for those who go i have a few questions. im a freshman in highschool right now and im considering collages (preferably a music school, of couse) and im considering joining jazz band right now. any idea on what kind of scholarships i can get by joining jazz band? and im going to take some music theroy classes next year. how much does berkly cost per year to attend? and are there any other music collages i should consider going to?
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berklee
- Thread starter cobrasneverdie
- Start date
- Dec 13, 1999
- 11,736
- 8,941
- 70
- Disclosures
- Chuck Sher publishes my book, WALKING BASSICS:The Fundamentals of Jazz Bass Playing.
cobrasneverdie said:
I wuz going to cut out a bunch of adds for collages from tha noospaper and make a nise college out of them.
Be sure you go someplace with a good English department.
Hi Cobrasneverdie. I reccomend you talk to your high school counselor about this. Berklee is a marque school and isn't something you can get into (much less stay in) without a lot of sacrifice. You should explore its website to learn more about it. Berklee has a page just for you at [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
There are a lot of universities in and around Illinois, too.
About the scholarships, your best route is to demonstrate need (have limited income) and potential (get excellent grades). Berklee itself awards some ( [Invalid or Expired Link Removed] ), but you are more likely to get scholarships from local groups in your community. Again, this is something your high school counselor can tell you about.
There are a lot of universities in and around Illinois, too.
About the scholarships, your best route is to demonstrate need (have limited income) and potential (get excellent grades). Berklee itself awards some ( [Invalid or Expired Link Removed] ), but you are more likely to get scholarships from local groups in your community. Again, this is something your high school counselor can tell you about.
Wonderful, Ed.
I admire your ambition towards Berklee. Practice hard, make good grades, and you could certainly have a chance. If that doesn't work out I'd reconmend SIU-Edwardsville if you want to stay in the state. I know a good portion of the faculty there and they're all good jazz players, wonderful educators, and top notch people to be around.
WoodyGroves said:
I may be wrong, but I was under the impression that Berklee IS actually fairly easy to get into. I don't believe that an entrance audition or exam is required. I think you are correct in that it is a difficult school in which to stay afloat, especially in the jazz program.
I think that an audition is required for financial aid though.
I'd go some place where you can get a double major if music is your thing. You can study music, but still have the good credit to take a professional degree if you need one.
- Dec 13, 1999
- 11,736
- 8,941
- 70
- Disclosures
- Chuck Sher publishes my book, WALKING BASSICS:The Fundamentals of Jazz Bass Playing.
Moongarm said:
Sorry, all you need is the tuition. ANYBODY can get into Berklee. The more skill sets you got covered, the better the ensembles you get in, the better the ensembles the more good musicians you meet, the more good musicians you meet the more people you know that you can gig with after you finish school.
But you can buy a bass, get someone to tune it for you and show up at the front door with a handful of money and they will gladly take your money for 4 years. And at the end of that time they will have done the best job they can of teaching you how to make it through a clubdate - you'll be able to read, play in a variety of styles, fake a walking line over changes, have some sort of repertoire etc.
You can throw all the money you want to at Harvard and Yale, unless your dad and his dad and his dad etc went there, you're going to be weeded out by the admissions process.
- Dec 13, 1999
- 11,736
- 8,941
- 70
- Disclosures
- Chuck Sher publishes my book, WALKING BASSICS:The Fundamentals of Jazz Bass Playing.
And a lovely website it is. I went to Berklee and the only audition I had was after they took my tuition money. I imagine that the reputation they have does garner more applications than they have space to put'em.
And I will bet that the majority of that 20% rejected are guitar players.
Whatever, somebody wants to go, they should just apply and see what happens (after, of course, learning the difference between COLLAGE and COLLEGE).
And I will bet that the majority of that 20% rejected are guitar players.
Whatever, somebody wants to go, they should just apply and see what happens (after, of course, learning the difference between COLLAGE and COLLEGE).
Yeah, Berklee is kind of a big music factory, everything is "finely" tuned to churn out musicians that will be competent in a number of skills.
Not to say I'm not learning there, but there is a lot more Berklee Bark than Berklee Bite, at least for first semester students.
The drop out rate for first semester/first year students is something like 70%
supposedly they are going to start upping the ante somewhat in terms of requirements to get in, because their reputation is starting to dwindle, But that's just hearsay.
Not to say I'm not learning there, but there is a lot more Berklee Bark than Berklee Bite, at least for first semester students.
