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Double Bass Preparing for College

Z

ZachAttack

Jul 9, 2006
23
0
Denver
#1
I've been looking into colleges for some time, im thinking berklee because its a big name in music. But i just started the double and im gonna be a juinor in high school. I like the double but the electric is my passion.

Well i went to register for my junior year today and i am faced with a problem.. all my teachers tell me i need a second language for 2 years if i want to go into a 4 year collage.. but i would have to drop either Jazz Band, Orchestra, Percussion, or Singing to do this.. and i figure all the music classes i can get will only help.

So do i Really need a second language to get into berklee or a music school of some kind? Professional Bassist is my ultimate goal btw.
 
#3
It is my impression that almost all music conservatories are not concerned with your academic classes, but rather your musical achievements and the skill you posses on your instrument. A lot of conservatories do not require you send your SAT scores (though many do). What your teachers in high school have to say about college really does not apply to dedicated music schools that are not a part of a university most of the time so you won't need a second language. Of course, if you're failing easy classes, it's a sign that you're not a hard working individual which is not what music schools want, but it really comes down to the audition.

I wouldn't worry about getting into Berklee. I read somewhere that their acceptance rate is almost 80%.
 
#4
It depends on the school, but most likely no. I took 2 years of Spanish in High School, only to have to take the exact same 2 years over again in college. Which is technically the 3rd time I took beginning Spanish, because the first was in 7th and 8th grade.

The short of it is, you can always take summer classes in a foreign language, even if it is at a local community college. The same can't be said for the experience you will get from playing in your school's ensembles.
 
#7
Zachattack -

It is true that many conservatories can care less about your academics, they still require that you have all the required academics. Many music schools require you to take a language (I don't know about Berklee). Take the language. Having 4 highschool music classes isn't necessarily going to be beneficial. Do some gigging and join some afterschool ensembles where you can grow on your own.

Good luck,
Nick
 
#9
I'm a senior in high school playing Double Bass in a high school that doesn't even have an orchestra. I started playing bass the summer before my sophomore year. I was fortunate enough to play in a big band (Link Removed. I've also started playing in Dixieland group as well as my Youth Orchestra.

The key to it all is just practice. I've played a little over 2 years now and have done the Eccles, Keyper, and am working on Saint-Saens Allegro Appassionato and cello suites. It's all a matter of how dedicated you would be to their program. I would recommend doing the foreign languages just becuase it makes you look better. You should challenge yourself as much as possible in High School because everything you do well shines well on you. In Kentucky you have to have 2 years of foreign language to be accepted as part of the Kentucky Pre-College Cirriculum.

Talking to people now in different universities is key. I've got alot of things already set and we've only been in school 2 days here.

No offense but there will be alot of bassists trying to enter Berklee. You might want to shoot for a public university with less competition. A degree is a degree and really with a performance degree your options are limited. Having a music education degree is like Willy Wonka's golden ticket - jobs are availiable in many other fields.

Good luck and good playing!

-Jake
 
#10
evan_phi said:
that's cool!

french immersion is optional here... but i thinkit should be mandatory...

we are the only bilingual province in Canada after all.
Click to expand...
...what about Quebec?

If you're going to take a second language (you might as well anyway, you never know when it would help) I would suggest dropping either Orchestra or Percussion. In my last year of high school, I took Instrumental Band (Orchestra,) Percussion, Vocals, and Guitar, as well as playing in the school's Concert Band and Jazz Band (nicknamed the NDSS Little Big Band, I think we only had like 14 people.)

If you're auditioning for Berklee or any sort of jazz program, I can't even imagine dropping Jazz Band being an option. Out of all 4 music classes (orch, perc, vocals, guitar) I took this semester, the really useful ones were Orchestra and Vocals. Percussion helped my time and my ability to play more complex rhythms. Guitar was a snooze -- I skipped more than half the classes and still left with a 90%. Orchestra mainly helped by basically MANDATING 75 minutes a day of arco playing and it helped my reading. Vocals class is key, though. It helped my reading, taught me how to sight-sing, I can't even begin to tell you how much it helped my ear. Keep vocals class at all cost. It will be indispensible.

EDIT: Oh, and PJEBassist is right. If you can talk to the people at the schools you want to go to, it will help a lot. Contact teachers and students there, get to find out information about the schools. My jazz teacher went to two of the schools I auditioned for this year (Humber for a year and a half, and he graduated from McGill's jazz program just over a year ago.) Not only were his lessons key to me getting into the school (Humber) because he's a good teacher, but also because he knew exactly what it was I needed to do to for the auditions, how to do it, and who to talk to. Just as importantly, he was also a great source of information about the programs, which made me far more excited about going there.
 

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