Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:rare yet needed instrument is good

What sorts of instruments are needed?

Don't think like that, because you can never predict what colleges will need for their orchestra or band on any given year. There is no constant shortage in one particular instrument. It's just that maybe their Principal violist graduated, and they're looking for a brilliant violist the year your viola-playing kid applies. I hope you understand this is a total lottery situation.

If your kid want to make it all the way to 12th grade with their instrument, he or she really needs to think about what they like about this instrument (ask teachers and students about all the nitty gritty - for example, French horn has that spit problem, oboe you're always fiddling with reeds, etc). Otherwise they will abandon it before it helps for college applications!

That's true. I guess I'm just wondering because many of the school bands/orchestras I known (including the one at Oberlin) have none of the instruments my kid is interested in, and I worry that applying with them would be a total non-starter.

What instrument(s) is your kid interested in?

- Taiko drums
- Contrabass clarinet
- Pennywhistle
- Vuvuzela
- Tenor horn

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:rare yet needed instrument is good

What sorts of instruments are needed?

Low brass if he is good.

Younger kid is just picking out options now. I will recommend low brass. Right now, his top picks include:
- Taiko drums
- Gamelan
- Contrabass clarinet
- Pennywhistle
- Vuvuzela
- Tenor horn

Would he have access to teachers for those instruments?

I assume so. Most MCPS schools do.

Mosts MCPS schools have a pennywhistle teacher or a vuvzela teacher who can get a kid to the level they need to be admitted to conservatory?

If you go on the website of most conservatories, and click on audition instructions, you can see which instruments that college offers as majors, and the instructions for auditioning. I have been on a bunch, because my kid plays double bass and electric bass, which aren't instruments offered at every school, although double bass is pretty common.

Since I've read the lists of many schools, I can tell you that other than contrabass clarinet (I've never clicked on the clarinet links to see what types are there) and percussion which would cover drums and gamelans, I can tell you that I have not seen those instruments listed.

When people say that you want a rare but needed instrument, they generally mean an instrument such as bassoon or tuba that is needed because it's part of the orchestra. For example, although there are far more kids who play electric bass than double bass, it's much easier to find colleges that offer double bass because they need them for orchestras.

Finally, I'll say that if you have a kid who loves music enough that they are likely to get into a music conservatory, they are likely to have preferences. My musician has a very strong preference for the bass register.

OP, you're talking about two entirely different beasts when it comes to colleges and conservatories. By and large, the good conservatories will only take the cream of the crop, regardless of their instrument (I know someone whose child applied to the top five for violin, got into all five, with merit, and will be going to Curtis).

For regular colleges, your child needs to be good at an instrument that they will need, for it to affect admissions at all. Obviously, not something that's easy to predict. Yes, there are a million violinists, but they are the single biggest section in any orchestra, so there are more seats as well. Again, not something that's easy to predict.

My DD plays the violin. Her instructor is someone that prepares his students for conservatory (this is extremely important if that's a route your child wants to pursue), although she currently has no such aspirations. By the time she's old enough to think about applying to college, she will be playing at a very high level, and will be an asset to any ensemble (orchestra, chamber, solo, etc.).

However, *she* chose her own instrument, when she was ready for it. She practices and plays as much or as little as she wants. The calculus with the instrument is lifetime enjoyment of music, not gaming college admissions.

As for instrument recommendations, if the intent is for your child to always have a seat in the orchestra or an ensemble, my recommendation is the viola. Good violists are extremely hard to find.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:rare yet needed instrument is good

What sorts of instruments are needed?

Low brass if he is good.

Younger kid is just picking out options now. I will recommend low brass. Right now, his top picks include:
- Taiko drums
- Gamelan
- Contrabass clarinet
- Pennywhistle
- Vuvuzela
- Tenor horn

The troll should go away now

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:rare yet needed instrument is good

What sorts of instruments are needed?

Don't think like that, because you can never predict what colleges will need for their orchestra or band on any given year. There is no constant shortage in one particular instrument. It's just that maybe their Principal violist graduated, and they're looking for a brilliant violist the year your viola-playing kid applies. I hope you understand this is a total lottery situation.

If your kid want to make it all the way to 12th grade with their instrument, he or she really needs to think about what they like about this instrument (ask teachers and students about all the nitty gritty - for example, French horn has that spit problem, oboe you're always fiddling with reeds, etc). Otherwise they will abandon it before it helps for college applications!

That's true. I guess I'm just wondering because many of the school bands/orchestras I known (including the one at Oberlin) have none of the instruments my kid is interested in, and I worry that applying with them would be a total non-starter.

What instrument(s) is your kid interested in?

