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Im just wondering, but what would you consider the top 5 grad schools in the country, as well as a few that are greeat schools, but not as well known.

Thanks

I think the top 5 are probably:
Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Stanford, and MIT

Let me specify that this is for tuba performance, and can you please list the prof. of that school as well.

Thanks

Sorry, I know very little about 90% of the schools offering a tuba performance graduate degree.

Therefore, my opinion would be valueless. Almost anyone else's will be as well, unless they have a huge amount of experience with schools all over the country. Even then, you will only get that person's opinion which will be heavily influenced by the schools they have attended or taught at themselves. There is no objective way to rank the "top 5 grad schools in the country" for tuba performance. All schools have strengths and weaknesses.

I'm just wondering...what do you hope to get out of asking this question from strangers on the internet? What are your career goals? What are you looking for in a graduate program/instructor?

I guess I got burned by this one full throttle...

What really makes a school better then another one? I think if we look at the list of tuba players in the major orchestras in the united states it would be easy to say that they all came from a very wide variety of state schools, conservatories and private schools. To say one is better is like saying "this pizza is the best because I like it". If you want a completely biased opinion you are going to get a bunch of different answers from as many people as reply to this thread. The top music schools for tuba performance is finding the right teacher that you will learn the most from. This has nothing to do with which music school is best for tuba and everything to do with your relationship with your teacher especially for grad school. If you are dead set on just going for the school because it has a teacher that others have worked well with you should look at a major city with a major orchestra. It will give you a better idea what it takes to make it in the music business because you are watching and observing a player first hand(of course it doesn't HAVE to be this way but it is a good place to start looking)

tubashaman wrote:Michigan, Michigan State, Arizona State, Cincinatti Conservatory, University North Texas, SYNU Pottsdamn Crane School of music--thats 6

Ridiculous, James...you don't have anywhere near the breadth of experience to make such a list.

And, just for clarity in case the OP does want to search your suggestions, it's SUNY Potsdam's Crane School of Music.

I hope this nonsense stops before this becomes another TubeNet pissing match about who's Alma Mater is the best.

By asking this question, i was looking more to what schools were held to the highest regard (the top 5). I know this will bring a lot of different oppinions, but opinions arent bad. When i do finally go to grad school, i will pick it strictly on the instructor. However, if i do not get into the school/instructor i want, the second half of the question was for me to find some possibilities that are not so well known, that would offer a lot to people. I have my own list, and will probably post it later. I just wanted to see what people think.

As far as my career goals, i do want to perform, but i know that is extremely hard, so i am also interested in becoming an instructor at a university one day. When it comes to the instructor, i would like it to be someone who is currently performing with an orchestra, but i would make exceptions for certain people. I would need someone who will not only help me progress as a performer and musician, but who could help me become a better teacher.

Some other things that will have an affect on my decision would be location. I hope (fingers crossed) that i will be good enough to get into a school in the chicago, new york areas, simply because of the vast number of incredible musicians that i could potentialy learn from.

Hope this clears things up a little bit.
Thanks

Short of spending some actual time at the schools you mention, I wouldn't know how to "look" at those programs. That's really the point I was trying to make. I could rattle off the names of a dozen or more schools with successful graduates and great tuba teachers, but what difference would that possibly make to the OP (who probably is already aware of those schools)?

I'll give you a practical example:

When I first started the process of choosing a graduate school, one of my top choices was (at the time) a very famous school in the Midwest (I'll leave the name out to avoid stepping on any current toes). I filled out the applications, send in recordings, and got an audition time on one of those weekend audition-fests. After driving the 16 or so hours to the school, I played for a grand total of 10 minutes for the tuba professor and a couple of other faculty members. I didn't like the area the school was in, and it just didn't feel right for me at the time. I was offered a full scholarship and a possibility of being an assistant director with the marching band there, but I turned it down.

Now, I always had "heard" how great this school was. Some of the faculty at my undergraduate school (people I still have a great deal of respect for and trust in) had a degree from there, and they always had the highest praise for the school. That advice had a great deal of push for me in making them one of my high choices, and it didn't work out for me. I'm sure other people had a great experience there.

I received good advice from people who had gone to that school and were intimately familiar with it. Those same people knew me well, and what I was hoping to accomplish by attending graduate school. Yet, with all that, it was still the wrong path for me.

