What to Expect from a Music Major or Minor

If you plan to study music at a conservatory or university, you can expect a lot of work and a lot of time spent shut up in a practice room. To give you an idea of the work involved: there was a common myth at UC Santa Cruz, where I went to school, that the two hardest majors at the university were physics and music.

Music majors will spend a fair to massive amount of time practicing. You will need to practice for your primary instrument lessons (usually at least an hour a day), for your ensembles, for your piano lab, for your secondary instrument lessons (maybe), for your musicianship lab (a lot of sightsinging), and for ear training exercises in your theory class.

Music majors are generally expected to have a primary instrument that is their practical application focus (this is true for minors as well). They usually take related ensembles (ie a vocalist will take some form of choir, a violinist will take some form of orchestra, etc.) There may be other related performance opportunities (opera scenes, operas, musicals, repertoire classes, string quartets, small chamber ensembles, jazz ensembles, requests to play in other students' recitals, etc.) Alternately, some schools offer programs that emphasize theory and electronic music as concentrations, although you will still probably have a primary instrument. In many programs, you are periodically tested on your primary instrument to ensure that you are performing at a certain level of skill.

Generally music majors take a lot of music theory and related musicianship and piano courses. Minors take a fair amount as well. Theory classes generally comprise of both written and aural sections. Very basic theory classes cover music reading essentials, but later, it is assumed that you can read music fluently. Topics covered may include: harmony, counterpoint, structure and form, part writing, chromaticism, serialism, modulation, rhythm, etc. Musicianship covers both tonal and atonal sightsinging, interval recognition, harmonic recognition, melodic, rhythmic, and harmonic dictation, etc. Piano labs usually include chord progressions, figured bass, and score reading.

Music majors and minors are also expected to take some history classes, which requires time in listening labs at the library getting familiar with all of the material. History classes usually include research and/or analysis papers and the ability to recognize the works (aurally) of various composers, as well as covering traits of various composers, schools of composers, periods of music, etc.

There are supplemental classes as well, although different ones are required for different programs. Examples of these are: orchestration, composition, ethnomusicology, electronic music, world music ensembles, conducting, vocal anatomy, vocal repertoire, jazz theory, etc. In addition, vocalists want to consider possibly taking language courses (Italian, French, German) and acting courses.

The above applies to music programs at universities. Conservatory programs are similar in material covered but often have more stringent course requirements and aptitude levels on your primary instrument. Also, you must audition to be accepted into a conservatory, whereas in many university music programs (but not all), you apply to the university first and audition for lessons once you've started attending the school. Most musical theater programs also require an audition before acceptance to the school, and a more equal emphasis is usually placed on the three musical theater fundamentals: vocal music, acting, and dance.

Recommended Preparations for Teenagers Interested in Majoring/Minoring in Music:

1. Lessons: Private study is extremely important for young people who intend to take their music study onwards. You should be taking private lessons in your primary instrument, preferably for 60 minutes every week. The level of preparation and practice for these lessons should be uniformly high.

2. Piano/keyboard competence: Most music programs require a certain level of competence on the piano, even if it's not your main instrument. If you can go into your program already knowing the basics, it will save you a lot of stress and time in the practice room.

3. Theory: If your school offers AP Music Theory, strongly consider taking it. If not, consider taking a theory course through a music school in the area, at summer conservatory, or at a local community college. If nothing else, ask your private music teacher for exercises and explanations.

4. Musicianship/eartraining: Some of this will be covered in AP Music Theory, but you can also take separate courses in musicianship. If you are taking voice lessons, ask to practice sightsinging and interval recognition.

5. Ensemble: Consider joining a music ensemble, either through your school or a community program. Choir is an excellent experience for young vocalists and really improves musicianship. Band and/or orchestra is a must for instrumentalists. If you're a pianist, see about joining a jazz group or getting experience accompanying.

6. Languages: If you are vocalist who is planning on majoring in Classical Voice, you will be expected to sing in French, Italian, and German as well as English (and possibly other languages as well!) You should consider taking classes in at least one of these languages in high school, as well as getting experience singing in all three.

7. Performance experience: The more, the better (as long as you can still keep up with your schoolwork, of course!) Opportunities include, but are not limited to: ensembles discussed earlier, recitals, school plays and musicals (both for singers and for instrumentalists who can play in the musical band), musicals offered by children's theater groups, classes in performance, acting, dancing (for vocalists), master classes, festivals, solo opportunities, camps and workshops, etc.

8. Use your extra time in the summer to further your musical abilities. There is a great variety of camps, summer conservatories, and young artist programs from which you can choose. If you don't have time during the year, consider taking a musicianship course, an Italian course, or piano lessons during the summer. See if you can fit in some lessons on your primary instrument as well.

9. If you are considering studying musical theater in college, you will need to focus more strongly on your acting and dance skills, as well as on singing. You should get experience performing in musicals at your high school or in your community. For your repertoire, you should make sure to study a broad range of musical theater songs: ballads, up tempo, patter songs; and many different time periods and composers, including early musical theater (Rodgers & Hart, Cole Porter), Golden Age (Rodgers & Hammerstein, Lerner & Loewe), rock opera/mega-musical, Sondheim, and modern (Stephen Schwartz, Jason Robert Brown, etc.).

10. Start preparing for your college auditions in good time, if you are planning to apply to competitive conservatories or musical theater programs. You should begin compiling a list of programs you are interested in applying to in your junior year of high school. You should start thinking about audition material at least six months prior to your audition dates to ensure that you have plenty of time to plan and polish. Tell your private teacher as soon as you can if you're interested in majoring or minoring in music at college. Tell them even if you're just thinking about it and haven't decided. Ask for their opinion, and for details of what a music major or minor might entail.