EPT...I just need a place to vent/read my own thoughts.
Oh and I like hearing what you guys have to say. ;o
Oh and I like hearing what you guys have to say. ;o
Part 1. Acknowledgment
Many of you may or may not know that I am a music major. More specifically, I am a classical saxophone performance major. Which you should know a degree in music performance w/ Saxophone can only get you jobs in clubs and maybe a gig once or twice with a small orchestra playing either Ravel's Bolero or Mussorgsky's "Pictures at an Exhibition." Most if not ALL classical saxophone performance majors go on to grad school so that they can get their masters, and then their doctorates, and then become Saxophone professors at post-secondary institutions and then train other classical saxophonists to do the exact same thing. That or they have the option of joining a military band, which is a job with many benefits (starting pay of 50k$, great for a musician). Or they can be a private music teacher within their local area. The latter two you pretty much don't need any degree for though (surprisingly I found you don't need a degree for joining a military band).
I love music. Even the music that we play as Saxophone performance majors (which is A LOT of contemporary music)
example 1.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wuW5Slml0Ps
Trivia: That player was my teacher last year at the conservatory I went to, he's considered by many to be one of the best classical saxophonists in America
Trivia: That player was my teacher last year at the conservatory I went to, he's considered by many to be one of the best classical saxophonists in America
And that piece, the Berio sequenza VIIb is (as surprised as you may be) quite popular within the classical Saxophone community. The first time I heard it I thought it was stupid and random noise, but now I don't, hmmm I still wonder why. Oh also it's probably the one of the hardest pieces in the classical Sax world.
(and to be fair here's example number two of what classical Saxophonists play)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_ofluh9t-E
Carnival of Venice is honestly not that hard of a piece for saxophonists, my teacher prepared that piece a few days before that concert. It'd probably take me 1-2months to prepare it for a concert
Carnival of Venice is honestly not that hard of a piece for saxophonists, my teacher prepared that piece a few days before that concert. It'd probably take me 1-2months to prepare it for a concert
[EDIT]
Here's a clip of me playing Live in the Concert Hall at my high school about six months ago (I've gotten better since then... thankfully)
http://www.myspace.com/andrewparksaxophonist
Part 2. Resolution
For the past year I had been debating what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I made a couple threads on it because I had no idea what I wanted to do. Even up to this point... I still have no idea what I want to do.
I want to do a lot of things.
Not just Saxophone. And my perspective has changed in that I find it rather silly that classical Saxophonists are stuck in this cycle of teaching Saxophonists to teach other Saxophonists and play music that only other Saxophonists enjoy listening to.
That reason I just mentioned is not enough for me to quit being a Saxophone major honestly though. As ignorant as most Saxophonists are, and many of whom think that we have HUGE audiences that love us, I still would stick to the Saxophone if that were my only reason to switch majors.
I had this preconception that going to music school would accelerate my skill by 9001%, but it didn't. The teacher here is considered to be one of the greatest Saxophone teachers in the world (and I can see why) but honestly when it comes down to it, the individual player makes up 95%-99.9% of his own skill, through his work ethic and what not.
Also, as I stated before one can get a job as a military band member, or just teach privately without a degree in music, as long as you prove yourself as a great player. For this reason, I see no use in getting a Music Performance degree, as I no longer want to be a Saxophone Professor at a University.
On a more personal level, I was pushed in many different areas to pursue a music degree in the first place, and many for the wrong reasons.
1) Myself - Up until my Junior year I was a pretty good student. Had a 3.7 and took as many Honors/AP classes my schedule would allow me. But Junior year I went through serious depression (met with a counselor once/twice a week). And I had no motivation to do anything during that state so I almost failed my AP English class and got a few C's in others, dropping my GPA to 3.3 and my class rank from 8th to 40th (out of 535, my weighted GPA was still pretty good which is why I didn't drop even more). But back then I didn't understand the fact that I could bounce back from this if I worked hard, and it was my dream to just go to UNC Chapel Hill (at worst) or an Ivy League school. And in my state of stupor I decided I should just quit being an academic and go into music as a profession (yes I did overreact,,, ;o)
2) My Mother
My mom doesn't know much, but she loves the fact that I am good at something and am really dedicated to it. So she strongly supported my pursuance of music. Mainly because I accomplished small things like going to Governor's School for the summer of 07, and getting a full ride to attend the North Carolina School of the Arts for my senior year. So when I told her that I wanted to pursue something else, she was like "why would you give up something you're already so good at?" And I can see where she's coming from, but I don't think she'll understand that I'm NOT giving it up... But she continued to push me to go to music school.
3) My teacher Professor Sullivan
I was too scared to tell my teacher, after two years of knowing him, that I wanted to not be a music major. I just wasn't ballsy enough. It would have been incredibly awkward.
So a few bad reasons for why I decided to come to music school this semester...
Part 3. Pursuance
POINT OF THIS BLOG!
(drum roll)
I'm switching majors, and transferring schools.
I originally wrote "I'm dropping Saxophone," but that is not what I'm actually doing.
My plan is to transfer to NC State University, since it will cost less than half of what I am paying to come here (gotta love in state tuition). And also is a close drive from my house so that I won't have to pay for housing, and from there I will major in... well... something. I am thinking either Business (Marketing), or Computer Science (or possibly English or Psychology). But I will take the next couple months to think hard about it.
I still consider Saxophone something very important to me, and I intend to continue practicing at least 2-3 hours a day. And taking lessons every week from my old teacher who is only a 90 minute drive away. I'll try to teach private lessons for some extra spending cash, and I will enter some competitions when I feel that I am ready.
I will try to transfer again to UNC Chapel Hill, and then go to Harvard/Yale/Princeton/etc. (my childhood dream) for grad school.
Part 4. Psalm
Many of you may not think of this as a big deal. But I have been very concerned about this. Since the course of my entire life will easily be changed by this.
I also feel like this is the first time that I have been relieved with a decision... because I have always had thoughts in the back of my mind saying "this isn't just right..." but now it is saying "This is the right thing to do." I would love to hear anybody who thinks I am a dumbass and I should try a different plan. I certainly need to see things from many perspectives and make sure that I am not making any rash decisions.
If you read the whole thing. Thanks! I'd love to hear your comments.
If not... I'd still love to hear your comments!
I am going to work very hard for the coming years, I have a strong determination to succeed in life (must be my Korean blood). So I want to make sure that I can do my best so that one day I can help those around me, and in the world!
Thanks for Reading,
-Andrew "StarN" Park
