<p>Yeah the rarity of some instruments is the hard part. My son’s primary is Euphonium, most schools only take one a year, some two. It’s a killer.</p>
<p>wow sagiter!! I thought it was stressful for us. It must be murder working against those odds. On a good note though, when you are accepted with those odds, you know you are at the very top of the crop. I hope good things are coming for your son!!</p>
<p>Yes, the life of a low brass player can be tough. That is why son auditioned at eleven schools. But I have noticed that their life is not all bad. While the strings are working hard all the time the low brass can be seen resting at the back.</p>
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<p>My son’s orchestra was rehearsing (plays trombone) with the Milwaukee symphony orchestra. At one point in a song, the trombone section got up and left. Apparently, they were not needed until the middle of the next movement, which was about 15 minutes.</p>
<p>As a child, I recall going with my elementary school class to hear the National Symphony Orchestra at Constitution Hall. During pastoral pieces, the percussion section would set up a chess board and play chess throughout almost the entire concert.</p>
<p>What happens in the back row stays in the back row.</p>
<p>We actually have T Shirts that say that :</p>
<p>My son plays Bass Trombone in an out of school symphony (and french horn in the School honors symphony), anyway in the out of school ensemble, the conductor always leaves the “no more brass” stuff for last so those kids can go home early from practice. At concerts they put that stuff up front and the brass comes onto the stage when all those pieces are done.</p>
<p>Papagena, I just wrote the deposit check to Crane (not mailed yet though), Accepted to Crane, Fredonia, Hartt and Ithaca, waitlisted at Eastman. He has always has a real repore (sp?) with the Crane Euph Prof and the whole group there so there was never really any question as to where he’d be attending.</p>
<p>note: his guidance counselor just stopped by for a signiture. Seems my son is one of 2 finalists for the NYS Lottery scholarship ($625/semester for 8 semesters, total $5000). Not bad. He’s also a finalist for a few more so keep your fingers crossed :-))</p>
<p>Speaking of brass players and how much they play, there was a proposal a couple of years ago by some European orchestra players that musician pay should be based on how many notes they played! On this pay scale, the string players, especially the violinists, would be paid more than anyone else.</p>
<p>That, of course, brings to mind a story that makes the rounds periodically:
[The</a> Efficiency Expert](<a href=“http://www.public.iastate.edu/~sturges/Humor/efficiency.html]The”>http://www.public.iastate.edu/~sturges/Humor/efficiency.html)</p>
<p>wtg sagiter!! I have my fingers and toes crossed for your son, to get as much scholarship $$ as possible:)</p>
<p>Spoke to admissions today and S did not receive any merit in “1st round”. Said may change based on acceptances. Makes us grateful for $9000 of academic merit. IU still a great value compared to other top schools.</p>
<p>pukadad…don’t give up hope yet. My son’s first choice is also Jacobs:) But he got a better offer from the other 2 schools. Nothing’s final till 4/15!! when you have to sign the acceptance letter, lol.</p>
<p>I do hope your son gets what he needs to go there too…I’m praying for every last kid and parent on this board!</p>
<p>Thanks papengena. The good news is that my son will be able to go to Jacobs either way. We will just have to sharpen the budget pencil more than we thought.</p>
<p>Sorry pukadad – but we will continue to keep our fingers crossed for you. We were told by Jacobs that our D was up for a scholarship and would receive an email today. But it hasn’t come yet.</p>
<p>Got it today by e-mail for Vocal Performance. The letter was dated yesterday, Sunday.</p>
<p>Our scholarship email from IU came today (voice performance and music education).</p>
<p>Congrats OperaDad and KeyofH! Looking forward to seeing who ends up at IU. Good luck making your decisions. It’s Bloomington for us!</p>
<p>IU is a doable drive, so I was hoping for something compelling. Given IU’s offer, it will be a very low chance Son ends up there. Best wishes at Bloomington. Sounds like your Son is going their for Grad School (April 15 deadline).</p>
<p>Jacobs is such an undoable drive for us:( but, the way things are shaking out, it looks like that may be where he goes. It is his first choice, but not the biggest scholarship …or package, though he hasn’t gotten his hard copy yet, and the school told him to wait till he sees it.</p>
<p>NEC surprisingly was extremely generous, but my son hated it there. I think part of the problem is that there isn’t a voice teacher who is appropriate for his voice. It is such a nerve wracking time…(not so much for us, the parents…this time around)…but, boy it takes me back.</p>
<p>One thing to keep in mind for all the parents feeling slightly disappointed in not seeing the offers you hoped for. In this economic climate…any offer is a compliment…being accepted is always an honor…more especially in music schools then any other. Our kids have to put it all on the line in one day!! Audition Day…no do overs, It pretty much all decided on how a group of judges view our kid on that day!! He/She could be sick, tired, anxious…whatever…how many of us would have a good interview based on one shot if it depended soley on our voice and appearance and bearing? So we’re in an interview…we can try to make a joke…insert a personal story…drag up all of our academic records…our huge list of ec’s…for our music kids…thats not gonna matter all that much.</p>
<p>The judges want to see if they can use them or not. Its simple and complicated. Its not a reflection of our kids talent. Is this school not looking for any soprano’s this year? 10 violinists? 1 pianist? 3 tenors? I mean, how can anyone know?! We cant…and we need not take this personally:)</p>
<p>Right?</p>
<p>My son was lucky for his BM…and looks promising for MM…but, there are no guarantees…ever…this is what our kids are choosing. I do know my son is fully aware of the fact that rejection will be part of his life. He knows (more then I do) that he won’t be right for the part, so wont get it…( I feel like…what?!? they don’t want you? well they’re idiots)…lol</p>
<p>Thats my take on being the mom of a vocal major</p>
<p>Papengine: I agree with what you say. There are few instances in life outside the music world where you are judged on a single, five-minute performance.</p>