<p>I'm a junior in HS, and oboe player from Alaska who is extremely motivated to become the best performance major I can be. I'm visiting New England Conservatory, Berklee, BU, NYU, Manhattan school of music, Julliard, and UW in February and possibly Curtis and Peabody at a later time. I made All-Northwest, (the orchestra conductor will be the conductor from Oberlin), which is in February so I will be in Portland. Any good possibilities around there?</p>
<pre><code> To clarify, I need other's opinions on whether or not to go for a college or university. For reference, I plan on doing music for the rest of my life. I cannot stress this point enough.
</code></pre>
<p>A few random questions as well:</p>
<p>What are my chances with these individual schools?</p>
<p>What are their acceptance rates for oboes?</p>
<p>Any advice?</p>
<p>I really appreciate all posts!
Thanks so much</p>
<p>From what I have witnessed here in MA, which is overrun with fantastic musicians, is that there are fewer suberb oboists (and tubas) than any other instrument.</p>
<p>If you made All-Northwest as a Jr (we know the oboist who made Eastern Regionals out here, who is a simply fabulous player), I would suspect you have a shot at any of the schools you have on your list.</p>
<p>Every music school applicant should be concerned about "chances." This is partly due to the importance of the audition and how well you do in those few minutes. Also there is a great deal of uncertainty about acceptance rates. For less common instruments, like the oboe, there is even more uncertainty. You can never be sure about the number of openings or the strength of the other applicants. Some schools may have no or very few openings for an oboe in any particular year. Curtis should be considered a reach for every applicant and there is little reason to apply unless you are extremely good. Juilliard is not much better. I think the overall acceptance rate must be around 10%. MSM and Eastman have acceptances of around 30%. Acceptance rates for Oberlin, Peabody, and NEC are in the 30-50% range. Berklee is geared more towards pop music. The BU program is small so your chances in any one year are very uncertain. NYU is pretty easy but not usually considered to have a really strong music department.</p>
<p>I am sure you can get a lot of different opinions and additional suggestions. There are so many uncertainties that no one can give you much useful information. I would suggest that you begin your selection process with some independent evaluation of your music skills. Those opinions are most useful if they come from music educators who are familar with the caliber of students who are accepted and apply to the top music schools.</p>
<p>Oberlin's overall acceptance figures going back to 1979 are given separately for the college and conservatory at <a href="http://peacock.adm.oberlin.edu/www/sche25/%5B/url%5D">http://peacock.adm.oberlin.edu/www/sche25/</a> Their most recent acceptance rate was 27.5% (311 out of 1132). I have never seen numbers by department within the con, but would not be surprised to find that the odds are, on average, a little better for an oboist.</p>
<p>Curtis can vary quite a bit from year to year given the small numbers involved, but they rarely get as high as 10%. It is usually between 5% and 7%. Again, that is an overall rate and different departments can vary quite a bit. They may not hold auditions for oboes every year, so you should call them to find out before making any plans.</p>
<p>edad raises excellent points but is mistaken about one thing; it is often possible to find out exactly how many openings there are for each instrument in any given year. CIM and Colburn, for example, publish lists, and at other places you can usually find out by word of mouth if not through official arenas.</p>
<p>We didn't have any difficulty finding out the total number of anticipated openings for my son's instrument at each school. We did not, however, realize that this number included graduate and transfer students, as well as incoming freshmen. This type of situation makes the validity of overall acceptance rates somewhat questionable when you are one of 50 incoming freshman competing for 2-4 openings along with the likes of a transfer student from Juilliard, a grad student from Northwestern, etc. Just another dimension to the excitement!</p>
<p>The numbers everyone is giving are overall acceptance rates, and not oboe acceptance rates, which are different. Last year Eastman had 77 oboe applicants, and 4 were accepted. (When we met the Eastman teacher the previous year, he told us he usually gets 60 applicants and accepts 4 to 5, expecting 3 or 4 to attend.) Juilliard saw similar application numbers, and had to add an extra day of auditions. I'm pretty sure that Oberlin's oboe acceptance rate has been significantly lower than 27% (although Oberlin's situation last year was somewhat complicated by the oboe teacher's death during audition season). At the audition last year, the Oberlin music admissions director told us that 3 oboists had been accepted the previous year. Last year many schools saw substantial increases in oboe applications over previous years. The increase in applicants is probably due to the echo baby boom, as well as a recent push among music educators for more oboe players in the earlier grades.</p>
<p>Last year Curtis did not have an oboe opening. We were told by their admissions director that generally they have gotten about 25 applicants every year, for usually only one spot. I would not be surprised to see 40 or more oboe applicants this year. Fortunately for you, Curtis is likely to have 2 openings if you apply during your senior year, but you will be competing with the best of the best, from around the world.</p>
