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MusicIs Music right for me?Music as a major is both challenging and rewarding. Majoring in music can take you from the classroom, to the recording studio, to the concert hall as a student and later as a professional. If you are entering the major as a performer, you will need to master your instrument and gain proficiency in the liberal and technical areas of music, namely theory and history. While you certainly want to be as good as you can at performing on your instrument, displayed in solo recitals and concert performances, there are typically a variety of applications ranging from solo performance to ensembles, to teaching or working in therapy. Composition is a rewarding division of the music major. The student must find her or his own voice amid a wide range of styles and genres. With the advent of computers and electronic instruments, the composer has literally endless numbers of timbres to choose from in creating a piece of music. Taking a piece from inception to performance takes a knowledge of many areas in music including the understanding of balance and proportion and the practical issues of what performers can and cannot do. If research and analysis are of interest, an emphasis on music theory or history may be your choice. In doing so, the student typically has a good understanding of all music but will then focus on a particular area or time period or perhaps an area of the world in ethnomusicology. A music major will typically have two years of basic music theory and history and begin to focus on a chosen field. Upper level courses will prepare the student in the areas of performance, education, theory, history or therapy. Graduate study is recommended in most disciplines. A deep love of music and commitment to the profession is required to eventually make a living as a musician. But once there, a very rewarding career is in store. What kind of jobs can I get after college?The age-old answer to this question is a musician either performs or teaches. While recent social and technological changes have occurred to open new doors to the musician, these two basic areas are still the primary arenas for making money in music. Many musicians do both - perform and teach, and a closer look at jobs shows many variables in these fields of work. As a performer you may want to seek the center stage as a solo performer, but you might need some other means of support while preparing to get there. While it is difficult to make it there, it is not impossible. The key is to work hard, network and take every opportunity that comes along. Most performers choose the more accessible path of playing in ensembles. These range from orchestras to bands, playing for shows, weddings, nightclubs and restaurants or touring concert halls. The same holds true for singers (except for the orchestra) as an option, although in large cities there are usually paying jobs in orchestra choruses. Teaching music begins in the private studio. This can be very lucrative and very rewarding, but you must be dedicated and work at the craft of pedagogy to be successful. In the classroom there are chorus, band and orchestra teachers as well as general music teachers, but you must have the credentials of a music education degree and be certified in your state. A graduate degree is often required to remain in this line of work. College-level teaching is accessible with graduate degrees. Music therapy is a relatively new and growing field. With the right training and certification, you might work in special education classrooms for children, trauma units and hospitals, nursing homes, private homes, or special therapy centers. Certification may be gained from an undergraduate degree although many practitioners hold advanced degrees. The Internet is providing new and undiscovered opportunities for musicians and composers. Working with computers and technology, there is a booming market for new music on the web and in video games. Working in a recording studio, while going through rapid changes with digital technology, can be lucrative and fun. What courses do I need to take?The basic music courses for an undergraduate music degree include one to two years of music theory, ear-training and music history. Advanced study may require keyboard proficiency, ensembles, repertoire and instrument specific courses. An education or therapy major has practical and method courses, and a composer will take a wide variety of courses in form and analysis, orchestration, counterpoint and composition. As with most fields, you would do well using computers with technology courses. Your working knowledge of music software programs will serve you in any area of music you ultimately choose and is usually transferable into other software platforms if you take a job outside of music. Key Words-What is a Music major expected to know?Every field has its own lingo, and by knowing that lingo, you can demonstrate your knowledge and expertise - in a job interview, in the workplace, or in an on-line discussion with potential colleagues. A few of the most important key words in the field of music are presented here, to give you a head start on your future!
Melody
Harmony
Rhythm
Classical
Jazz
Popular music
Core Skills: What is a Music major expected to be good at?People are going to expect you to be able to do certain things well because you are a music major. These core skills should help you focus your course work and learning as you progress toward your degree. Take the time to practice, practice, practice - so you can exceed the expectations the world has for you as a music major!
