<p>Anyone interested in becoming a double major in math and economics will absolutely love Williams.</p>
<p>As a senior graduating, I can't tell you how happy I am to be a part of the math community- so challenging but totally worth every minute.</p>
<p>For me- highschool was a walk in the park. I had a 1600 on my SATs, three 800s on the SAT IIs and ridiculous grades, but Williams has not been easy for me. So to all of you future Ephs out there... good luck!</p>
<p>Also- I'm currently playing the trombone here in the Williams band and have enjoyed everything about it... my friends are all in the band too, my girlfriend is a flute player- so there is also a social side to us fun guys!</p>
<p>Hi, I am applying to Williams and was hoping to play clarinet in the band. How difficult is it be selected? I submitted a music supplement for clarinet. I also play tenor sax in jazz band and the piano for fun. What are the chances for band? Thanks</p>
<p>Williams has two symphonies. Student Symphony is student-run with open membership; rehearsals are really low-key and the quality is usually decent. Berkshire Symphony is run by the music department and contains half students and half local professionals (including, I think, a few retired Boston Symphony players), so the level of the ensemble is much higher, but it's more of a time/practice commitment and a more highly-strung environment. Berkshire Symphony auditions are reasonably competitive for violinists; I'd say all of us had been playing at least 8-10 years before coming to Williams.</p>
<p>There's also a chamber music program, where you can get matched up with other players in a faculty-coached quartet/trio/etc.. It also requires an audition, but I think the bar is set a bit lower than it is for Berkshire Symphony.</p>
<p>For band players, the Symphonic Winds have open membership, as does the student-run marching band. If you want to play in Berkshire Symphony, though, it's <em>really</em> competitive, since there's usually only one or two student seats for a given wind/brass instrument.</p>
<p>DS is all-state level player and did not make the Berkshire Symphony though the guy was so nice and said, "You're not ready, yet." No problem with student symphony.</p>
<p>It worked out well for him, though, because he sings in the choir which practices when the Berkshire Symp. does, and he would have had to forego that.</p>
<p>Friends in student symphony sit one chair above and below him -- roomfor improvement.</p>
<p>For future reference, if the opportunity ever occurs, you can do choir and Berkshire simultaneously. I'm doing it right now. The rehearsal times don't align exactly, so you can work out a schedule where you just miss pieces of a few rehearsals for each. It's a little tough (especially when both have concerts during the last week of classes), but doable.</p>
<p>Somewhat back on topic :), what about someone interested in applied mathematics? Is there ample opportunity to pursue interests in that area rather than focus on pure math?</p>