grad school vs. tuba repair


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Posted by Scott Norberg on December 27, 2001 at 00:58:44:

I'm currently a senior tuba/euphonium player and I'm trying to decide what I should do next year. My goal upon entering college was to get a degree in both classical languages and music (BA) and go further in the one that I liked better, with the hope of getting a college teaching job. I decided sooner than I had thought, so I dropped the classics major a year ago or so. I still want to go on to grad school, but ever since this summer I've been getting more and more interested in brass repair, more specifically tuba repair and rebuilding. I'm seriously considering delaying going on to grad school for a year (or more) to learn tuba repair. Assuming that my ideal job would be to teach college (even part-time as an adjunct) and build/repair tubas in my "spare" time, would it be better to get my master's first or learn tuba repair first?

Also, if I were to go into tuba repair first, would it be better to go to a technical college first and "cut my teeth" on instruments that aren't instruments owned by paying customers and get a broad overview (as well as another degree for my resume) or get an apprenticeship with a professional repairman, since I would have to do this anyway even if I got the degree at a technical college?

Thanks,
Scott


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