Anonymous wrote:My Asian daughter picked the violin. She's the poster child of what not to be and what not to do, ha! I jest

Any non-solo instrument will be less competitive than the leading solo ones: violin, piano, cello, flute, clarinet. People don't choose instruments because they're "classy" (shudder - OP, please don't be that person!), but because they're portable and they've heard many concertos with the leading voice of that instrument. It inspires them, and it's practical from a daily use point of view. Few parents want to lug a full-size harp or double bass around, you know? Those don't fit into every car! Also, a few instruments are sometimes not recommended for beginners, like the oboe. Some teachers recommend starting on the clarinet, then moving to oboe. Same for contrabassoon or harmony clarinet.

Nobody moves to "contrabassoon" in HS. You pick it up in college typically when you are "forced" to play it---typically it is rotated around each quarter/semester.

Same with clarinet---nobody just picks up Eb or alto clarinet. You learn and excel at the typical Bb clarinet and then move onto the others when your college or HS band needs it. Learn the main instrument and it is easy to pick up the others with some adjustment.

However, I recommend you allow your kid to pick their instrument---they need to be happy with what they are playing.

Thanks all for the helpful reality check WRT instruments and college admissions. Ultimately, if that was a factor, it would have only been a bonus. So I guess my follow-up question is this: Does anyone have kids who have taken classes in any of these instruments at MCPS or as an extracurricular? How difficult/fun did they find them? Any specific stories?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:rare yet needed instrument is good

What sorts of instruments are needed?

Low brass if he is good.

Younger kid is just picking out options now. I will recommend low brass. Right now, his top picks include:
- Taiko drums
- Gamelan
- Contrabass clarinet
- Pennywhistle
- Vuvuzela
- Tenor horn

Where on earth did he come up with this list? None of these are traditional symphonic instruments, so obviously they won't be in any demand for college orchestras!

I know! I was more wondering about music groups in general -- I know liberal arts students who joined their school's Taiko/Gamelan classes and wonder if prior knowledge might indicate worldliness. As for the gamelan, thanks for the tip! I'd have to check with kid to see what, if any, specific gamelan instruments he had in mind.

Wordli...

?

I can't even.

OK, here's how this will go, OP. This is will be entirely irrelevant for any college that's a reach for this kid, because they'll see right through your ploy. But, for targets and safeties, a college admissions officer might go: "OK folks, it's down to the wire here. We have a couple more spots to fill. Let's take a second look at this pile: oh, it's the kid with the gamelan ensemble - apparently he's learned to play all the instruments, and he performed at Carnegie with the X Ensemble. He has a YouTube channel, anyone have time to look? No? Looks like an original, let's take him anyway."

And off he goes to a mid-tier college costing you 60K a year. Big whoop.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:rare yet needed instrument is good

What sorts of instruments are needed?

Low brass if he is good.

Younger kid is just picking out options now. I will recommend low brass. Right now, his top picks include:
- Taiko drums
- Gamelan
- Contrabass clarinet
- Pennywhistle
- Vuvuzela
- Tenor horn

Would he have access to teachers for those instruments?

I assume so. Most MCPS schools do.

For taiko drums, gamelan, pennywhistle, and vuvuzela?

Mr. Bowling at CCES has a bit of pennywhistle experience, according to my kid.

Anonymous wrote:OP, is your older child a music major? Did he/she speak to the music dept prior to applying? So your child was accepted into Oberlin. Are you sure it was due to their instrument? Was their acceptance conditional on them playing in the orchestra?

My older child is a music minor, and I have no idea if their instrument had any influence, hence the question. He is, however, a part of the Arts and Sciences orchestra (not associated with the conservatory).

Wow. OP has no clue how any of this works. At all.

Your kid did not get in to Oberlin because of his saxophone.

Your other kid will not easily find a teacher for any of these instruments, and none of them will be helpful for college admissions.

And Gamelan isn't an instrument.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:rare yet needed instrument is good

What sorts of instruments are needed?

Low brass if he is good.

Younger kid is just picking out options now. I will recommend low brass. Right now, his top picks include:
- Taiko drums
- Gamelan
- Contrabass clarinet
- Pennywhistle
- Vuvuzela
- Tenor horn

Where on earth did he come up with this list? None of these are traditional symphonic instruments, so obviously they won't be in any demand for college orchestras!

I know! I was more wondering about music groups in general -- I know liberal arts students who joined their school's Taiko/Gamelan classes and wonder if prior knowledge might indicate worldliness. As for the gamelan, thanks for the tip! I'd have to check with kid to see what, if any, specific gamelan instruments he had in mind.

Not violin especially if you are Asian. Very hard.

OP, is your older child a music major? Did he/she speak to the music dept prior to applying? So your child was accepted into Oberlin. Are you sure it was due to their instrument? Was their acceptance conditional on them playing in the orchestra?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Of course. Piano is impossible. Violinists are a dime a dozen, followed by cellists. Violists and bassists are almost always in demand. A number of brass instruments, as noted above.

How about percussion (Taiko/Gamelan) or other types of instrument (Vuvuzela/Pennywhistle)? Are those very competitive?

lol