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insight on music and music education

Graduating High School Playing an Instrument.
You play an instrument in High School, but you’re not sure how well you stack up against others who are potentially college bound. There are many people who might find themselves in an identical position. At this point, you need to ask yourself the following questions…

Planning to Study a Musical Instrument in College? Here’s how to Discover a Great Teacher.
How does one evaluate their teacher? This is a tough one to answer primarily because it is virtually impossible to know during a short trial lesson everything you’d like to know about someone and how they will react to you as a student. No matter how famous they are as a performer or a pedagogue and how many successful students they’ve had, how they might work with you or what you can expect from them is an important thing to try and figure out if possible.

Majoring in Music Therapy
We recently had the pleasure of sitting down with Tatiana Penagos MA, MT-BC. Tatiana is a Music Therapist, who was happy to share stories about her career, and the role music has played in shaping her life. After positive feedback, we decided to go one step further and outline a few of our recommendations for Music Therapy Programs. We hope this list, as well as our previous blog: Introducing Music Therapy to masses, assist our prospective students in making big decisions about their musical future.

An Interview with a Music Therapist
This month we here at Inside Music Schools have a rare treat for the prospective music student readying themselves for the next phase of their music education. We sat down with Tatiana Penagos MA, MT-BC, a Music Therapist who was happy to share stories about her passion, her career, and the role music has played in shaping both her professional and personal life.

Writing Music For Video Games
Video game scoring is a career on the rise, and we’d like to share some information for the prospective music student curious about this major.

TURNING POINT: The Move from High School to College.
Moving from high school to college, especially the first semester, can be challenging for many students, even those who have attended live-away summer programs. The change will have many students experiencing both excitement and anxiety at the same time. Enjoying the excitement and controlling the anxiety are keys to first semester success.

Is Music College for Me?
Many of you reading this article are in your final semesters of high school. You’ve followed a curriculum devised by school administrators for a dozen years and now the decisions regarding your educational career are your responsibility. It’s daunting to think of taking steps at your age toward a career that you hope will span the entirety of your working years. You’ve come to the IMS site to explore educational options that will lead to a career in some quarter of the music business.

A short guide to the perfect undergraduate audition.
The audition is a vital part of many admissions decisions. How you look on paper may have gotten you through the door, but how you perform in your audition can very well make the difference in your acceptance to the music school or conservatory of your dreams. Be that as it may, the point of this blog is to steady those nerves and help guide you through the audition process. This is an exciting time after all.

The Top 5 Highest Paying Music Career Jobs
Music is more accessible now than ever before. With social media, movies, and pop culture having big influence on the frequency in which music is used, a career in music has never been more exciting. We know the first step to obtaining a highly coveted career in music starts with obtaining a music degree. Naturally before getting a music degree, many students want to know, what music jobs pay the most and what music degree do you need?

Steven Lipman Interview
This interview speaks to Steven Lipman’s time at Berklee, and offers an inside look at the thought process behind being the head of admissions at a major University. This interview also speaks to the heart and passion he possesses, and offers a detailed look at the mentality behind his consulting company, Inside Music Schools.

Tips for Making Better Recordings at Home
Although it is not usually physically or financially possible to build the “ideal” recording studio in an apartment or home, there are ways to make a good sounding recording in any environment.

A Conversation with Chair of Composition, Boston Conservatory at Berklee
A conversation with Jonathan Bailey Holland that any young musician would want to read. Learn more about the man, and what his advice to young musicians would be in this climate.