Posted by Mark on May 08, 2003 at 14:28:45:
In Reply to: Band vs. Orchestra posted by Paul Averton on May 06, 2003 at 22:37:41:
One thing that you should ask yourself is (unless you are already Julliard or Curtis material) is can you be happy learning to be an excellent musician for four years with the likelyhood that you life after college will take many turns and you may wind up with a career that is not what you anticipated.
This sounds scary (it was scary to me 25 years ago) but in reality this is the same challenge that most people outside of a few vocational tracks take. There are a very small number of paying gigs out there, and a lot of them are for 50 bucks a night. Most jobs out there as well have no specific degree qualification and are filled with people with liberal arts degrees. If you think it's hard to find a tuba gig, try to find a job as a professional socialigist.
If you get a degree in something that you love an are good at, you college experience will be more rewarding and you'll learn more. Whatever turns life takes you, if you become a good musician there will always be opportunties to play. Getting a degree in something you love is a great way to spend the next four years, and what you learn will prepare you for a huge part of your life that take turns, both musical and non-musical, that are almost impossible to predict.