The drop out rate for first semester/first year students is something like 70%
supposedly they are going to start upping the ante somewhat in terms of requirements to get in, because their reputation is starting to dwindle, But that's just hearsay.
hum...so... If one wants to be a professional bass player is berklee the place to go , or is there a better place? 
It's all dependent on you. Like people have been saying, almost anyone can get into Berklee, which I think is a real problem. I really think you should be already very competant on your instrument before going to music school, and I wish that Berklee had the same philosophy. Hopefully they'll add auditions in the future. That being said, the best players at the school are some of the best music students in the world, and the teachers are some of the best musicians in the world. Unfortunately it's possible simply to pass right through the school, and not improve, but I couldn't be happier there. If you're looking to go to college to become a profesional, well-rounded bass player, I can't think of a better school than Berklee.
zeh said:hum...so... If one wants to be a professional bass player is berklee the place to go , or is there a better place?
The answer would depend on what type of professional bass player you wish to become. If your choice is more rock oriented, you might do well enough attending B.I.T in Los Angeles. If jazz is your preference, there are several excellent jazz programs at universities and colleges throughout the United States. The University of Miami, in Coral Gables, Florida and Indiana University in Bloomington, IN are just two.
Be warned, however, that many university music programs require double bass skill and only a few have courses for electric bass. I don't know what you play...either or both.
If you want a to be a well rounded bass player, maybe Jeff Berlin's Players' School in Florida would be a good choice.
If you want to play in country, heavy metal or rock styles, maybe you really wouldn't need advanced training at all, though I feel it is positive that you do seek more training. It surely can't hurt you as a bassist.
One important consideration. Berklee is very expensive. Try to figure out how long it will take you playing professionally to begin to break even on the total cost of that school.
zeh said:hum...so... If one wants to be a professional bass player is berklee the place to go , or is there a better place?
If your main desire is to be a professional bass player, you don't need to go to college (or make a collage). Learn the 60 most popular wedding tunes inside and out, learn to sing some background vocals, buy a tux and move to a city. You could work your way up to being a full time bass player in a few years if you network hard enough and have a professional attitude.
Mind you, a lot of cats spend $70,000 at Berklee to do the very same thing (and the other ones are on the faculty there and do wedding gigs).
Just keep in mind that you're at a really important point in your life. Some of the decisions you make now will determine the way you live your life (not that things aren't reversible, but it takes a lot of effort). If you really want to pursue music as a job, especially if your interest is jazz, ask yourself some reality-based questions:
Are you OK with coming out of Berklee 50 or 60 grand in debt with very little chance of making a decent living? Are you OK with not having health insurance? When you get a toothache you can't afford to go to the dentist, are you cool with that? How do you feel about crappy apartments and not being able to buy a house when all your friends start to?
I'm not trying to discourage you, but there are some harsh realities to being a musician.
I'm at this point in my life too. As much as I'd like to have a stable job and everything, there is that side of me that doesn't want to end up working in a cubicle for the rest of my life. Music is what I love, and I'm seriously considering Berklee. Corinpills brings up a good point, though. There is the possibility of being right where I started after Berklee, except x years later and x dollars poorer.
On the other hand, performance is not all they offer at Berklee. It seems like the way this thread is going, we're focusing on the risks of being a performing musician, not say someone with a degree in production and engineering or music business.
Now, I may be mistaken, but I would think that with training in those fields, I would be able to make a good living for myself. This is what appeals to me the most about Berklee: having working knowledge of something other than my instrument when I leave, and having a skillset that will get me a steady job rather than just being really good at playing wedding gigs.
On the other hand, performance is not all they offer at Berklee. It seems like the way this thread is going, we're focusing on the risks of being a performing musician, not say someone with a degree in production and engineering or music business.
Now, I may be mistaken, but I would think that with training in those fields, I would be able to make a good living for myself. This is what appeals to me the most about Berklee: having working knowledge of something other than my instrument when I leave, and having a skillset that will get me a steady job rather than just being really good at playing wedding gigs.
One final point:
You'd probably get as much out of Berklee (or any other program) as you're willing to put into it.
If you're willing to keep an open mind to criticism and to new approaches, and are willing to consistently work your butt off, Berklee would probably be a great school to attend.
The results that each of us gets on his instrument is mostly up to us.
Best of luck to you.
You'd probably get as much out of Berklee (or any other program) as you're willing to put into it.
If you're willing to keep an open mind to criticism and to new approaches, and are willing to consistently work your butt off, Berklee would probably be a great school to attend.
The results that each of us gets on his instrument is mostly up to us.
Best of luck to you.
