Would love thoughts on strong liberal arts schools with opportunities to play blues/jazz. My son is a very talented blues guitarist considering studying pre-law with a possible music minor, and wishes to have the opportunity to play with like-minded musicians both on and off campus. A merit scholarship would be incredible, but my initial research shows most scholarships are geared toward classical musicians. Thank you!
I would think that looking in places that have strong local blues/jazz scenes would be a place to start. Chicago, New Orleans, Boston, for starters. I’m sure there are plenty of others: maybe Kansas City, St Louis, Memphis, others.
No one can suggest a specific school unless they have some idea of your son’s stats.
You can post this on the music major forum, even though your son doesn’t want to major in music 
Lots of good advice there. Merit scholarships are most certainly available for non-classical musicians, and I believe there is a whole new thread on negotiating aid. Merit scholarships are sometimes possible for non-music majors as well.
I would ask, first, what his other criteria are in terms of size, location, academics, and “vibe.” Then look at the music department website, look at faculty available to him, extracurricular and off campus opportunities, visit, and attend concerts. Some LAC’s will even offer to find a teacher for him.
What is pre-law? Seriously. He can major in anything and go to law school, including music. Music majors have pretty good stats for admission to medical and law school etc. Is he doing “pre-law” as a back-up, because he thinks music isn’t “practical”? He can do music as an undergrad and still go to law school…but maybe he has academic interests he wants to pursue. Then again, some people don’t want to study what they love
I would encourage you- and him- to read the Double Degree Dilemma essay by David Lane, posted near the top of the music forum. It is really about different ways to study music, using specific hypothetical young people as illustrations.
If he does not want to major in music, he should probably avoid schools that have conservatories or schools of music on campus, since the best opportunities go to the BM students. There are exceptions so you have to check this out carefully.
Consolation left out NYC
Has he done any summer programs? It sounds like he is pretty advanced so maybe he already plays with professional ensembles?
We don’t know how competitive he is academically so I would repeat what Consolation said, that for more specific school suggestions, more info is needed. Be aware that his music may be very helpful with admissions and if he chooses not to go the BM/audition route, he can still submit a music supplement to the common app with a recording, a music resume, possibly concert programs- and letters or recommendation from teachers, directors, colleagues- two is good.
check out Belmont University in Nashville… strong music community, much more than just country. Music business major could provide some neat opportunities-- lots of internships w/ local businesses (entertainment law?)
Yes, stats would be helpful! GPA 94.5 taking APs and honors level classes, elected a ‘prefect’ (school leader) by school community for his senior year, Nat’l Honor Society, member of Honor Council, varsity athlete, tour guide. Working on getting his scores up this summer although SAT/ACT tests are not his strong suit.
Belmont?
UKentucky (good honors college)?
Vanderbilt?
For a high concentration of musicians without a conservatory look into St Olaf but it’s classical. Perhaps get in touch with the music departments to know what they offer and how they feel about blues/jazz.
There are lots of kids (parents of kids) like him on the music forum.
Many colleges have jazz courses, ensembles and programs. Even Harvard, which has traditionally had a rigorous classical foundational curriculum, has recently changed the curriculum. You really don’t have to limit his choices to schools with “jazz programs” either. Pay attention to ensembles, courses and faculty as clues. And of course off campus potential.
Berklee, USC Thornton, NYU , Belmont, Miami Frost, and UC Denver are among the many BM programs mentioned for “popular” or “contemporary” music, but that is different from jazz/blues, though they may be good for that too. Loyola in New Orleans, New School in NYC, Manhattan, Oberlin and NEC are often mentioned too. Ithaca, Hartt, Lawrence and Bard also have great BM programs that might be suitable.
BUT these are all -including Belmont as suggested above- known for their conservatory/school of music BM programs and should most likely be avoided for a kid who doesn’t even want a BA in music, let alone a BM. If he changes his mind then those schools would be important to consider.
The field really is wide open if he doesn’t want a BM. There are many many schools that would fit his stated desire for a BA in something that he considers “prelaw” (again music can be prelaw too!) while continuing his music. He needs a teacher and he needs performance opportunities and both are attainable on or off campus in many many situations.
Does he want a liberal arts college? A large research university? I get the feeling that a selective LAC would be a good fit, one near or in a city, but hard to tell. Let us know.
If scores don’t match his performance at school, he can consider test-optional schools , many of them tippy top elite schools (U. of Chicago just announced they are joining these ranks). Here is the listing: http://fairtest.org/university/optional Note that under B’s alone you find very selective LAC;s like Bowdoin, Bates, Bryn Mawr etc.
Some of these schools are test-optional and some de-emphasize scores. For merit aid, sometimes scores are requested however.
Also ask in http://talk.qa.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/ to get some other perspectives.
What about Rhodes College in Memphis? I know they have jazz groups on campus and it seems there would also be many opportunities off-campus to play music, given that Memphis is known for its blues scene.
