Umich

[Viking28BS]

Hello. I am currently a 19 year old college freshman and was looking to transfer to Umich by 2024. I am currently enrolled in the music program at my college although it's a small D1 school which accepts anyone. I am mainly wondering if it's worth transferring and if I'd even be good enough. In highschool I was good but I wasn't even allstate band caliber. Although since the start of 2022 I have found a passion for trumpet and have been practicing between 20-24 hours a week for the last 14 months and I've improved a lot. My dream is to have a performance career, hopefully at a top orchestra and I want to continue practicing and developing like this. I just don't know if it's even possible for me to get good enough with only 11 months left before auditions. Right now I can comfortably play the Concert Etude at about 130 bpm and I'm confident I'll be able to play Flor Peeters all 3 movements comfortably by the end of the year. My grades are really good, and I'm sure my extra curricular and essay would be good too. I was also thinking of applying to UT-Austin and either Rice or Northwestern. Sorry for this being so long but I'm just looking for some insight and I just wanted to make sure you had some context.
Thank you

[LaTrompeta]

I wouldn't worry about High School. Very few people care about your HS "credentials." It's just a stepping stone.

The truth is, nobody here has any idea how you play. However, you have some great options. Here's what I suggest:

Get in touch with the teachers at the schools you desire to attend, and get a lesson with them. Be willing to pay for their time; it's definitely worth the cost. Take their suggestions to heart, as they will help you prepare for the audition.

Record the advice they give you, and take it to heart. Focus on those things and work on improving your weaknesses. Prepare thoroughly for the audition. Then, do the audition and give it your all.

This is the best you can do and whether you are accepted or not, you can hold your head high knowing that you prepared, prepared, prepared. However, I think that if you truly do prepare, somewhere you will be accepted and likely even get a scholarship. But, the work has to be done in advance. 11 months is plenty of time. Best of luck!
_________________
Please join me as well at:
https://trumpetboards.com

[OldSchoolEuph]

I’ll start with welcome to TH. I hope that this site can prove a resource to you as you progress on your journey. It can be contentious at times, but there is a wealth of information as well as a diversity of views found here that can be of considerable help if you take the time to browse through it all.

As has been said, high school is in the past. You are now in the critical period that will determine if you will have a playing career, or become a recreational player. While the choice of school and teacher are certainly important, never lose sight of the fact that this is ultimately all up to you. Passion helps, but success comes from disciplined passion and dedication to the daily hard work required to play at a top level. There are many fine teachers, and peer students, at a multitude of schools that you can learn from – but it is up to you to seek that knowledge and experience, to ask questions, to pursue discussions of different approaches, and to seek to understand the why, not just emulate the how, in order to have the tools to ultimately find your own way.

Schools:
I am assuming that you are targeting the University of Michigan for in-state tuition reasons and perhaps some affiliation for Maize & Blue. One day, as a grad student, I think that might be a wise move, but you need to realize that Michigan is so large, and so in demand, that the focus of SMTD is, as it has been for years, on the grad students, leaving the undergrads to subsist educationally on table scraps. You might do better at Michigan State as an undergrad. The school boasts two fine instructors, one of whom has a resume that can rival anyone currently teaching. (Full disclosure, I’ve worn both sets of colors)

The trumpet studio at Michigan right now is still in that difficult phase that follows any change in instructor. Those who were in high school with sights set on the program, and those who were undergrad and grad students at the time of the transition, are all caught-up in the conflict between old and new concepts. This is an unavoidable normal reality, but one someone in your position might want to avoid, so as to focus exclusively on your own challenges and not get caught up in the drama that will persist for a couple years yet. The situation in this regard at Michigan is considerably amplified by the related transition from being a Bach studio to a Yamaha one (Campbell is a Bach artist, Sullivan is a Yamaha artist). This is more than branding, the Bach and Yamaha philosophies of how player and equipment interact are fundamentally opposed to one another - More distraction that you do not need.

