MT kid trying for Music Major?

College Majors Music Major
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My DS19 has had most of his accomplishments in the MT arena. As much as he would love to, he isn’t going to major in MT. However, he’s interested in a BM or BA Music, especially a program with a concentration in music business/industry. His voice coach (a private lesson professor at a school with a strong music program) thinks he could be scholarship material for VP, which up until recently we never considered. I’m concerned that his resume leans too much toward MT to be considered a serious candidate for a VP major.

Don’t get me wrong…he’s been very active in the choirs at school, and they do well at competitions and have had some very distinguished gigs considering they are a high school choir. He does Concert, Chamber, Jazz, and Show Choir and this year he’s even the Choir President, but other than that he hasn’t done anything that stands out in a solo kind of way. He did start up the school’s first Barbershop Quartet as a sophomore with the teacher’s blessing but not her time, and they are quite impressive even though they have to secure practice space, songs, costumes, etc all on their own.

He’s very lucky to have a MT director that has some pull and he’s been able to volunteer for Broadway awards nights, etc. and has some other great MT ECs that show a true passion in that area, but not sure if that holds any weight in a Music Dept. Will he be looked down upon during the admissions process if most of his accomplishments have been in MT?

p.s. Today his school announced that he was voted “most musically talented” senior. Cheesy, I know…but you all understand:) lol

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MT is the background for many VP majors. Your voice is too young to be singing in operas in high school. So choir and MT are the backgrounds for the majority of VP candidates. Most will have had private lessons to work on art songs in other languages. This is where the interest in VP starts to develop. You do need to be able to sing in other languages like Italian and German and that is what a private teacher assists with. Boys are so young vocally that schools are looking for budding talent more than extensive experience. My D’s experience was choir and MT and theater. She had worked on classical for 3 years with a private teacher and a program that mixed MT and VP. She auditioned for both and chose a VP program that allowed some theater and MT on the side.

3

Well my MT oriented son is auditioning for VP programs this year. He has literally never sung in a choir. Lol. Is his teacher doing classical with him? Is he applying to colleges this fall? Many Music programs have early deadlines.

We know a fair number of kids who’ve taken this route now and I’ve heard if you at least have the ability to take some piano and/or theory it will help take the edge off of jumping into a BM program.

But I think very few high schoolers get super focused classical experience in vocals. I think this is really common!

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Ok, feeling better! He does work with a voice coach and he does know songs in other languages! He’s been taking piano lessons with her, also. He’s currently in AP Music Theory and I have never seen him so excited about a class in all 4 years! Sounds like something in VP can work…or at least get him admitted to the schools that require an audition just for their music business program. He is looking into Belmont, Frost, James Madison, Elon, URichmond, Florida State, Vandy, TCNJ, Carnegie, UMaryland, and UDelaware. Possibly Princeton. Strange list, I know! lol

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Is he doing music business for practical reasons? Or is this interest stemming from his EC’s where he has some management experience?

For a kid with talent who apparently loves to sing, is it possible he might consider doing VP performance? (I would add that it is very possible to pick up music business skills and connections through internships, volunteering and p/t jobs. And there is always grad school).

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My D auditioned for, if I remember correctly, 5 MT, 3 VP and 1 acting. She got 2 declines in MT. Along the audition trail, she got a lot of experience. The financials were similar for most acceptances…however I know boys can be in high demand for VP so…the teacher may be right about the money. In the end it was the private teacher and the flexibility in the program that persuaded her to pick the school. So let him audition and see where he lands. His background is what would be expected and a solid foundation.

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Super! It sounds like he is on his way! What voice type is he? My kid is a bari. He is also looking at CMU and Frost (among others) He would love to apply to schools like Princeton but we are not encouraging him to apply to need only schools. It’s my understanding that you work with grad students in music at Princeton for private lessons which would not be a good fit for him either. My kid is also interested in composition.

The class of 2023 undergrad thread is ongoing discussion of mostly parents with more experienced parents joining in at times to going through this process right now if you want to join us!

Lawrence university has a conservatory of music with a entrepreneurship program with a music track if you’re still looking for ideas down that line and he’s open to smaller LACs.

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@MusakParent Princeton is a short drive away from us, so I’ll let him apply for the heck of it. You never know!

