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Music Schools Part 1 - GIT Not that kind of article OK, let me see... here are my replies and thoughts to the thread by Oakleaf. This is not an actual instructional article like the other ones I've written so far, it's a direct reply to these questions. I've put them into an article though, because I think a lot of people might be interested in reading about this stuff. I am going to give you my perspective on attending a music school... in my case, the Musician's Institute in North Hollywood / CA, which I attended in the mid 90s. I am going to respond to the points and questions that some of the members have raised in that thread. I might not comment on every single one of them, but I guess that's ok... it's been a while since I was there and quite a few things will have changed since then, no doubt. So I don't really wanna comment on the pricing etc. I will mention how to get that kinda information though. Last week, I talked to one of the MI representatives, and he told me how much things had actually have changed... a new building, lotsa changes to the courses themselves and to the faculty etc. Before I start though, more information on the MI can be found at their website: Click here You can find information about the programs there, about pricing, living in North Hollywood, the faculty of the MI etc. You can also order (or download) a free catalogue (you'll get that by snail-mail) with more info, plus you'll have a chance to get in touch with the MI administration or one of the MI representatives. They will be able to give you detailed information on current prices, the different programs, requirements, etc. So if you are interested, use these resources. Oakleaf originally asked about Berklee, but Guni suggested that it would be cool to hear about other schools, too. So here are my thoughts about my time at the GIT a few years after graduating. Why go to a musical school as opposed to just going out and playing guitar? Well, I always wanted to be a good player, and I also wanted to educate myself as much as possible about the background... theory etc. Mind you, back then, there was no internet really, so that was not an option. The first lessons I took were at a small music school. I was taught some of the basic chords, like Am, C, D etc. No one ever properly explained to me why an Aminor is a minor chord and an A major chord is a major chord. That bothered me. My influences were guys like Satriani, Vai, Gilbert… players who knew a lot about theory, they kinda "made it cool" to know about theory. And they created some interesting music with it. So, I wanted to go to a good school. I then heard about the GIT. The list of graduates was impressive... Paul Gilbert, Abi von Reininghaus, Brett Garsed, Frank Gambale, Scott Henderson, John Frusciante, Todd Duane, Jimmy Herring, Jennifer Batten, George Lynch (who used to take a few classes when he already was among the most popular rock players, back in the late 80s, early 90s) amo. The list of faculty members was also impressive. Throughout the years, a lot of amazing players (both famous and not-so-famous-but-still-very-unique): Howard Roberts, Joe Diorio, Don Mock, Paul Gilbert, Jennifer Batten, Joy Basu, Brett Garsed, Frank Gambale, Scott Henderson, Dan Gilbert, TJ Helmerich, Ross Bolton, and in 2003, George Lynch and Carl Verheyen joined the faculty as well! (And I don't even wanna start to list the artists who played concerts and workshops at the school... way too many... enough of the name-dropping already, anyway) Paul Gilbert was one of my main influences even back then, and I was like "Hey, I wanna go to that school" - especially after I read that one of the main purposes of the school is to prepare you for being a professional musician. Instead of teaching you all abstract theory stuff, they prepare you for jobs like session-player, "hired gun" etc. I always enjoyed playing all kinds of different styles, and the idea of going to a school where I could learn about all these different styles appealed to me big time. Playing the guitar was always fun to me, but I also thought "If I wanna earn a living with this, doing all kinds of jobs, I'd better become a versatile player, broaden my horizons etc." So the GIT seemed to be a good choice. You get to do a lot of things other than just learning plain theory... you have to play quite a lot, and pretty much everything is related to stuff you can use in real life... things you need as a working musician, as opposed to studying millions of exotic scales etc. More answers What do you get out of it? See, I always tell people that today, you can get a lot of the information taught at those schools from other sources... the internet, books, videos, private teachers. But what you can't get anywhere else is the ENVIRONMENT. For two years, I was doing nothing else but playing and learning. I was surrounded by amazing players (not only guitarists), I was taking lessons from amazing teachers (Henderson, Garsed, Dan Gilbert, Steve Trovato) on a regular basis, I saw some wonderful concerts and workshops, and I was able to play with some very talented guys. I was doing nothing else apart but playing, practicing and learning. So I made a huge leap forward during that time, and I learned a lot of stuff that I use on a regular basis now: theory, the ability to play all kinds of different styles, the ability to teach, sight-reading etc. Also, I have a huge pile of material that I haven't worked on much yet, which I can work on in the future. So for the future, I have plenty of stuff to practice and learn from. I didn't lose that personal playing style I had before I went there (I had been playing for 8 years already when I attended the school), it was just more defined and