<p>I don't know if this will work, but sometimes when I'm reading a post, I'm wishing I could remember more about the poster - parent or student? Performance? Music Ed? What instrument? I thought it might be nice if we could have a quick point of reference. Hopefully, you will all jump in and help keep this thread toward the front. I'll go first:</p>
<p>Parent (Mom), S is horn performance major at Juilliard, D is HS senior, violinist, looking to either minor or continue as avocation - not sure where.</p>
<p>Great idea, binx. I would like to expand it to include any musically relevant information about the parents as well.</p>
<p>Parent (Dad), daughter is in second year of double degree program at Oberlin: performance on double bass and Math. Son is HS junior, plays guitar and sings but will probably not major in music (music tech may still be a possibility). Wife teaches flute at a local college and plays professionally in small ensembles on flutes of all types/sizes and on various early winds. In addition to my techie day job, I sing professionally and dabble at a serious amateur level on recorder, tin whistle and bodhran.</p>
<p>I am parent (mother) of HS junior S percussionist, jazz drummer, classical pianist, planning for a performance degree. Daughter is a second year cellist. </p>
<p>I was a dabbler on the guitar and piano (thought I was pretty smokin' till I began raising what I guess is a "real pianist" :p). Hubby plays the kazoo, which just about rounds out this family.</p>
<p>My D is a jr in hs as a vocal performance student in a visual and performing arts hs. She sings in the symphonic choir and madrigals at hs as well as a regional youth choir that tours internationally. She also is oboist in the metro youth symphony and a piano student.</p>
<p>She would like to major in pol sci and minor in vocal.</p>
<p>I was once the principal slide kazoo player in the prestigious Greater Hoboken/Secaucus/Bayonne Kazoo Symphony Orchestra... Other than that I love to listen to music and have also been banned from singing in public.</p>
<p>Kidding aside, DD is first-year clarinet performance major at Peabody. Besides the clarinets, she plays alto sax and flute.</p>
<p>DS is a junior in college, non-music major, but takes percussion and guitar lessons.</p>
<p>Parent (Mom) of D who is a freshman at Lawrence pursuing a double major in vocal performance and string music education (violin). D also had 12 yrs of classical piano instruction.</p>
<p>S is a hs sophomore who is a talented classical pianist and singer but he is leaning toward biochemistry as a college major. </p>
<p>I can carry a tune but drift off pitch routinely and had 5 years of poor piano lessons many moons ago. H is a classical music enthusiast but plays no instruments and the kids beg him to stop if he sings... ;-)</p>
<p>Parent(Mom) of D - high school mezzo-soprano who is knee deep in applications to both LAC's and conservatories - would love to major in both vocal performance and science.</p>
<p>Parent (Mom) of S, a freshman jazz studies major--tenor saxophone-- at Manhattan School of Music. I sing in choral ensembles at a very amateur level (no solos!), but love it. Dad has no musical background, so we aren't quite sure where S got his talent from. We are parents of two older children, one S and one D, both out of college.</p>
<p>Parent (Mom) of S, a sophomore trumpet performance major at Indiana University. Older son works in Japan, non-musical. I used to play the piano, but have barely touched it in years. H occasionally plays the guitar. Like spelmom, we don't know where S's talent in music came from.</p>
<p>This will be my first post! I've been lurking and have found incredibly valuable information from all of you. Plus I don't feel like an obsessed madwoman scouting programs at this early stage. My daughter is only a high school freshman, but she is a deeply gifted and talented soprano (coloratura) with aspirations to attend conservatory. She is taking lessons with an incredible coach so we're very lucky there. She is also a talented actor and is academically tops so we have many options. And loads of questions. </p>
<p>Personally, I sing (but pale in comparison!) and studied piano and bass throughout high school. I no longer play bass, but the piano comes in handy as I direct a children's choir at our church.</p>
<p>I'm a parent of a HS senior, but my D is going into Science. However, I am currently in Community College, planning to transfer into a Music Major at one of the fine state universities. I'm an alto, and I'm planning to be a Music Education major. Right now, I'm mainly spending time boning up on my keyboard skills. I'm taking only one or two classes per semester, so it's still a couple of years before I have to worry about auditions.</p>
<p>My son is a freshman jazz bassist at Oberlin (Double Degree). He also plays clarinet and alto sax. I am a classically trained pianist and make my living writing music for films and television. i used to conduct Broadway shows.</p>
<p>Parent (mom/librarian). S is freshman trombone performance major at Peabody and D is in the 9th grade. She has no plans for a career in music. H is Asst. Professor at Law School.</p>
<p>younger son a h.s. senior, looking mostly at double degree options on piano; older son was concertmaster at a UC, now grad student in music history at an Ivy. I played uke as a kid...</p>
<p>Mom of a freshman music (vocal) major (BA) who is also currently pursuing approval for an individualized BA in Global Cultural Studies. She is not particularly driven to pursue performance (although she is the only freshman at her college cast in both operas being performed winter quarter); she sees her study of music as more about cross-cultural connections. Also played the horn for 7+ years; gave it up because of arthritis issues but informed me this week that she wants to try playing again. </p>
<p>I am an appreciator only; husband is self-taught on guitar and has an incredible ear...I think if there's a music gene, it came from him.</p>
<p>Eldest son (sophomore at Denison U) plays trumpet. Studied at Eastman Community School with Wes Nance (Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra) and Bob Sneider (Jazz improv. extraordinaire). Attended Essentially Ellington competition in 2003 (the highlight of his trumpet career!). He is minoring in Music at Denison. Denison offers small music scholarships (that can be added onto their generous merit aid) to kids who minor in music (and free lessons).</p>
<p>Second son (high school senior) is a cellist. Studying at Eastman Community School with Kathy Kemp (RPO Assistant Principal). Plays in one of the two community youth orchestras and plays in a cello ensemble at Eastman Comm. Wants to be an engineer - not a music major.</p>
<p>One thing I will say for Rochester, our kids have great opportunities in music; just amazing really. Some of my kids' friends (who are better musicians than them) study with collegiate faculty from Eastman and the level of ensembles here is amazing.</p>
<p>I'm Mom to Fiddlekid (Junior D) who's considering violin performance and/or double degree (humanities? language? journalism?). At least that's today's plan...tomorrow, who knows? My hunch is that she will create some way to tie all her various interests together, though I have no idea what form that will take. </p>
<p>She is taking lessons from a really wonderful teacher to whom we make a twice-monthly pilgrimage of 280 miles rountrip. We are currently searching for a better instrument, plotting out audition schedules for next summer's music programs (trying to avoid conflicts with SATs and her Youth Orchestra concert schedule), starting to put together the preliminary college list -- and trying to figure out how to pay for it all :) </p>
<p>I did 12 years of piano lessons back in the stone age (with very little to show for it in terms of performance ability). H has no musical background whatsoever, although being Australian he does have a certain fondness for the digeridoo....</p>
<p>As MGMom I'm Mom of the self-proclaimed Music Geek, a Junior with an eye on possible double-degree Music Ed/Math (instrument is voice) or just Music Major someplace with strong academics overall. Loves choral and music theater but not planning to be a MT major. Will begin college visits soon and will see where this takes us!</p>
<p>S is ex-cello major at MSM, now pre-med at state university; D is opera singer in Europe, as is SIL; I (Mom) am a retired university music professor, presently teaching and coaching privately, degrees in voice (BM and DMA) and music history (MM).</p>