Hey y’all! I’m a current High School senior, and I have recently been admitted into the musical theater program at OCU. I truly love the school, but I fear that their emphasis on classical singing will not further develop my more “contemporary” style. I also am wondering if the program is competitive… or if I am on of many to be granted admission. Any thoughts from parents or current students (at OCU or not) would be so appreciated Thank you!
Congrats on the acceptance! Always heard wonderful things about this program; we have 2 friends in the BFA Acting program who are very happy; and the BFA MT program is reportedly very competitiv. If visiting the campus is feasible, do it! AGain, congrats…
@MT22WI - Congrats on your acceptance! OCU is a great place to go to school.
Our D graduated from OCU’s MT program last year . Like you, she was not sure that the classical training was what she sought. And I won’t lie. There were times that emphasis, particularly in the first couple of years, was frustrating. But they know what they’re doing! She has found that it has well prepared her for the professional world. Not only does it give you a very strong foundation for whatever type of singing you wish to do, the more intensive study of aural skills and music theory required of a Bachelor of Music degree has proven very helpful. In several professional situations, both auditions and jobs, she has been asked to learn things quickly, sight sing, etc…and has found others coming to her for assistance because of the strength of skill in these areas. She also has done some job requiring quite a bit of vocal endurance and feels her voice has held up much better than the voices of many of her castmates. She attributes this to strong vocal training and emphasis on vocal health as well. This is not to say other programs don’t also touch on these things. It is only to say the training she received at OCU has well prepared her thus far.
In addition to working on other styles with both her voice teacher and vocal coach, over the years, they also brought in special clinicians like Sheri Sanders of Rock the Audition to work on contemporary pop/rock styles.
As far as whether OCU students are competitive, I might recommend you look at this thread that will show you where recent alums are working. I think it shows OCU grads are very competitive in the professional world::
If you have any specific questions, feel free to PM me and I’ll be happy to try to get answers for you.
@MT22WI OCU is generally regarded as a highly competitive program and an early admit is a big deal! Congratulations! I believe last year’s MT Class was around 20 students total… @vvnstar is an expert on all things OCU, so hopefully she will chime in here. I would say that their AMAZING vocal faculty and STRONG emphasis on legit/classical singing is one of their biggest strengths. They routinely have grads working on Broadway and it is a rigorous program. Look at their alumni!! They have an amazing school of dance, as well, and their productions are top notch. I do not think you could go wrong with this kind of training! Also, consider reposting this question on the Oklahoma City University subpage within the MT forum for more results.
As a voice therapist and also a coach who works with auditioning seniors, I really scrutinize the vocal training at the programs my students are considering. OCU singers are incredibly flexible in ALL MT styles (that suit their individual voices). They liken their classical foundation to having a strong ballet foundation when you’re a dancer. I am and always have been a belter, so I LOVE a great belt sound, and I think their singers produce some of the best! MT22WI, you should talk to Dr. Herendeen and/or a few of the individual voice teachers about your vocal training questions/concerns - that’s totally valid as an admitted student! (And congrats - like dramasopranomom says, that’s a BIG admit!)
I agree with everything in the 3 posts above except that I think OCUs MT class is closer to 30 every year. At least is was 2 years ago. Very good MT training there.
Thanks, @MTDadandProud …oops, that was a typo. 30!
Does anyone know about the vocal training that the MT redirects to the BA in Music receive? I understand they do not get the same music teachers as the MTs.
@musekk, it is different faculty and a different course of study. I would check the curriculum for the BA degree to see if you would be taking the classes you wish to take. I would also recommend considering the BFA Acting or BFA Dance Performance degrees at OCU. Both of those programs have produced many working actors and get some voice training (also with a different faculty from the MT degree track). Their curriculums may be closer to what you hope to take than the BA in music. They do both, however, require an audition.
Thank you @vvnstar I was worried about that. They also said the BA is not allowed to take any dance classes. I appreciate your feedback!
Thank you so much everyone for all their comments. The time put into the responses are fantastic. Thank you guys!!!