versatile afterwards. How much do you need to know about guitar to attend and not feel like you're doing hurdles in the Special Olympics? (Do you need to be a Satch or a Vai to attend?) No you don't. Why would you want to go to a school if you're Vai already? Seriously, that's my standard answer to that question. I hear that question a lot! The requirements to get in there (regarding experience and abilities) aren't as high as you might think. You need some basic knowledge of theory (chords, scales etc.), playing experience etc. I dunno what the entry tests are like today, but you can figure that out. Here's a quote from the current MI application . To apply you have send in the application plus a recording of yourself (tape or CD, your playing should be accompanied by a metronome or a drum machine) - Play at least two scales and arpeggios of your choice - Play at least 60 seconds of a rhythm groove in any style and any tempo - Play 2 or 3 songs in any style that best represents your abilities - Record your speaking voice with a short narrative telling us why you want to attend MI A high school diploma or equivalent is also necessary to attend (unless you wanna sign up for the Encore program... check the MI website for further information. Anyway, what I think you need more than abilities: - A strong will to succeed. The school can offer you a huge amount of information and knowledge, you can learn so much. You need to be willing to work hard and invest a lot of time to use those resources efficiently. - A general idea about what you wanna do later on. Why do you wanna attend a school? Why do you wanna go there? If you i.e. say "I wanna be a hired gun, a sideman, touring with solo artists etc.", well, that's a good, well-defined goal, and you can focus on learning the skills you need for that. That's just one example: If you ie. sign up for a two-year-program, a lot of time in the first year will be dedicated to learning and understanding the very basics, you'll kinda "relearn" those. So even if you have some problems with basic theory etc, once you're signed up as a student, you'll be able to work on it. Once you make it to the GIT, your skills and abilities will be considered, and you'll get some recommendations regarding what courses you should choose. Beth Marlis once told me that even beginners are invited to sign up, the requirements are kept pretty low for those. Of course, as an absolute beginner, you won't be recommended to attend the same courses as someone else who already is a more experienced player. So your abilities will be judged, and you'll be told what to work on based on that. It's a placement test. On your first day, there's another test just to make sure you actually know the things you're supposed to know. So no cheating on the entry-test ok? For further information on pricing, legal things, rules and regulations etc., check out the downloadable catalogue: Right click and save as Do I have to be an amazing sight reader to be able to pass? Nope. That's another rumour. As mentioned before, if you're an amazing player already, why would you wanna attend a music school. You sure will need to read a lot there, but a lot of time in the first few months of your time (depending on what courses / program you choose) will be dedicated to working on the basics again, developing better reading-skills etc. If you'd be such an awesome reader, you probably have many years of playing-experience already, so you probably wouldn't even see a sense in attending a school. After school Campus life? What are your peers like? How intimidating is it? It depends on you how intimidating it is. There are some SCARY players at the MI, both among the students and in the faculty. But my attitude was always: If I see some amazing player, I let that motivate and inspire me. Also, you might be able to pick up something new from such a player… some tricks, licks, learning-strategies etc. Some of the guys I hung out with pushed me quite a bit to work hard, and that was an important part of the whole experience. There were also a few that dropped out after a while... they just didn't know what they wanted and kinda gave up. THAT was kinda frustrating, but other than that, I appreciated the fact I was surrounded by so many talented and hard-working guys from all over the world. Where to go with life now that your done with it? That's a tough one. Because when you get closer to graduation after being there for a year or two, you might get scared... you have to go back to "real life" and actually use those skills you achieved. And that does not only require hard work and being smart, it requires some luck as well, unfortunately. A good idea would be to try to find some "foundation"... like i.e. teaching or playing in cover bands. Many of the skills you learn at the GIT will come in handy there... you'll most likely be quite versatile, able to work in all kinds of different musical environments etc. Make sure you can pay your bills, even though you might not get that rich. Use the time to look for options, look for better jobs, try to figure out where you wanna go. The step from the "school environment" back into the normal life can be intimidating, but if you're prepared for it, and if you're willing to deal with low-payment jobs for a while, it'll be ok. How do you explain to family members that you want to study music and make it your profession? I didn't have to, cuz my parents were gone already by then. I financed it myself. However, my grandparents were kinda worried. But they knew how much music meant to me, and when I explained to them that that education would help me to become a better player, and would probably enable me to get better, maybe even more solid jobs such as teaching, they understood. Sometimes it might