<p>I am aware that Swarthmore's academic department seems to have plenty to offer, but I wonder a little about the performance opportunities for such a size. Can anyone comment on 1. the orchestra, 2. the chorus, 3. the jazz band, 4. the a capella groups, and/or 5. how easy/hard it is to get one of those much-talked-about lesson scholarships? Thanks. I'm prospectively majoring in music, and if not majoring, I'll certainly be very involved in performance.</p>
<p>You can send a PM to someone whose handle on this forum is 'momofthree'. Her son-in-law is the director of the Swarthmore College orchestra and her daughter and son-in-law graduated with degrees in music in 2004. I think lessons are free....that's what I've heard here. I mean Swat pays for your private lessons. I could be wrong as well.</p>
<p>I'm assuming she has PM turned on and wants PMs from strangers. Sorry if she does not want it. In any case, she might logon and help you on this forum. She doesn't participate anymore since all 3 of her kids are now in college.</p>
<p>There is some good student feedback on the Music department in this Live Journal thread:</p>
<p>Here's some on auditioning for the subsidized lessons:</p>
<p>It sounds like the orchesta members are excited about the new conductor this year. He's young -- an '04 Swarthmore grad who is in the conducting program at the Curtis School of Music. He's led other groups on campus and is gets good reviews for being fun.</p>
<p>You really should contact Gerald Levinson, the chair of the Music Department, with your specific questions. By e-mail to start, and even better, in person if you visit. The consensus seems to be that students enjoy the music department a lot, but it probably doesn't have everything for every student. You can find Levinson's contact information -- plus a ton of other info -- at the music department website.</p>
<p>Like almost everywhere these days, Acapella groups are very popular. There are many groups with a range of interests.</p>
<p>erdna,</p>
<p>I would be happy to answer any PM's you wish to send. I do check in now and again to stay current, and to hear from friends like Achat and ID! Thanks, ID, I am thrilled to hear the good scoop on the orchestra conductor-SIL. I get to go visit this weekend and am psyched!</p>
<p>One thing I do recall is that the music lesson scholarships (usually called Garrigues) are competitive, and pay at varying rates. For more information, check this website. <a href="http://www.swarthmore.edu/Humanities/music/music48guide.html%5B/url%5D">http://www.swarthmore.edu/Humanities/music/music48guide.html</a></p>
<p>In our experience, the music program, though small, is very active, and has a very dedicated faculty.</p>
<p>There are several nice and helpful people in the Lifijournal community who can give you a lot of info on orchestra and chorus. So if you have some specific questions, you should definitely post them there. But people do get annoyed with "how is the orchestra" type of questions, so try to avoid those.</p>
<p>Private music lessons are subsidized - how much would depend on how good you are (the college covers 1/3, 2/3 or full tuition based on audition)</p>
<p>erdna,
My S is a senior at Swat. He is a piano player and I can tell you that most musically "competent" freshmen will be offered a 1/3 subsidy for their lessons. The amount goes up to 2/3 subsidy, and for the most talented, there is the Garrigues scholarship which will pay in full for lessons. My S thinks that the music majors get a "preference" for the higher paying subsidies, which makes sense. As for the a cappella groups, they are popular and fairly numerous for a school of Swat's size. There are co-ed groups and single sex groups, and they sing everything from 1960's-70's pop tunes to ethnic music. There are auditions for all the groups at the beginning of the fall semester. All the groups perform late in each semester in one big concert, and a number of the groups perform at other times on campus.</p>