) also offered the most assistance for the simple reason that she would be a good fit for them.
Our dire situation made it “easy” ----- it was one of those ill winds that blew her a lot of good. I really do not think that she would have made it through her MM sans debt if all of that early struggle had not forced her to learn to how to simply ask for money.</p>