Performing
Ear-training
Arranging
Conducting
The Voice of Experience Learn from seniors who have been down the road ahead of you. Here is one senior's candid reflection on life as a Music major: I. Why did you choose your major?: I chose music as a major because I seemingly could not escape the drive and fulfillment that music gave to me. Certainly many people told me to play it safe and choose a different major, but music would not allow me to pursue other things. In the beginning I was unsure of the outcome of a career, but I knew it would be focused on music. After my first couple of years of college, I knew I would take the long haul toward a vocation in music. 2. How did you decide on your second major or minor?: I chose a second major within the realm of music at the encouragement of a professor. He (in his wisdom) knew I would not readily make a living as a composer but thought that I could support myself as a church organist. Choosing music as a first and/or second major does not mean throwing realism out the window. 3. How did this major meet your expectations?: This major met my expectations in many ways. The course work directly gave me the skills to function in the different types of positions I'd already had and to achieve my goals. Also, succeeding in college gave me a good deal of confidence and self-worth that I might not have gotten in a major with large numbers of students. Music is an art which expresses values to fulfill a set of emotions different from the more popular fields of business and commerce. 4. What disappointed you about this major?: The rewards have far outweighed any disappointments, but among the few I have noticed is the disconnectedness between the college classroom and the real world. Music is such a part of the fabric of everyone's life yet often the course work seemed isolated from the real world by avoiding popular trends or focusing on esoteric examples. I've enjoyed the work that has included musical styles that are quality and mainstream. 5. What has challenged you the most about this major?: The main challenge is finding the frame-of-mind to complete the requirements of the degree. Music is an emotional pursuit and often you would have an assignment due, such as a composition or performance, and not feel emotionally engaged to complete the work. You can seldom cram to complete a music assignment and whether you feel like working or not, the work has to be done. Finding the focus to be able to work everyday has benefitted me, and I am glad to have gone through the rigors of the degree. 6. How has this major prepared you to get a job that you'll love?: A career in music is a life-long pursuit, but the skills I have achieved and the goals I have accomplished in college are a foundation upon which to build. The jobs immediately out of the gate might be less fulfilling than those that I will eventually love, but the environments in which I will work will be terrifically satisfying, and with time (and perhaps additional training such as graduate school), I am confident I will have the job that I truly love! 7. What do you know now as a senior, that you wish someone had told you about this major three years ago? What advice would you give a student just entering this major?: Work hard. Many people choose music because of the love they have for the art. This is a great beginning, but you should be focused on the real world and achieve goals that will take you to the next level of your career. The chance to immerse yourself in music learning is a gift, and you should take full advantage of all opportunities in the classroom, concert hall and any place that music is happening. Get Connected!To seek support for your college experiences, and to get a head start on your career, use these links to get connected by learning more about organizations in your discipline. By joining and participating in the professional conversation around the country, you can learn beyond the boundaries of your program. Many of these organizations offer scholarships and awards that can also help you to grow and succeed in your field of study! Student organizations
www.achsnatl.org/pkl.htm
Professional organizations
smt.ucsb.edu/smt-list/smthome.html
American Music Therapy Association
www.music.org/
Get Informed!It's a good idea to read more than what your teachers assign, and to branch out beyond the confines of your program. Many college students report that reading current magazines and journals related to their field helped them when it came time to look for a job after graduation. Every field has numerous publications that offer different perspectives and raise important issues. The links below offer a start on your own journey to get informed! Many of these publications offer discounts to students. Magazines and Trade Journals
www.billboard-online.com/
www.ascap.com/
www.harmony-central.com/