Distraction that you do not need may, sadly, be a flaw with the other fine school you mention – or may not, depending entirely on you. While Ann Arbor is blue culturally as well as in the school colors, it is nothing compared to the socio-cultural context of the UT-Austin campus. If you are left-leaning or politically agnostic (if that is possible today), then Austin’s fairly far-end of the spectrum culture on campus wont distract you, but if not, it is a tragic reality that serious students today have to consider the socio-political climate of any prospective school to make certain that these omnipresent cultural contexts won’t distract from the reason for being there. Another aspect of this is that there is effectively no law enforcement in Austin (they literally tell 911 callers they have to call 411 for non-medical/fire and someone from the police will get back to you in a few weeks). Crime has soared, ala Portland, etc. But, once you know the city, the overwhelming majority of it is one of the nicest in the world. The music, the entertainment, the festivals, and the unbelievable parks all make Austin a paradise where you just get used to your car getting broken into. If you can avoid the crime and are aligned with or able to ignore the politics, UT-Austin is a fantastic school that will give you an excellent start.

I’m not sure what made you look to Texas, but if there is a reason for looking there, and the issues I mentioned with Austin are a distractor for you to avoid, there is another school, rivaled only by Eastman for producing fantastic professional trumpeters in volume, and that is the University of North Texas. UNT is located in a red portion of the state, so once again you may need to consider if you are OK with the socio-political context of the campus. Some who are comfortable in Ann Arbor might not be. But the track record of UNT stretches back over a century now as the least known most successful trumpet studio in the US.

Speaking of schools that are under the radar, and perhaps this is the easiest to get into, there is the University of Florida and Prof. Randy Lee, who has a very unique approach that more broadly considers historical contexts, diversity of style, taste, tradition, etc. and is, I think, a school to keep an eye on in the future. Despite being in Florida, the campus culture is surprisingly centrist and less likely to distract.

The reality is that all of the schools I have mentioned have less than a decade of track record to the current instructors, so none can boast a long list of graduates at the top of the game. In every case however, you can learn what you need if you avoid the societal distraction endemic on college campuses today, and if you don’t just passively wait to be instructed, but actively seek out the knowledge and the skill.
_________________
Ron Berndt
www.trumpet-history.com

2017 Austin Winds Stage 466
1962 Mt. Vernon Bach 43
1954 Holton 49 Stratodyne
1927 Conn 22B
1957 Holton 27 cornet
1985 Yamaha YEP-621
1975 Yamaha YEP-321 Custom
1965 Besson Baritone
1975 Olds Recording R-20

[kehaulani]

[Viking28BS]

Thank you all so much for the responses. Any advice really helps me out, and I certainly learned some things.
Thank you

[HenryJam]

Practicing consistently for the past 14 months, you have found a passion for trumpet and considering transferring to Umich or other top music programs. Admission to these programs can be very competitive, but your strong academic record and progress with your trumpet playing are both important factors that can work in your favor. It's also great to hear that you're considering other schools as well. Ultimately, the decision to transfer is a personal one based on factors including academic goals, financial situation, and personal preferences. Do your research, talk to people who have experience with the schools you're considering, and weigh your options carefully before making a decision. Best of luck!

[abontrumpet]

Some great advice here. One thing that has been kind of mentioned is cost.

You're better off going to the best school you can at the lowest possible cost. It's better to go to the best in-state school you can rather than incur out of state costs. If you are able to get scholarship (which is usually harder as a transfer) or an in-state-tuition waiver, then you can weigh that.

I see big "conservatory" style universities on your list - rice/northwestern/umich - but I am not seeing adequate mid/high level universities. While you're in michigan check out MSU or Western Mich. In chicago check out Depaul and roosevelt, and sounds like you've got texas covered.

Feel free to reach out in my DM's. I've done lots of schooling at all the levels and have interacted/played with a lot of the guys that are currently successful (guys in new world, civic, music festivals etc). I can give you a good idea of if you're competitive. Free of charge. The TH special lol

All the best.

[kehaulani]

Regarding costs, it may be worth it to move to a state with a good school of music and take a year off and meet the residency requirements, then enter as an in-state student. In some states the difference between in and out of state tuition is significant.

And you have to check with the state laws but you may be able to study privately while earning your residency and not compromise their policies.
_________________
"If you don't live it, it won't come out of your horn." Bird
"Even if I could play like Wynton Marsalis, I wouldn't play like Wynton Marsalis." Attributed to Chet

Benge 3X LA
Martin Committee
Getzen Capri Cornet
Adams F-1 Flghn