I don’t think there is a limit, on where he might go, in terms of music, other than availability of teachers and performance opportunities. Since he has other priorities musically, he might want to cast a wide net while looking at schools preliminarily, according to his top priorities, and then narrow options by looking at music opportunities.
Rhodes’s curriculum looks mainly classical http://www.rhodes.edu/sites/default/files/Music%20Dept%20Brochure%20online.pdf
https://www.rhodes.edu/departments/music/degrees-offered (Note link to courses required and also for scholarships)
Here are the ensembles, including jazz ensemble, jazz combo and guitar ensemble- found at many schools. http://www.rhodes.edu/departments/music/ensembles
The Mike Curb Institute looks interesting http://www.rhodes.edu/content/mike-curb-institute-music, but doesn’t offer courses for students in jazz and blues. There are jazz and blues clubs nearby. But the latter is true in many locations.
Many liberal arts colleges will fit the bill. First he really needs to think about priorities.
I’ll bandwagon here and say check out Belmont. Schools in the Chicago/STL/Memphis triangle are likely to have programs, as are southern cities like Atlanta and New Orleans. Once you get a list of some potential places for him to apply, find out if any / what classes/ensembles are major-blocked. That varies widely between schools. Some have just about everything major-blocked, others very little. I’ll also second that you don’t have to be a pre-law major - to some extent you’re better off if you’re not - to get into law school. That said, you also can’t just major in whatever and expect to be successful. If you approach law school from a totally different major, you need to do some planning and pick up some of the traditional pre-law classes (classical philosophy, ethics, business law etc.) or you’ll be at a disadvantage as an L1.
I’ll also say look into Millikin. It’s a small LAC with a nice pre-law track and a fabulous jazz program. Ensembles are not major-blocked, talent scholarship goes to whomever regardless of intended major, anyone can arrange to take private lessons, there is an honors program, there are guitar ensembles as well and a bluegrass band. Both the jazz band and moot court teams are award-winning.
There are great schools in he Northeast, and in California, too, for what he wants. He really doesn’t need to use jazz and blues as his first criterion unless he wants to major in it. A kid with his academic performance (plus music talent) can get into some very selective schools.
Do not discount large U’s, including flagships, as they include liberal arts in their missions. A school does not need to be limited to liberal arts to offer great experiences with those majors. There may be opportunities for nonmajors to indulge in their love. Take note of the “major blocked” aspect of groups pointed out in post #10. A school with classes/groups unavailable to nonmajors is not a good choice.
Also ask in http://talk.qa.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/ to get some other perspectives.
Sent you a private message.
One of my friends from high school was an amateur musician. He went to a Midwest second-tier LAC (good school, but not one of the top 25), worked a year, then went to graduate school at a prestigous school of music, finally deciding that was what he really wanted to do after all. He is now a producer and studio musician in LA and has worked with some VERY famous bands. LAC first, music school later, is a very good idea for someone not certain but talented enough to consider music major.
Good point BooBooBear, and I would extend it. I know young people who have done LAC or some other major entirely at an LAC or university for undergrad, who then went on to wonderful grad programs in music. I also know young people who did conservatory or school of music for a BM who then went on to grad school (or career) in another area, sometimes related (Medieval Studies for a vocal performance grad) and sometimes not.
@JollyBrownDog, I’d suggest that your son take a look at Williams. Williams is a reach for most everyone, but they especially like students who can demonstrate strength in all three areas: academics, sports (or outdoorsy activities) and the arts.
Williams has a vibrant music department, with quite a few associates/instructors who are also performing jazz musicians. It offers extensive music performance opportunities for non majors, including several jazz-focused ensembles. Plus an excellent law school admissions track record.
Your son might contact these instructors for specifics regarding guitar and jazz/blues performance:
https://music.williams.edu/profile/rp2/
https://music.williams.edu/profile/ags3/
No merit scholarships though, so if that’s a “must have” instead of a “would be nice” then that should be your starting criterion.
I would discourage consideration of a school with a location like that of Williams, since Williams is in a small town in the middle of nowhere.
The opportunities to play in off campus groups (which might be especially important for a jazz/blues musician) should be taken into account, so it seems like a school close to a city with a good music scene (as mentioned above – Nashville, NYC, New Orleans?) would be best.
In addition to the other cities mentioned, perhaps Minneapolis/St. Paul. Not Northfield so much because it is quite far away from the Twin Cities (an hour drive minimum) for participation in a groups on a regular basis. OK for a trip in now and then, but probably not day to day. Macalester, Hamline and the University of Minnesota might be worth reading about. I went to a midwestern LAC in a medium size city for undergrad, but continued to play in both the Kalamazoo symphony and other groups ad hoc but was not a music major. So even middle size cities might work work. But agree that Boston, Nashville, Atlanta and Chicago are great target cities.