be tough, cuz most parents think of being a musician as one of the most insecure jobs. (They may be right) However, it sure is good idea to get some solid education, they'll have to admit that. And I think that most parents will understand if they already know that music is your life. Will I definitely come out a better player by going to either of these schools? See above... if you are willing to work hard and if you have an idea about what you wanna do, where you wanna go, then yes, you'll be a better player afterwards. The school offers a lot of resources, and there are some amazing teachers. If you LET THEM, they can help you to develop quite a bit. As mentioned before, no one HAS to go to a school like that... you don't even HAVE to take lessons to be a good player. (Check out Eddie Van Halen and Jeff Beck). However, if you wanna be able to play for a living, to work in different musical environments, where skills like reading, playing all kinds of styles and applying theory often is required, it will be really helpful to educate yourself about theory, sight-reading etc. And the GIT really does focus on giving you the tools to be a professional. Is it possible to get a scholarship if you are a foreigner? If possible, how hard it is? Your best bet would be to get in touch with one of the GIT representatives and ask him. He'll be able to tell you exactly what your chances and options are, and what you need to do. The cons and conclusion Cons: OK, I gotta be all honest. First of all, I loved the time there. I don't remember a time in my life that was so focussed on music. Sure, I had to take care of some of the "mundane" things, but other than that, I was pretty much playing / learning / jamming / practicing 24/7 during my time there. There weren't many things to worry about outside of music. And the environment, with all these players surrounding you, plus the resources the school offered really helped me stay motivated and not burn out or get stuck in a rut. Even though you can probably get all the material and lessons some through other means (books, the web, videos etc.), you probably won't be able to match that focus on music in such an intense way (ie you won't have so much time each day to practice and learn, colleagues on hand to jam with or to motivate you). So that was pretty awesome. However, there were some cons. The GIT is pretty expensive (I heard that Berklee is too), and it seems to get more expensive every year. So the question is: can you afford that? Don't forget about all the other things you have to pay for... food, public transport or a car, rent, stuff like clothes and guitar strings, medication etc. Of course, you will think about that kinda stuff before you sign up to attend for a year or so. However, sometimes it's tough to plan ahead and think of all the extra costs you'll have to deal with. If you are not a US citizen, it gets even more expensive and difficult to organize everything... Visa and all that stuff. AFAIK, you're not allowed to work in a regular job with a student-visa, so that is not an option either to earn extra money (if you're really motivated, you won't have the time anyway). Try to come up with a lot of questions and contact an MI representative to really get an idea about what needs to be done and how much you'll have to invest. You should have some extra-money in any case of an emergency too. North Hollywood can be a pretty dangerous place. I never went out at night (I was too busy practicing anyway) but I heard some pretty scary stories about people being mugged and stuff. Of course, that doesn't have to do with the school directly, but after all, you have to live somewhere, and since LA is not exactly a small town, you might wanna live in North Hollywood itself in order to save the time and money you'd have to invest if you commuted there everyday by car or public transport. I heard that a lot of things have changed at the GIT... several faculty members left (i.e. Brett Garsed, who was pretty much my favorite instructor there), it seems as if there aren't enough students either (Paul Gilbert mentioned some "empty hallways"). There are about 200-300 students at the GIT right now (at least that's what I was told 2 years ago by a representative)... in the 80s, there were more than 1000 students signed up. I guess that has to do with the pricing too. Also, a lot of graduates complain about the huge amount of material they get... piles of paper and stuff... it can be a bit overwhelming. However, these days I appreciate it, cuz I still have a bunch of things to look at in the future. Finally, keep in mind that a degree, a diploma from any school (whether it's a university or a school like Berklee or the GIT) is not a guarantee to achieve musical success. Sure, it might be easier to get some jobs or more students with that diploma on your wall, but it won't guarantee that you'll get rich and famous. Remember, music is an art, and the GIT (and other schools) are supposed to help you learn more about that art, educate you and broaden your horizon. But it still is an art, and the creativity, inspiration and heart... those things YOU have to invest. That can't be taught at any school. Fare thee well That's it. As I said, not a regular article, just something based on Oakleafs idea... so keep that in mind when you rate this one, ok? :-) I hope this will clear up some things for you. Keep in mind that the best source for information is contacting the school and its representatives, or even visit it one day to check it out. I tried to give you my true opinion, I am not an affiliated with the MI, and I don't think I am very biased or anything. Next time, I'll have an actual article for you again, so stay tuned, k? |
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