My
experience as MSM has been overwhelmingly positive. After spending two
years at a university (NYU), I realized that I was
not receiving the music education on a par with a
major conservatory. In addition, MSM has afforded me countless wonderful
opportunities studying with a variety of people at the head
of their field and professional opportunities like (as a composer)
procuring commissions from professional ensembles. Like any conservatory, study at
MSM is primarily focused on one's instrument. Therefore one is
expected to spend whatever gazillion hours a day practicing as
one can. Coursework, especially in the music core (Theory, Ear
Traning, History), is also fairly demanding, so the difficulty of
balancing grades with one's major is pretty much the dilemma
of any music student. That being said, GPA is less
focused upon here than jury grade, which I understand is
the standard at conservatories, which determines the ability of a
student to return for the next year and scholarship amount.
Sophomore juries are taken particularly seriously and generally seen as
the “kick out” jury. But that doesn't happen too much.
As the other comment mentioned, MSM is very much a
conservatory and not a university. The atmosphere is that of
a music conservatory, of people traning for careers as musicians
which of course carries its own tedium. There are a
few alternatives, like a cross registration option with Columbia University
which I plan to take part of next year.
That
being said, I (as a composer) have experienced a wonderful
sense of camaraderie with my fellow students and have nothing
but great things to say about the performers whose quality
is pretty much peerless.
The school is located in uptown
New York City in Morningside Heights, which is one of
the safest areas of the city, slightly cloistered from the
craziness of midtown and downtown, which of cousre has its
ups and downs. But if you're willing to survive the
15-20 minute subway ride, everything awaits.
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