<p>It's almost decision time, and I have no idea where to attend. If I went to either Rice or Northwestern I would major in viola performance, but if I went to Princeton I would major in something more academic and get the performance certificate (most likely). Any knowledge of ANY of these schools (Northwestern, Princeton, Rice) would be greatly appreciated, whether regarding overall academics, social life, etc.. Also, does anyone know anything about the performance certificate program at Princeton? and is the workload as incredibly intense as it is made out to be? thanks!</p>
<p>Musicace, congrats on your acceptances. All through this board are threads answering questions and telling about Princeton, so browse through it, you'll find tons of info, and also go up to the very top of the page under Princeton 2009 and read the thread Cool Facts About Our School.
Here is an article from The Daily Princetonian that may interest you. It's about a family of string virtuosos who studied at the Manhattan School of Music and Juilliard, had solo performances at Carnegie Hall, and then chose Princeton for undergrad. The youngest, a violist, is a freshman, and in the Princeton University Orchestra. </p>
<p>Come back with any questions; the Tigers '09 are a spirited and helpful bunch. (I'm just a parent.) Good luck!</p>
<p>If the link for the article doesn't work, go to <a href="http://www.dailyprincetonian.com%5B/url%5D">www.dailyprincetonian.com</a> and search for this article: The Carpenters '08, '06, '03: A musical trio</p>
<p>Go To Princeton!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!</p>
<p><em>princeton princeton princeton princeton</em></p>
<p>what? did someone say something. ok i'll admit i'm biased. </p>
<p>i THINK getting a certificate is like minoring at another school. so it probably takes work, but not an overabundance of it. personally i think its also really beneficial to major in something more academic, with more of a job guarantee, but that's just my opinion.</p>
<p>Princeton=love. I say that a lot, but it really is. The student body's incredible, supportive, and ambitious; the faculty is top-notch and accessible to undergrads (because that's whom they're there for...us!); the campus is gorgeous; residential/dining life is really cool, from the residential colleges for the first two years to the possibility of joining an eating club for the last two; the location is perfect: NYC and Philly (and all their resources, which will be great if you're looking into studying music) will be easily accessible. Really, it's a win-win situation.</p>
<p>The music department is pretty good, from what I've heard (especially composition- and theory-wise). I'm not that versed on the performance certificate, but I have heard that you'll be working with some amazing people (wish I had names, but like I said, I haven't really researched it that much...hmmm, maybe this is some incentive to do so). Courses in the music department are deeply entrenched in history, style, and theory, but there are some other cool ones like computer and film music studies as well. There's always the Princeton University Orchestra to join, which is one of the top college orchestras in the country. </p>
<p>Rice and Northwestern are both amazing schools as well (especially for music), but there's something about Princeton's marginal benefits that make it so alluring: the combination of a strong undergrad focus, close-knit campus community, stellar academics, nearly unlimited opportunities, and unbeatable location that make it a hard option to pass up. Come join the rest of us tiger cubs! Unless there's something really strong pulling you toward the other schools, I doubt you'll regret it.</p>
<p>I'm also deciding between Rice and Princeton right now; visited Rice, but not Princeton yet.</p>
<p>On my visit to Rice, a few things really stuck out to me. First of all, it's not nearly as nerdy as it's made out to be by Princeton Review and other places; it seemed very laid-back and down to earth, although there were a couple nerdy moments -- anyway, I visited UC and Harvey Mudd also, and can say that they do deserve the reputations, whereas Rice does not. Secondly...well, I guess there's no secondly, you probably know the rest. Just make sure you visit if you have not yet already -- I really liked the atmosphere a lot.</p>
<p>Until I visit Princeton next week, I won't be able to say much about it.</p>
<p>BTW I think Rice's and P-ton's academic programs are significantly stronger than Northwestern's, but I don't have all the info.</p>
<p>Oh, and Rice does not offer minors -- may be significant to you.</p>
<p>Sorry the Daily Princetonian is still down.
Here are quotes from the above-mentioned article (10/14/2004, by Melisa Gao):</p>
<p>"When it came time for college...they chose Princeton over options that included the Curtis Institute of Music, a dual degree at Columbia, and Juilliard.</p>
<p>'Going to Princeton puts something in music that you'd never get at a conservatory,' Lauren ('06) explained. 'The best musicians are the most intelligent and well-educated. It's a different approach to making music.'</p>
<p>She noted the importance of having something to fall back on when you choose a path where 'your whole career depends on your hands.'</p>
<p>David ('08) won the 2004 National Foundation for the Advancement of the Arts competition and was told...by Yuri Bashmet, widely considered the world's preeminent violist, the he could be the best violist in the world.</p>
<p>Sean (Princeton '03), who just completed a masters in philosophy at Cambridge, is currently preparing for international music competitions and looking into applying to law schools."</p>