He’s also a Baritone. We visited CMU during his hs choir comp in Pittsburgh this spring. Students were gone from campus already, and we were still thinking MT back then, but I fell in love with Pittsburgh!

@compmom Ultimately, he wants to go into entertainment law. He would love to study VP or comp/theory because he’s passionate about them, and I’ve heard that would be fine for acceptance into law school. I just think music biz would give him some skills in case he changes his mind and doesn’t go the law school route.

Any encouragement for a degree in VP is always appreciated!

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I’ve noticed some programs some to do a better job with performance majors and soft skills that modern musicians really need. So many music students become jack of all trades (running music orgs, applying for grants, possibly teaching/directing, performing, composing, etc).

We just visited CMU in early September and absolutely fell in love with Pittsburgh too. The music program there has an acceptance rate of 6% which is worse than Princeton I guess. LOL. We’ll call that a reach!

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There have been a lot of threads on this forum over the years about the need, or lack thereof, of a “backup” plan. I think it is safe to say that many do come to the conclusion that it is just fine to major in performance for a BM (or music for a BA) and go on to law or med school, other grad schools, or careers inside or outside of music. Of course, there are young people who really want to do music business/industry or recording arts or studio production or other focused career paths; music ed is also often presented as “practical.”.

Most kids I know who do music performance, composition or liberal arts music as undergrads do indeed pick up a lot of skills, transferable to music organizations, agencies or even nonprofits. As I said, internships can help a lot as can extracurriculars and jobs.

It is a hard decision, but it does sound like your son loves music itself, singing, composing, all of it, and any courses in business might take away from that. Some of us have older kids who have done just fine after doing music as undergrads. But it is a decision within your family that you are clearly weighing thoughtfully :slight_smile:

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RE: VP vs Music Business

Sometimes there is a big difference between the 2 programs and sometimes there is not.

My D is Mus Bus and I can run a report from her school account on what would happen if she switched majors and this is what I find she would need to be VP instead:

Diction, opera, theatre, conducting, and 2 sem of German or Italian or French. She would need to do 2 recitals.

As MB major instead she has / will take:

Marketing, Mgmt Theory & Practice, Retail Mgmt, Advertising, Prod/Sound recording, Advanced Mus Bus and an add’l high level class in either composition, theory or mus history. She will have an internship instead of recitals.

The “base” is the same. YMMV

Obviously, what you want to do with your degree is most important.

Personally, when I look at it, the opera, theatre and recitals are performance training / experience. My D gets plenty of that outside of school. She is minoring in FL already. So, diction and conducting is all she is truly missing out on and instead she is getting the business classes and an internship. That being said, her goal is not to be an opera singer, so it was an easy choice!

Note, those business classes really take time away from practice, work, etc. I feel like Music Business is just shy of a double major in workload but leans more heavily on the music side (you don’t have to take any extra math!)

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@Propinquity4444 I teach at James Madison (actually in Musical Theatre). The Music Industry major with voice as his primary instrument sounds like it could be a fit for what you describe your son is looking for in school and longer term.

We have had Music Industry majors minor in Theatre, perform in musicals, and (as part of the minor) take some musical theatre classes.

We also have had some Theatre and Musical Theatre majors pursue the Music Industry minor… and a few graduates chose to go to law school.

Depending on where his heart and head is, he may want to consider auditioning for both the School of Music with an intention to declare Music Industry at the end of his first year (in the School of Music they enter with a primary instrument, but do not formally declare emphasis area until the end of the first year, AND audition for the Musical Theatre major in the School of Theatre and Dance, with the intention to also pursue a Music Industry minor.

Feel free to PM me if you or your son have any questions about opportunities at JMU.

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Hi @Propinquity4444 and welcome to the Music Board! My son is a baritone (though likely transitioning to tenor) VP major at FSU. Please feel free to PM me if you have any questions about FSU. He loves it there.

My son started concentrating on classical voice junior year of high school, and most of his singing experience was in MT. It sounds like your son is doing what he needs to do with his private lessons, AP Music Theory class, etc… One recommendation I have: if he has time he might enter a local classical voice competition or perhaps submit an online piece to something like Classical Singer. It would give him some good feedback and experience, and show the music schools to which he is applying that he has a sincere interest in classical voice, in addition to his music industry interest. Good luck to him!