<p>College/university vs. conservatory is a difficult and very personal question to answer. Only you can figure out what is right for you. Try to learn more about the different teachers at the college level, their styles of playing and teaching, what former students are doing, etc. Ask your current teacher (and any other professional oboe players) who they would recommend. We found it very helpful to spend some time at each school, meet with teachers, talk to other oboe students, attend performances, etc. Initially, I wanted my daughter to attend a college/university because I thought she'd get a more well-rounded education. Are there other subjects you want to study? On the other hand, the conservatories seemed to have more energy and enthusiasm for music. (I know I am really over-generalizing here!) I slowly came to realize that my single-minded D would be happier in a conservatory environment, and she is now at NEC for oboe performance. You may really like the myriad of possibilities a large university can provide, but a conservatory can't. Are you looking forward to attending college football games? Do you like to meet a wide variety of people, with many different interests, who may have no clue what an oboe is? Only you can decide the environment that feels right for you. </p>
<p>As far as your list of schools, I agree that Berklee and NYU are the odd pieces, but go ahead and visit. Much depends on what your ultimate goals are, as well as what your family can afford. You should probably also consider applying to some top summer programs (Tanglewood? Interlochen?). Not only will you learn and grow a great deal as an oboe player, but you'll get a better sense of how you fit in with a national applicant pool. Congrats on all-Northwest and good luck.</p>
<p>See, who knew? I thought top oboists were still a relative rarity. I know for our recent all-states, there were only 8 or 9 oboists who auditioned, and I think 7 made it. That was compared to hundreds of violins and flutes and saxes, where the majority of them got the big rejection.</p>
<p>The good news is that if you decide to go to a college or university instead of a conservatory, you will certainly be welcomed with open arms, as you are correct in thinking that good oboe players are indeed rare, and orchestra conductors at many schools will be happy to hear you play, and some will even recruit (yes, even Princeton!). HOWEVER, it is also true as many other posters have pointed out that the numbers of oboe openings at conservatories are also small compared to the spots for violins, so the percentages are daunting. You mention schools you want to visit, but above all, you should be visiting with and playing for teachers at these schools when you go. Call or email (or both!) in advance to arrange for a lesson. The conservatory experience is truly all about the teacher, and meeting teachers in advance is the best way to get some idea of the "chemistry" that's right for you. It will also help you get some very preliminary feedback about the possibilities. And I absolutely agree with rcmama, you MUST look for the right kind of summer program to help you prepare, and perhaps to help you make a realistic decision about conservatories vs univerisities and liberal arts colleges. Interlochen is fabulous, and my daughter thrived at Kinhaven in Vermont, much smaller, but with a fantastic oboe teacher.
Good luck!</p>
<p><a href="http://www.peabody.jhu.edu/787%5B/url%5D">http://www.peabody.jhu.edu/787</a> Read these articles...they are terrific and very helpful in thinking about conservatory vs. college studies. These articles (in my opinion) should be required reading for anyone who has a question about this. That's why I keep posting the link here.</p>
<p>DD was a state ranked oboe player for most of high school (two all state appearances, and four regional music festivals). She played in the Hartt School precollege ensembles sitting first chair in the orchestra. One of her criteria for college was a school where she could continue playing and studying her instruments (she also plays the English Horn). She found that school...but it was not an easy search. AND I can tell you, while they are thrilled to have her, it didn't help her a lick in admissions...or finaid (unless you count the $250 orchestra scholarship she got).</p>
<p>Sorry to resurrect this old thread, but I want to make a correction for the record because something I wrote is misleading. I've been told that Curtis had only 15 oboists audition this year, so my prediction was way off. I don't know what the numbers were at the other schools this year.</p>
<p>Oberlin's applications were up by 10% this year, 1,400, according to an article in the Oberlin Review this week (March 2, 2007, edition; the article is on new efforts at increasing diversity at the Conservatory). Juilliard also had record applicants this year.<br>
Of the conservatories you mention, only Oberlin and Peabody would allow you to get both a conservatory and college degree.</p>
<p>While Oberlin Conservatory applications were up by 10%, it would be interesting to know what happened to oboe applications since the death of James Caldwell a bit over a year ago. He was replaced by Robert Waters (about whom I know very little) and by Alex Klein, who was principal oboe for the Chicago Symphony from 1995 to 2004, when focal distonia, a neurological disorder causing involuntary muscle contractions, forced him to cut back on his performance schedule. Klein studied with Caldwell at Oberlin back in the 1980's.</p>
<p>Robert Walters plays English horn with the Cleveland Orchestra, and studied at Curtis with Richard Woodhams. I believe he is the primary oboe teacher at Oberlin with Alex Klein supplementing. D and I were able to attend an Alex Klein masterclass while visiting Oberlin 2 years ago. He's an amazing artist. D also performed with Robert Walters this past summer and liked him. I wish we had more time last year to arrange a sample lesson with him before the final decisions had to be made.</p>
<p>Last year was tough for oboe students. Not only did James Caldwell die, but also John Mack (CIM and Juilliard) last summer, both legendary teachers. And Curtis didn't have an opening either.</p>
<p>I understand that the difference between a college and a conservatory is ultimately and opinion,but,technically speaking, what gives a school the right to CALL itself a conservatory?</p>