<p>Hi everybody!
So I have been reading the music threads here on CC for a few months now and they have been really informative. I'll be applying to music schools for voice this year and right now I'm starting to get a little worried about where I should apply. </p>
<p>I am a bass-baritone and I have been taking lessons for about a year and half. About 2 months ago I asked my teacher where I should apply and all he could come up with was Juilliard, Curtis, and Rice (He's a great teacher, he just isn't that tuned in to the music world I guess). From what I've read here those schools are really tough to get into and I don't think my chances would be so great since I don't have much experience. I'm in Colorado so I'm going to apply to UColorado--Boulder as well as the three above but I desperately need advice on some other schools to apply to. My GPA is 3.8 and my SAT is 2030 (for now). </p>
<p>I am open to ANY advice that anyone may have and location is not a problem (the farther away the better tbh) Thanks in advance</p>
<p>CU in Boulder is an excellent music school with outstanding voice teachers who are very supportive. You would be just fine there, could develop your talent and see where life leads you. Conservatories are not the place to get experience, and the training is more finishing work than developmental and maturation. Good luck!</p>
<p>How about Lawrence University in Wisconsin? Frost School of Music at University of Miami? Both really good-- not sure how difficult to get in to compared to the one’s you mentioned…</p>
<p>Thank you all for the suggestions! I just returned from visiting schools in NY. So for now the list stands at Rice, Julliard, Curtis, UC Boulder, Suny Fredonia, and University of Maryland (apparently they are great?). My top choice I think would be Rice. It would seem that it is one of the few best from what I have been hearing from other prospective students. Still have yet to visit UC Boulder (even though it is only like two hours from my house!) does anyone have teacher recommendations for Boulder? </p>
<p>I didnt really like what I heard about Oberlins program but I DO need more suggestions. I had heard that Peabdy’s acceptance rate is pretty high. Is this true???</p>
<p>Keep the recommendations coming. They are extremely helpful! :)</p>
<p>Have you broken your list down into “Realistic”, “Almost-safety”, “Reach”, etc? When I look at the list you have, I’m a little confused as to how it’s been compiled because, frankly, it’s all over the place. Rice and Julliard are top-level conservatories: neither is known to be terribly “undergraduate voice” friendly, and by that I mean that they have excellent faculty whose attentions are geared far more toward the grad and post grad students in attendance and neither place will offer you many, if any at all, performance opportunities. Applying to Curtis for undergrad voice is akin to putting your name into a lottery for a ride on a Soyuz Space mission: most years they have no openings and when they do, well, think Juan Diego Florez, because that’s the type of voice who gets their attention and admission info.
SUNY Fredonia would be flattered to be mentioned in the same print paragraph with the above schools, but is well aware that their voice program isn’t even considered a 3rd tier level. Maryland, at any given time, has 1-3 teachers on faculty who will attract a following, but again, they tend to be grad students. Oberlin is as much a life-style choice as it is an educational option, so if it’s on your radar, do take the time to research and visit. If you’re looking there, you may as well consider CIM (in Cleveland, about 45 minutes from Oberlin) since it can be done on the same trip and they have two good male teachers on VP faculty. Peabody varies widely, you’ll find a lot of opinions about them on other voice boards, but they also have two men on faculty whom I know to be good teachers. UNT and UT/Austin both have very good programs with some good teachers.
Lorelei gave you some advice worth taking to heart. You really don’t have much experience and although you may be studying with a teacher you really like, he doesn’t sound like he has a lot of knowledge about higher education when it comes to vocal performance. Anyone can rattle off the names of the best known schools, but are they realistic choices for you? Have you had an honest evaluation of your voice and progress from an another instructor? That would be a good place to begin before you get right into the season where you have to make your pre-screen materials and prepare for the actual auditions. Go through some of the older threads about schools and auditions (use the search feature), check out other “singer” boards and even PM some of us with questions.
Oh, DePauw,DePaul and CCPA are other places you should research!</p>
<p>I have SUNY Fredonia on the list just as an extreme safety. I dont really know where I stand when it comes to other kids who will be auditioning. I made it into the LA round of Classical Singer competition but couldnt go, which might have been helpful because I heard they had a college fair. </p>
<p>UT Austin looks great. The students that post things on YouTube sound great and the website and faculty look promising. UNT I will not apply to simply because of the location which a couple friends told me was terrible.</p>
<p>I have actually had a number of people recommend DePauw to me so I think I will apply there.</p>
<p>Okay so the list right now stands at Rice, Juilliard, University of Maryland, UC Boulder, UT Austin, DePauw University, and SUNY Fredonia</p>
<p>bassbari94- get your hands on a copy of the August 2011 Opera News and read it! There is some advice about schools in there which may help you, especially since it is skewed-right or wrong- away from conservatories. I know an excellent young singer who attended DePauw and got virtually no performing experience as an undergrad, so it all depends upon what’s going on when you’re there. And as for UNT, it’s 40 miles from Dallas- how can that be classed as a “terrible” location? Just my opinion, but I don’t think you should rule that program out without a good look for yourself…
And a “PS” for Fredonia: you won’t get “in state” tuition, you have to find and pay for your own accompanist (they don’t tell you that upfront, so factor in a goodly amount for that; you have to negotiate your own costs and locate someone deemed “suitable”. The school pays for an hour rehearsal and your lesson, but rep class accomp, rehearsals, etc are on you. I know some kids who ran up really hefty bills!) and the school is in the absolute middle of nowhere. Freshman tech the operas there, they can’t even audition for the chorus, and your looking at a cost of about 25K/year PLUS transportation. And 60 miles from Buffalo makes 40 miles from Dallas look like heaven on earth, especially when those “snow belt” storms hit the area!</p>
<p>As a male, you will find it much easier to get in than women. Schools that don’t roll off your lips when thinking of schools for voice include:</p>
<p>Lamont School of Music, Univ of Denver
Lawrence, Appleton, WI
Univ of WI-Madison, Madison, WI
Anderson, Anderson, IN
Depaw, Greencastle, IN
Taylor, Upland, IN
University of the Pacific, San Francisco, CA
Vanderbilt, Nashville, TN</p>
<p>For other schools, go to Classicalsinger.com and look at the schools that go to the college expo (high school music competition).</p>