<p>My S is 15 and is planning a career in Opera. He has been performing and taking vocal, jazz piano, acting lessons since he was 7. Originally, this all started with me making the mothering rounds of classes for kids, you know: soccer (hated), T-ball (hated), swimming(put up with), ballet (I hated the school) etc. He started taking little summer camps at the children's theater companies in town and ended up in Boychoir, Revels, various theater productions and the Portland Opera. His voice changed when he was 11 and we moved home to Missoula, Mt to look after my ailing mother. He has since picked up Barbershop singing, community choir, and high school choir where he lettered and was the only freshman to do so. He is a baritone now, but his vocal teacher thinks he will be a tenor with baritone undertones. Whatever that means.</p>
<p>My question is: What the heck do I do with him for college. He doesn't have a lot of friends, he prefers to play piano and read. He doesn't really seem to need a lot of human stimulation outside of the few hours a day of school. Is highly critical of teachers that don't know what they are talking about. Is very intellectual. 3.76 GPA freshman year and is distressed that it isn't better. He took 3 week off to go back to Portland to a super be in Madam Butterfly so he got some Bs. (total perfectionist, didn't get it from me)</p>
<p>As neither my husband or myself are musically inclined (love to listen to it, can't produce it), I'm stumped as to the schools that offer a very rigorous vocal program with teachers that are top notch. We have been burned with supposed elite summer camp experiences (Walnut Hill was a nightmare.) So I am being VERY cautious. I will mention we are not wealthy. He will need a scholarship if he is interested in the name schools. Julliard, Oberlin, NEC etc. But in talking to different vocal coaches and the like, I have heard good and bad about them all. (Julliard bad, Lawrence good, Indiana too big, etc.)</p>
<p>If anyone has some good advice, I would GREATLY appreciate it. I have another son, 2 years younger, wants to do engineering, is already set on Montana State in Bozeman ($6000yr in state tuition). He is a dream. . .</p>
<p>As far as summer programs go, you might consider Tanglewood. My daughter loved it. Lots of classical singing, opera singing, concerts, workshops. Amazing place.</p>
<p>Friend’s daughter went to Williams, majored in music and sang in a lot of choral groups while there. She just got her master’s in opera from the University of Oklahoma. I watched her final recital online this spring–an hour and a half of opera pieces in four languages. Absolutely blew me away. She is already getting small parts in regional operas.</p>
<p>Good answers here, but you might get more info posting on the Music Major section of this forum.</p>
<p>Does your son take private music lessons on piano or voice? If he plans to major in music performance, he will need to audition at his colleges. Having a private teacher will help him prepare for this. In addition a good private teacher will be able to suggest colleges.</p>
<p>The Boston University Tanglewood Institute is terrific. This is the summer Tanglewood Program for high school students, and an audition is required for</p>
<p>Thumper is correct. You will get a lot more answers in the music major forum. Go to discussion home then specific majors. </p>
<p>I also recommend that he try Tanglewood next summer. What was it about Walnut Hill that he didn’t like?</p>
<p>For now, the most mportant thing is that he have a good voice teacher. If he wants to major in performance he will have to audition and will need appropriate repertoire by the beginning of his senior year. </p>
<p>Things to consider eventually are: does he want a stand alone conservatory such as Juilliard or New England Conservatory or a University that offers a BM such as Northwestern, Vanderbilt, Rice, etc. As another poster mentioned, he might also consider getting a BA in music and then getting a MM</p>
<p>Also consider the Youngarts program (youngarts.org). It used to be opened to high school seniors only, but I think the rules changed tis year and it’s now opened to ages 15-18.</p>
<p>Northwestern has and excellent Opera program, my daughter will be a Senior there (MT, not Opera) and we have a dear friend who is a very well-known Opera Director and is a professor there. It’s a great program, worth looking into. Oh, and at Northwestern it’s okay to be really smart!</p>
<p>I also second Northwestern. My son just graduated with double degrees B.Mus in vocal performance and B.A (Sociology) from there. It was a very good program for him since he could study music while pursuing other intellectual interests. Northwestern also has a very good summer music program for high schoolers. Check it out.</p>
<p>How is your son academically? A school like the University of Rochester, home of the renowned Eastman Conservatory of Music (considered on a par with Juilliard), can be generous with merit aid if your son has the academics as well as the talent to back it up.</p>
<p>I would try another summer program such as Tanglewood or Interlochen. You might even consider Interlochen for his junior/senior or even senior year of high school. They do have financial aid. It would give you a good idea of where he stands musically.</p>
<p>My daughter was not impressed with Northwestern for vocal performance, but that was in 2003 and it might have improved since then. She visited and ruled it out. She graduated from Rice, which I highly recommend, but her second choice was Indiana even though it is very large and political (for voice in particular).</p>
<p>The aspiring opera singer that I know did her last two years of high school at Interlochen, which also has summer programs, and then went to Oberlin.</p>
<p>Not offering much new here but urge you to check out the Music Majors Forum on CC which has many more parents and students well versed on music programs, including for Vocal Performance. </p>
<p>I advised a student pursuing opera. She did the summer program at Tanglewood (it is through Boston University) and it was terrific. She is now attending Oberlin’s conservatory to study vocal performance.</p>
<p>Welcome to the club. You are in for a journey. Here is where you can find out all of the information you need and get all of the support you need on this path. Most of us parents on the music major forum have been where you are and stick around to help those coming along now. [Music</a> Major - College Confidential](<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/]Music”>Music Major - College Confidential Forums)</p>
<p>Would University of Cincinnati be a good place to check out? It might not be as expensive as some of the other options, and perhaps the OP and talented son could check it out at the same time as Oberlin. I was thinking OP being from Montana might be a bit of a help even though it is obvious that talent trumps all</p>
<p>The Cincinnati Conservatory is extremely selective and only a small percentage of the voice students who audition are accepted. A lot of the decision (besides getting accepted) at the top music programs comes down to meeting the teachers and seeing who you think you would be best for you.</p>
<p>D did her BM and MM at large universities and her musical talent funded her education. .We too were ill equipped to afford big name conservatories so she basically followed the money, the opportunities (to sing) and the teachers. For your sons undergrad education there are plenty of good teachers at good , albeit lesser known schools willing to pay for a talented baritones education. For a young singer you need to find a teacher who sends their young healthy grads off to the top graduate schools. Plenty of successful young singers come from relatively obscure undergrad environments and plenty of undergrads from big name schools just graduate with a lot of debt and very little else. You will find, after reading the Music Majors forum, that it is an intense search, just to find the right situation for your young musician. It can be done–my D is now happily supporting herself with music alone.</p>