<p>I've read a lot about music schools on this board, but I haven't heard much about Ithaca. Can anyone give me a rundown on the school, specifically its reputation for brass or tuba performance? Thanks.</p>
<p>A few of the titled threads:
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/961523-ithaca-college.html?highlight=Ithaca[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/961523-ithaca-college.html?highlight=Ithaca</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/908376-ithaca-worth-10k-more-per-year-than-crane.html?highlight=Ithaca[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/908376-ithaca-worth-10k-more-per-year-than-crane.html?highlight=Ithaca</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/646968-ithaca-music-education.html?highlight=Ithaca[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/646968-ithaca-music-education.html?highlight=Ithaca</a></p>
<p>There are a number of references in unrelated threads, a good portion of which appear in music education or music ed threads. </p>
<p>Extremely respected music ed program, by no means an easy in. Always has had a good reputation as a good string program. I can’t speak to brass.</p>
<p>If you scan the master lists, there are a number with acceptances and a few attending Ithaca. You may want to try searching posts under those user names.</p>
<p>One more: [Ithaca</a> College Visit - TrumpetDad](<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/visits/ithaca-college/7386983.html]Ithaca”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/visits/ithaca-college/7386983.html)</p>
<p>Aside from the how high the bar is set for the music department, the college at Ithaca has pretty high academic standards for admission. You’ll need to get past both.</p>
<p>One other bennie of Ithaca College is the variety of students on campus … there are the music/theater kids … but also liberal arts, education, business, and sports/physical activity related major kids … for a mid-sized school a wide variety of students on campus.</p>
<p>Anther factor about Ithaca is the weather and relative isolation of the town. It is definitely a “college town” but quite in the “Middle of Nowhere”,necessitating a long drive to get to Syracuse or Binghampton, neither of which are booming metropolises! The winters are harsh and the campus “concrete” and on a hill-top, which makes it seem even colder…
Ithaca is not an easy admit, as has been mentioned here already. I know of two kids, both “stars” in the area and their high schools, who had problems getting in; one, a young man with a great deal of MT experience was “only” accepted into their Drama program and the young woman was not permitted into the VP major at all, but told to be an " Undecided Music Major" and then re-audition in a year or two. Both had good academic credits and were accepted academically. I would recommend visiting the campus and staying over night to get a feel for the place (I notice you are from Michigan, and you may be used to winter, but those in Ithaca can try the patience of a saint!). Good luck!</p>
<p>Can’t speak to tuba specifically, but D met the trumpet professor last year when he was giving a master class nearby (Texas) and was impressed enough for us to arrange a trial lesson last spring. It went extremely well and we were able to sit in on one of his students’ Junior recital - very impressive performance! It also took us an extra day to get home because of the godawful weather (in March) - although the previous day was pretty enough for a very nice campus tour. Ithaca is the only school left on D’s short-list that is not near a major metro area.</p>
<p>Son accepted into vocal performance w/ a not-great (2.9) overall gpa, but high verbals in SAT. Didn’t go because the scholarship wasn’t enough to make it possible. EXPENSIVE school. Why be an artist starting out with crushing debt?</p>
<p>Ithaca’s winters are not terrible at all. I have lived in New England, NJ, PA before Ithaca and it’s not that much different. Ithaca is a a nice town and has beautiful parks and green areas, some nice restaurants, lots of art, music, theater and Cornell.<br>
Ithaca was just rated (again) #1 best college town.</p>
<p>It’s true that there isn’t a good city near by. NYC is 4+ hours. Boston is 6 hours. So if you are a city person, it could be a problem.</p>
<p>“…necessitating a long drive to get to Syracuse or Binghampton…”</p>
<p>Such trips are hardly “necessary”, or even desired, IMO. I lived in Ithaca for 6 years, the last three of which I had a car, and I visited those cities exactly once a piece. There was more to do in Ithaca, seemed more like the Binghamton students were frequently coming to Ithaca, quite frankly.</p>
<p>I think it’s a good place for college students.</p>
<p>Something happened a few weekend back on this subject. I tried to find the thread by “Sandrasings11” on here about Ithaca posted in the summer but couldn’t find it to add to my reply there so:</p>
<p>I’m not a fan of the show “Glee” for multiple reasons. Although I’m sure they’ve moved beyond that now, their promos used to make it look like everyone who was in that choir constantly got food thrown in their face in the halls (and my apologies in advance to those who’ve had that happen to them or Dads and Moms of children who have).</p>
<p>That being said:</p>
<p>[Here</a> is a YouTube of my son’s chamber choir in a mid-southern state, led by an Ithaca grad whose back you see.](<a href=“Rosas Pondan - BHS Chamber - YouTube”>Rosas Pondan - BHS Chamber - YouTube)</p>
<p>As I’d said in Sandra’s photo, this choir director leads a choral program of 450 kids in a school of almost 3,500. His program is the largest extracurricular activity in the school. (And they DO take “extracurriculars” seriously there.) He is beloved in this community. In the time my son’s been there, his Chamber Choir alone has sent kids to Arkansas, Florida, Michigan, IU-Bloomington, Berklee School of Music, North Texas, Texas A & M, Brigham Young, Washington-St. Louis, Tulsa, Missouri State and others I know I’m missing. And during that time, they’ve had in their ranks the 2010 prom king, a starter on the state champion (big school) girl’s soccer team, a cheerleader, the sophomore class president, the reigning "Miss (school name - annual beauty pageant taken very seriously there) and a linebacker on the football team (here’s where it got interesting).</p>
<p>This year, the football team won the state big school championship setting records right and left in the process, including the being the #3 scoring “big school” program in state history. The team finished “Top 25” overall in most high school football ranking services and were undefeated, also a rarity here. The day after the first playoff game, the chamber choir did a “singout” in the town square. While they were performing, the school’s #1 tackler and some other team members walked up and watched their teammate in that choir, who happened to be the primary backup to said #1 tackler. When finished, they cheered loudly for the teammate and the choir.</p>
<p>Thought that was cool. That kid’s far from the first football player to be in a hs choir before, but my son’s choral teacher (who was the key person in helping my son win the “Young Arts 2011 Honorable Mention Award” in my book, even if genetics helped), an Ithaca grad, has built that into an elite group that is knid of the "Anti-‘Glee’ ".</p>
<p>If Ithaca turns out many more like him, this country will be a more blessed place.</p>
<p>I haven’t heard much as far as tuba performance there. They haven’t had any students in recent competitions or in the finals for jobs, so it seems like you might be swimming upstream as a performance major surrounded by music ed students. You wouldn’t be by a decent professional orchestra, and the school is pretty expensive. What is it you like about Ithaca? Could you find those things somewhere with a better-known tuba prof and a little more to offer performance-wise? </p>
<p>I gather that your list is</p>
<p>Eastman
UMich
Northwestern
Bard
Oberlin
Lawrence
Juilliard
Manhattan School of Music </p>
<p>So you’ve got three places Alan Baer is teaching (Bard, MSM, and he’s taking over at Juilliard, from what I’ve heard from my friend there), and then Eastman, NU, and UMich, which are all very competitive, and Oberlin and Lawrence, which, if you’re legitimately in the running for the rest, should be relatively easy admits for a tuba player. What else are you looking for?</p>