<p>I am going to be a junior this next school year and have heard many different things about colleges and am just very unsure about things. I know i want to pursure a bassoon performance major and am not sure whether i also want to go a composition route or education route also. I have more interest in a university than a conservatory. I have done research and know that UMich, Northwestern, and such have good programs but have not heard as much about the University of North Texas. Does anyone have opnions on how good of a school that is? I am also just open to any opnions on good schools/teachers!!
I just need a place to start!</p>
<p>Hi!
My daughter is a bassoonist at NEC, going into her sophmore year. But we looked at many schools for her search so maybe I can give you some ideas. We are from NY so I am not sure where you want to look but here are the places my D’s bassoon teacher, Marc Goldberg recommended for us. My daughter wound up preferring the conservatory route but some of the top universities we looked at:</p>
<p>Uiversity of Texas/Austin - since you mentioned UNT I was curious why not UT. Kristen Wolfe Jensen is fabulous! Big school but their music facilities are lovely and music students tend to stay in that area mostly. Great bassoon program and school in a cool city. My D decided not to apply only because she hates the heat but she loved Jensen.</p>
<p>UofMichigan - great bassoon faculty, great school, very competitive, expensive. My D didn’t apply though.</p>
<p>Indiana University - great bassoon faculty. Bill Ludwig is a wonderful teacher and funny guy. IU is absolutely beautiful camput BUT the bassoon studio is HUGE. They had well over 20 players the year she auditioned and was accepted. But she felt in the end it was too large nd worried she wouldn’t get much playing time in the orchestras. We do know a bassoon/compositon major there that absolutely loves it though, well as other comp majors.</p>
<p>SUNY Fredonia - wonderful bassoon faculty, very warm and supportive, nice campus for upstate NY. They are well known for their music ed department. Not as competitive an admission.</p>
<p>Univ. North Texas - only looked preliminarily at this school since we were moving to TX and thouht it would be a nice cheap alternative. I believe it has a good rep for music ed. Not sure about the bassoon faculty. My D’s bassoon teacher felt it was better for more band oriented instruments.</p>
<p>Arizona State University - another great bassoon faculty, large school though but more reasonably priced. D didn’t want to live in the southwest but it is a beautiful school.</p>
<p>Boston University - faculty is the same at NEC, all performers in the Boston Symphony. The year we were loooking they were desperate for bassoona. They said they would offer lots of money. My D didn’t like the layout of the school and did not apply. I wanted to kill her! I think they recently did major overhaul of the music building. I thought it was lovely but I wasn’t the one going there.</p>
<p>Oberlin - terrific faculty. George Sakakeeny is great. This was my D’s first choice but they only took 2 bassoons that year out of the 40+ that applied. Really nice campus is rural area of Ohio. Great school but they seem to prefer the music majors to do the double major 5 year program over just applying to the music school. Expensive but worth a look.</p>
<p>Bard College - small college in rural NY. Nice campus and Marc Goldberg is the bassoon faculty there. They also have a double major program there.</p>
<p>NYU/Steinhardt - Leonard Hindell faculty. Great guy and teacher, ex NY Phil principal. Very expensive.</p>
<p>Also researched but did not apply to Michigan State, SMU, University of North Carolina/Grensboro, and Florida State University. FSU has a great bassoon program, we know a few kids that went there and loved it.</p>
<p>I am sure there are more but I can’t remember them right now! But these are certainly the top choices we were told for bassoons. Feel free to contact me if you have any more question or need help. I think I could write a book about the whole college choice and audition process. Good luck!</p>
<p>Oh I forgot two more - Lawrence University and Yale University.</p>
<p>Do you know any information about Northwestern? I’ve heard they have a good music program rep but not sure about the bassoon department!</p>
<p>The OP is instate to Michigan. It will not be very “expensive” to him/her.</p>
<p>There is additional info in your duplicate post in the music major forum [Music</a> Major - College Confidential](<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/]Music”>Music Major - College Confidential Forums). It is doubtful you will get the required level of knowledge and expertise within the general forums when it comes to the requirements of assessing a music program that is audition based/audition driven.</p>
<p>The comment is not meant to offend, but what you ask requires a different level of perception and knowledge that even the most astute in academic admissions simply do not possess.</p>
<p>You should post this is in the music forum, they’re very helpful over there.</p>
<p>If you’re looking for a music performance degree, Yale is not the place to go. They have a great music program, but you won’t get a performance degree, only a BA at best. In general (I don’t know specifically for bassoon), I think the best university-related music programs are Harvard/NEC, Columbia/Juilliard, Michigan, Indiana, USC, Northwestern, etc. I believe UNT is more of a jazz-oriented music program but I could be wrong on that.</p>