I’m currently a freshman at UC Berkeley and am entering my second semester this spring. I am very passionate about music, having played the guitar for my entire life, drums for almost 7 years and piano for 4. I was in band from elementary through middle school so my ability to read music is not completely lost. Regardless, I very much would like to get a basic understanding of music theory and different aspects of it, while focusing mainly on the performance aspect of music. In particular, I’d like to learn the ways of jazz performance with guitar. I understand that the 140s are specifically for the major but it states that if the professor allows, I could join those ensembles. With this in mind, I am also a pre-medical student majoring in Integrative Biology.
Would minoring in music, attempting to get admitted to several ensembles during my time at Cal be extremely time consuming, to the point where I wouldn’t be able to join any other clubs or perform research with the school for biology? Essentially, I’d like to know if this would be possible considering I need a stellar GPA and extracurriculars as well as clinical experience before I apply to medical school.