People guessing about what schools are good and, inevitably, leaving out other schools that are just as good, is not helpful or even useful. James, you don't know squat about half the schools you listed other than the professors there. I'm somewhat amused that you would call them your "favs"...what can you possibly base that on? I don't wish to start any battles, either, but I would appreciate it if people who deal out advice to younger players on here at least know a little bit about which they speak...sometimes simply having the loudest voice can influence someone else down that wrong path for them.

I will again reassert that I have absolutely no business ranking the top graduate schools for studying the tuba...I don't have the information necessary to make an informed decision about that. I would also, again, suggest that an objective means of attaining the list you desire is not possible. You might find this list to be of some help when you begin your search. Good luck to you, Ryan, in your continued studies!

Right now, there are plenty of great places to do graduate work. Here are a few that no one has mentioned yet that fit your criteria:

NY
Mannes College: The New School for Music
Manhattan School of Music
Juilliard

Chicago
DePaul University

Good luck in your search

-edit-> When I compared schools for undergrad, I made a huge spreadsheet that included all of the schools I was interested in and as many characteristics as possible. It takes a long time, but I found it quite effective in evaluating many different options.

James,

I am a PhD student at IU. Can you explain to me what you mean by close to Chicago. I am unsure what you mean. I mean there are several schools closer to Chicago. A couple would be Northwestern and Roosevelt. Both good schools. just if anyone cares to know it is a 4 hour drive. granted it is a shorter drive to there than University of North Texas 13+ hours.

As for top five, There are so many ways universities are judged. What I might consider is how you get along with the tuba professor. Contact them and develop a relationship with them, and decide what are your top five. This is not something any of us can tell you.

Agree to disagree, I suppose, James. You certainly have every right to your opinions.

However, if you're considering studying with Dr. Guy, you should probably learn how to spell the name of the university where he teaches. It's SUNY, not SNYU as you've now written three times.

tubashaman wrote:Our last 2 directors came from Michigan and Michigan State.....and they told me alot about it....

Im considering these places too.

Guest Artist Tim Mcallister (at the time) from SNYU...

Bump for Temple...Mr. Allen Carter went there and said it was great...

Word of mouth.....

I'm just curious, since I'm a Michigan State guy myself, who is it that came from there?



I think the question the OP asked really could be answered in a more simple way. Maybe we should think, rather than the school, which teachers would you like to study from. And then weigh the schools. The "best" (loooooosly phrased) teachers tend to teach at GOOD schools. Finding out who the "prominent" teachers are should give you a good starting place. Then go down from there.....the "reputation" of the ensembles, the conductors, etc.

I don't quite have the experience as to say who would be good to study with, but there is a lot to choose from. Good luck with it all!

First let me say, I have no idea. Secondly, here is my suggestion about what you should look for.

1. Find a school that has a quality music program top to bottom. Meaning all studio's are stocked with good talent. It will make your stay there much more satisfying being able to playing with talented musicians in all the groups you will play with. While I enjoyed my teacher at my undergrad, there where several studios that where weak and it made ensemble playing not so fun sometimes because other sections couldn't hang with the rest. I know North Texas has strong studios across the board, so ensemble playing will be fulfilling.
2. Find a school who's professor is producing job winners. I know in the F. Horn world Bill Vermulen at Rice has a job winning machine. His students are winning jobs regularly. If you desire to play professionally, find out who is producing the winners. It probably isn't as cut and dry in the Tuba world, because jobs are so few and far between.
3. Show me the money. Meaning where can you get the grad assistantships and scholarships. Paying back student loans is painful. I would highly recommend not taking out any at all, if you can avoid it. Also, is the school located in an area that populated enough to provide gigging and private teaching opportunities.

I hope this might help.

pierso20 wrote:I think the question the OP asked really could be answered in a more simple way. Maybe we should think, rather than the school, which teachers would you like to study from. And then weigh the schools. The "best" (loooooosly phrased) teachers tend to teach at GOOD schools. Finding out who the "prominent" teachers are should give you a good starting place. Then go down from there.....the "reputation" of the ensembles, the conductors, etc.

That's a very good response, and an excellent way to start. Well done, Brooke!

Here is a list of schools that my friend is applying for her undergrad in cello. I am sure that you could find a wonderful teacher at each of these places.

USC
Rice
Juilliard
New England
Boston
Cleveland
Peabody
Manhattan
Mannes
Northwestern
Oberlin
UCLA