High School and Conservatories

Juilliard? Juilliard turns out technical masters which is one of the reasons their reputation is DROPPING (not to say it isn't still tremendous).

Look at it this way, though. 96% of applicants get turned away from Juilliard right? And yet 50%+ of Juilliard GRADS do not make it to concertizing careers.

The number of people out there who have "technical mastery" of their instruments is just ludicrous. If you happen to be a pianist like this guy it ceases being funny and starts being depressing.

But the percentage of people who have mastery plus that Special Something that makes their playing memorable is the same it's always been in history - tiny. But those people don't get that by going to conservatories. They get discovered when they're like 10 and cease to have normal lives. Like Pablo Casals and Yo-Yo Ma.

All this is coming to you from a guy who wants to one day make it in film music, which is like saying "I one day plan to hit a home run that lands on Mars."

But I would not turn in that long shot for the longer shot of trying to be a performer, much less a concert pianist.

Being a composer is like being an author. Being a performer is more like being an athlete.

None of the people at the Olympics are there because they had the "right trainer" and none of the people in Carnegie Hall are there because they went to the "right schools."

As an example:

I almost dropped out of highschool (as a whole, since I went to, what, 7 or 8 different schools in different countries?) and I never really studied jack scraggy (for school) after 7th grade (I passed everything through mysterious south american voodoo magic o_o.)

The fact is, I needed AT LEAST the highschool diploma (which I could've forged, btw and it wouldn't have made ANY difference what so ever since I forgot 90% of what I "learned" during school) to study in Germany where I got in. It turned out being useful (the paper) after all, but otherwise my school experience has been pretty much so abysmal that I wish I had spent all that time actually studying music or something (which I didn't, I only actually began studying anything seriously during the period I pretty much dropped out!)

Hell, the whole reason I got involved with art was because I dropped out of school when I was 14 and I had nothing better to do with my time so I started studying on my own.

So, really, I don't think I'm remotely qualified to give any advice concerning school since whatever I say will inevitably be against the whole system.

Tokkemon

Lol. In New York that may have been impressive, not in Kentucky. Sorry, it just isn't in the grand scheme of things.

There are a lot of good players in Kentucky, certainly better than you. Hell, there are a lot of good players all over in places you'd never expect - at least you'd never expect it if you spend your whole life posturing to 15 year olds on the internet.

The majority of my performance major friends/colleagues are at top tier schools (Eastman, Juilliard, Northwestern, etc) now, or playing in professional orchestras (one is actually playing with Chicago Civic as we speak). AND HEY, speaking of Kentucky, a guy I went to school with did his undergrad in Kentucky and he's been sitting principal at Aspen for the last 2 years and he just came in 2nd or 3rd place at a national performance competition. But hey, I'm sure you're the only one here who's really privy to anything right?

Please, Tokkemon, please please spare us the grandstanding. Stop mentioning New York more than the hours Sting has sex with hot hot women, please just stop it. You aren't impressing me or anyone else here. And I know what you're gonna say, "WELL I'M NOT TRYING TO IMPRESS ANYONE." Cut the crap. I just can't stand the hubris of every god damn comment you post here, and I swear to god if you try to deflect this or deny that I will your kick your donkey up and down the [metaphorical] sidewalk.

Weca

Juilliard? Juilliard turns out technical masters which is one of the reasons their reputation is DROPPING (not to say it isn't still tremendous).

Look at it this way, though. 96% of applicants get turned away from Juilliard right? And yet 50%+ of Juilliard GRADS do not make it to concertizing careers.

The number of people out there who have "technical mastery" of their instruments is just ludicrous. If you happen to be a pianist like this guy it ceases being funny and starts being depressing.

But the percentage of people who have mastery plus that Special Something that makes their playing memorable is the same it's always been in history - tiny. But those people don't get that by going to conservatories. They get discovered when they're like 10 and cease to have normal lives. Like Pablo Casals and Yo-Yo Ma.

All this is coming to you from a guy who wants to one day make it in film music, which is like saying "I one day plan to hit a home run that lands on Mars."

But I would not turn in that long shot for the longer shot of trying to be a performer, much less a concert pianist.

Being a composer is like being an author. Being a performer is more like being an athlete.

None of the people at the Olympics are there because they had the "right trainer" and none of the people in Carnegie Hall are there because they went to the "right schools."

Listen to Weca guys, he has a long and decorated history of being an internet know-it-all.

Blah don't matter. High school is a bore and a good number of people who pass it fail epically in real life. I say, stay in school be cool and get that degree. Why? You need it until you have a college degree. On a side note, if school bores you, then make it interesting. An algebra class is where I came up for my first proof on extended properties of Integral domains.

As for music conservatories: meh, i'm just gunna name some guys you might enjoy that will provide you with a well rounded education.

