Does anyone know of any good universities for music?

Question:

Does anyone know of any good universities for music?

i still got some time to go, but i want to start knowing what are some good universities for music, also with a good marching band. Preferably around california, but you never know, i might go somewhere else not around here, so not necessarily around california.

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: I just went through the process of finding a school to study music at. Surprisingly enough, it actually isn't all about whether or not you've heard if a school is good or not, or if they have a massive marching band. You need to consider what you want to do with music first. Minor? Major? And then are you going for performance, education, composition, theory, or history? What about music therapy? Not all schools specialize in these things! I picked a school that had a really good clarinet professor and one of the best music education programs I could find. You need to find the right fit for you.

Consider that many music majors do not participate in the marching bands, being in marching band takes A TON of time, and depending on where you go (Madison, for example, does high-stepping, and it will wreck havoc on your embochure, plus the people that are in the marching band spend more time in the weight room than the weight lifters!) may be too much of a commitment if you need to study music.

Another major thing to consider is your instrument. It doesn't matter about the size of the school or how well known the school is that you go to. What matters is the teacher you study with (believe me, my band director drilled this into me!!) and the school of music. No one will care whether or not you went to a big state school with music, they will ask who you STUDIED with. Start looking into the professors that teach your instrument at the schools.

On the same token, nearly every professor gives a free "get-to-know-you" lesson. Take advantage of it. Within that half hour/hour time you will be able to tell whether or not you want to study with this person for four years. Some teaching styles may not work well with you, and you should avoid them.

Do you understand the process of getting into a school of music? Start looking up what each school wants. Every school will want you to audition, just applying to the school of music will not get you in. An audition is required, and there are limited spots you will be competing for. So, pick a few schools and audition at all of them. Don't just audition at one, go to three or four. If you are good enough you may be offered money for school along with an acceptance letter!

Since you are thinking about studying music early, you should also start preparing early. Memorize your scales (at least all the major ones, minor would be great as well, don't forget about harmonic and melodic!!) and arpeggios. The school will dictate what music you will play for them, but most want two pieces, one melodic and one technical. Start on these early, and if possible start taking lessons privately. I started taking lessons this year and they helped me improve my skills ten-fold. You have no idea how valuable it is to have someone's input that has studied your instrument for years.

Your band director is a good resource as well, he/she should know about some good schools, and should be able to help you with the process of auditioning. They've gone through it too, and I highly recommend doing a "mock" audition for them, for friends, for anyone, to get practice (this is where the look into the schools thing comes in, one of my auditions required a music theory test, and a different one required that I match a tone on a piano with my instrument and then sing the tone). I'm sure you've heard this before, but any time you can get practice playing or performing in front of people DO IT!!

Finally, good luck! Studying music is a lot of hard work, and a huge commitment, but you can do it! It's so rewarding, I'm excited for you! :)

EDIT: I just remembered something! I don't know if it is an option for you, but you could actually look into band through the military. Some of the best musicians in the US are in the military bands. If you enlist as a band member you won't be deployed to war either, your official job is to make music. You will go through basic training, but you get your schooling for free and studying music from the military is very prestigious. Big time. It is something you may or may not want to look into, but I thought I'd give you the option, many people don't realize that it is one.