Music in Depth!This is the place to deepen your knowledge of the field. Whether you are a graduating senior, or still deciding if you want to major in Music, you'll find here a more detailed overview of the field. What Is Music?Music, as an art, is communication. Music communicates feelings and emotions that are often impossible to express in words. Consequently, music is often thought of as a foreign language to non-musicians, yet it is central to the everyday human experience. Music is entertainment. It is also inextricably linked to religion, sociology and anthropology. Music is a reflection of society since the beginning of culture as evident when children start to sing in a classroom, or young people walk out on a dance floor, or older concert goers hear the first notes of a favorite performance. Music is universal and at the same time very colloquial. The subjectivity of the art brings it from the highest expression of the virtuoso's performance to the off-key humming of the un-trained child in an instant. Within this world of expression, music is a complex combination of basic parameters. There is a constructive use of musical elements (melody, harmony, rhythm, form, timbre, tempo and texture) by composers to create compositions. General ideals and specific items are combined to produce a wide variety of types of music. Compositions represent a variety of constructions, historical styles and cultural functions. While many pieces of music have a significant focus on melody, many classical composers thought more on the issues of harmony. Rhythm is the central feature of much music from around the world and timbral qualities or how an instrument sounds can often define a style or type of music. Perhaps the most relevant feature of music is that it is an experience associated with time. As a musical experience unfolds, minutes and seconds go by with a regularity that is fixed with our desire to comprehend the experience. Music is a constant combination of unity and diversity. If the musical example is too much of one or the other, we, as listeners, reject the experience as boring or confusing. If there is a successful balance of the two, a musical composition can engage us and communicate the highest emotions of our human experience. Music is performance. Taking a piece of music that was perhaps written long before we were born, interpreting the markings on the page and producing an expression of art is a highly commendable ability. Almost every piece of written music allows for personal expression of the performer to communicate her own emotions and ideas, in the midst of the composer's. Music is creation. Composing music is an act of inspiration where the muses of the art speak to us in a very personal way. It is also a finely tuned craft that must be practiced and perfected so that our expression is truly ours and represents exactly what we wish to say in a composition. History and BackgroundWhile music has been around since the beginning of man, the earliest pictoral records we have of musicians come from the ancient Greeks. Much can be learned from the study of ancient Jewish, Chinese and Indigenous forms of music, but much of the academic approaches to music history begin around 400 C.E. with the earliest chant of the Roman Catholic Church. The common historical periods are recognized in music history with the possible inclusion of a few more. Medieval and renaissance music is largely polyphonic in style and uses a slighty different vocabulary than our modern music. Music of the baroque period (ca. 1600 - 1750) is the time when our customary sounds emerged with the centralization of the equal tempered scale and the predominance of the major/minor system. Many of the forms and genres of this period were either repeated and/or refined in future periods toward the development of our western European music history. The classical period, while only around 50 years in length, is perhaps the most important with the development of the sonata form: a combination of sections of music to most vividly express advanced musical ideas. Composers like Mozart and Haydn are attributed with establishing these central genres of classical music. Like the parallel world of the visual arts, romanticism in music meant the personalization of forms, "rules" and norms of the previous balance and proportion in classical music. Composers from Beethoven to Wagner did not hesitate to expand all parameters of music to express their maddening inner voices. Romantic music is at the center of most performing organizations' repertoire and at the top of listeners' lists of favorite pieces. The 20th century first brought Impressionism, mostly exclusive to France at the turn of the 19th century, then a wide variety of styles and practices that still have not coalesced. The 20th century has seen the works of neo-romantic composers on the same program with modern avant-garde pieces, the later of which pushes the limits of the definition of a musical composition. Music Today With the Internet, computer-based composition and digital recording, many amateur musicians have exhibited their music to the world, and wading through it all is a daunting exercise. Nonetheless, chamber ensembles, orchestras and opera houses are still fairly careful to seek new compositions for performance that are based on quality issues and exciting but practical mediums of expression. It is the most exciting time in history to be involved with music; whether creating, performing or teaching, the world is at our finger tips. Advice from a Music Professor
Dr. Michael R. Dilthey
What can a student expect during the course of study? What are the characteristics of a successful student? What are some of the challenges facing this field? What makes this field exciting to you personally, and why do you love what you do? |
