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5 Things I've Learned About Being a Music Major

Music is a lifestyle.

By Emalee ChvatalPublished 6 years ago 4 min read
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"What's your major?" "Music Education" "Oh."

When I was a freshman in college, I had a ton of family members, friends, and just the common public asking me this question. When I responded with "Music Education" I got puzzled looks, and more commonly, I got asked what I could possibly do with that degree. As this continued on, and I started my first year as a music major, this really got too me. I continued to ask myself, "Well heck, why would I ever wanna teach high school music?" But as I continued on into this program, I realized why I, along with everyone else does it. Music is a lifestyle, and we want to share our lifestyle with the people around us.

#1: You get to do what YOU love every day.

It sounds lame, right? Being locked up in a practice room, for hours on end, re-reading and re-playing the same old sheet music your private teacher drilled in your head. You stress about a Jury that is months away, and you continue to practice and practice and practice. When do you ever have time for friends? When do you have time for other activities? But that's the thing. You're doing something that you've been passionate about for years. You get to spread your knowledge and play solo pieces they would never suggest for you in middle school and high school. Your life is music, and that's a blessing for us.

#2: The people around you are your family.

Seems cliché right? There's always that quote about "friends are the family you choose for yourself." But that's the best part about being a music major, you are always around them. Between classes, and practicing, some of us even work in the music building. It sounds terrible, because if you ask anyone of us, we will tell you we rarely leave the music building. That being said, we are dramatic about it because obviously it has closing hours, but we are surrounded by people who are not only our friends, but our family and potentially our colleagues one day. You're growing with the people you are going to work beside one day. Isn't that cool?

#3: Performances are so much better in the "big leagues."

In high school, you played pieces that were amazing and big, and maybe in your last senior concert, you played a piece that made you and everyone around you cry... (Including the director), maybe you thought to yourself, how could it ever get better than this? Welcome to college. High school was amazing, don't get me wrong. But playing in a college band in front of people who adore what you are doing is something more precious than anything. People come and listen to the music you're creating without an invitation. As bad as that sounds, because we are a very welcoming program at CWU. We get so hyped up when we go on stage, because everyone loves what we bring to the stage. Everyone on the stage isn't nervous. You are not only making music, but sometimes I'd like to think about it as we are making magic.

#4: You cry, a lot.

Now, this one isn't so perfect. Being in a competitive program, with the people you adore is really hard sometimes. When it comes to audition days, everyone is for themselves. Of course, they will cheer you on, and tell you you'll do amazing, but all of us are fighting for one thing, and that's the highest chair you can receive. You listen to people who are more advanced than you, and you tell yourself that you'll never get there. You play in studio class, and mess up. Sure, they are all telling you that you did great, but deep down inside you know, that they know, that it wasn't the right way to play it. You practice and practice and practice, and then you have a bad lesson, and you just kinda think to yourself, why me? Why do I do this terrible in front of people? That's not the case. So, I myself, cry a lot when it comes to playing. In my lessons, in the practice room, at home. I cry about the music, because I love it and sometimes you don't feel good enough, and it almost feels like you're letting the music, and the composer who wrote it, down.

#5: You learn.

Mistakes are mistakes. But you grow from these mistakes. You do the same in music, you have a bad audition, or a bad jury, or a bad studio performance, and you think it's the end of the world, but it isn't. Because you take these playing opportunities and grow. You can develop further when you make mistakes, if you played perfectly all the time, where would there be room for improvement? You learn alongside people who may have made the same mistake the same day, or two weeks ago. You continue to learn, and learning makes us into better people.

Music is something everyone can learn and live for. But being a potential music educator one day, you have to fail, to get back up. You have to make mistakes to thrive to be better. At the end of the day, it's you, your instrument, and the music. What more could you ask for?

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