Boston College

Ithaca College

McNallySmith

Shepard School of Music at Rice

Cranes School of music

Northwestern

I name these schools because I've known people who have gone through the program and are not only outstanding musicians and composers (such as Jacob a former member of this forum) but also brilliant people in their own right.

Bitter - thanks for the additions to the more famous ones I gave. Good thing about your list that like Oberlin they have a strong liberal arts college so you can explore outside music.

And will everyone please lay of Tokke --- my goodness he is in agreement with you all ... what is with this badgering?

Ugh .. back to laundry and practice.

PS Jubilee - Hmm make me think of a nice title for the next do-it-yourself bestseller "How To Love The Things You Hate Doing"

Ooo, temper temper! Well, guess what, Microsoft STILL owns at least 90% of the computer market, so get used to them. You need to learn Msft Office to survive in today's economic world whether you like it or not. But you can have fun with your Linux and be part of the 0.01% of their little unconnected society.

I'm really not going into that discussion right now, mainly because microshit is starting to go down the drain, and linux CAN't have a market share if THEY ARE FREE. SO HOW CAN SOMETHING THATS FREE HAVE A MARKETSHARE IF ITS FREE AND YOU DONT SPEND MONEY ON IT Nurrrrrrr........

BTW, with the grades you mentioned above, that ain't no 4.0 or even 3.7.

Oops, my bad. I mean 3.6. Sorry.

You could have a 3.6 if your classes were and you had C+s and Bs.

I can sympathize so much with you Mathieu.

It's not that I'm not interested in the subjects, it's that the teacher's don't know how to teach in an interesting or relevant way! I mean, in social studies when we learned about the Renaissance painters not once did we see an example of a painting by them! How can you learn about Renaissance painting without seeing paintings?

This year our teacher called mis-spelled Johannes Sebastian Bach and called Handel by a strange name AND pronounced Descartes dezcarts. There is really only one teacher who knows what they are doing in my school, my chemistry teacher and that's because he got his masters at Yale and has a Ph.D. My music theory teacher is fantastic as well, but my orchestra teacher had no idea I was interested in classical music although I had a 10 minute discussion with her about classical music, I'm the only one in the class who can answers questions about the composers, and the orchestra played one of my pieces!

I've found that since I'm interested in all the subjects so much, but the teachers make me uninspired I just teach myself all the material and that way I can be in my head during class. So, I'm reading up on Quantum Physics, European History, and I'm planning to take the A.P Exams in courses I'm not taking since I read so much. If I take enough exams then next year in junior year I'll have around 5 frees, so I can use that time for whatever else I want. That's what I'd recommend you do Mathieu. Teach yourself as much as you can so you can finish up high school easy.

EDIT: I read through the thread a little more and I disagree with what is said that only the child prodigies have a career in their future. In this day and age parents are less indulgent of their kids and some child prodigies go unnoticed until college.

Half of it is the attitude as well in terms of making a career and getting noticed. You have to feel so strongly that you have something to offer and that NOTHING will stop you. If you don't have an attitude that you KNOW you can do it you can't; it's that simple. I know I sound like a motivational speaker, but it's true. Half of what makes a great artist is the fire that burns that tells them they are important and have something to communicate with the world. Why do people need to hear your music if your not important? And what makes importance? Importance is something from within that emanates. You decide whether you are important or not and if you feel that you are important people will notice that.

By the way, I'm not saying be arrogant, but when someone really feels that something they've done is worth something I can tell, it's not an arrogance in their voice, it's a passion and it makes me interested and it will make other people interested.

I'm reading up on Quantum Physics,

Look no one is saying that only truly wonderful absolutely amazing people make a career in music. Just look at Robin Jessome, i mean talk about a lack of talent. Just joking dude, Robin rocks.

But seriously, the issue isn't if he can or can't do it, but to realize that to be successful in ANY career your ability in the field is only part of the equation. Being a well rounded and educated person can only benefit you. That is all that people have been trying to bring to his attention. In short, focus and work hard on music, but there's life outside of that too.

Please don't. You lack the background to get anything useful out of it and you'll end up like those metaphysical idiots.

Look no one is saying that only truly wonderful absolutely amazing people make a career in music. Just look at Robin Jessome, i mean talk about a lack of talent. Just joking dude, Robin rocks.

But seriously, the issue isn't if he can or can't do it, but to realize that to be successful in ANY career your ability in the field is only part of the equation. Being a well rounded and educated person can only benefit you. That is all that people have been trying to bring to his attention. In short, focus and work hard on music, but there's life outside of that too.

In a way I have to because it's also a bit of a business thing. I didn't take the science research program at my school because I didn't have room in my schedule, but I want to enter some of the competitions so I can get into a better college and the professor I want to use as my mentor wrote the book I'm reading so when I contact him he'll be more apt to mentor me.