Customer Reviews

Majoring in Music: All the Stuff You Need to Know

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I teach collegiate level music majors and I will be requiring all incoming freshman to own and read this book. The text is well organized and fun to read while providing essential information about how to be successful in a collegiate music program. The book is also a nice length, making it feasible to browse through it several times the summer before entering college.

I think back to my undergraduate years and many of the mistakes I made or saw colleagues make are mentioned in this book. The hardest part about being a musician is balancing the music "stuff" with the rest of life - this book clears up many of the common problems related to this balancing act. I anticipate sitting down with my first-year students and discussing this text at length to make sure that their college experience starts, and continues, down a successful path.

If you have ever known someone pursuing a degree in the arts, you know there can be many unanswered questions. Rich Holly has created an invaluable resource for students, parents and teachers that should be required reading for all involved in music in higher education. I was particularly impressed at the breadth of material Mr. Holly has covered in such a user -friendly guide. From studying/practicing tips to health tips to a section on how to utilize all of your university's resources....It's all here!

I think this book was well intentioned, but ultimately was cranked out too fast to be complete. This only covers a tiny fraction of the possible topics a music major nets to get up to speed on. The biggest two that I COULD NOT BELIEVE weren't in there were auditions, and juries. How can you possibly publish a book about being a music major and not cover auditions and juries? This book is basically about college in general and study skills, then they slap a different major name on the front of each one to get more people to buy them. This is lacking so much content that it's short. More than $10 for a tiny book that I read in just over an hour? The book is only about the size of a large index card, and then, to top that, only about 1/4" thick and some of the pages are half blank. There is VERY LITTLE CONTENT in this book. I feel ripped off having paid so much money for a glorified college pamphlet.

In all fairness, there were a couple little nuggets of good wisdom in there, but honestly, there are way better college guides out there that will give those answers and much more. This book is on the right path and could be good if the author took the time to write a proper book with about 5 times more content. I was thinking about buying the other book "Majoring in Education", but after getting burned with this, I definitely will not be getting it.

I enjoyed the organization and content of this book. It is very inviting and easy to read, which is particularly helpful for prospective or incoming college students. It provides a decent overview of information that is necessary for music majors to have, regardless of which institution they plan to attend. I felt that some areas could have been elaborated upon, but it at least provides stimulation for additional thought and discussion. This book would be very easy to use for music majors in a first-year experience course.

Easy read, very effective book. I found students consumed it quickly and then used it as a resource book while they planned to attend college in music. It is almost like a recipe book for Music Major College Prep. With Rich Holly's background, he knows from experience what people need to succeed in music. I consider it required reading for all my students who wish to attend college. Standard Rep. It will make them wake up to the task.
Thanks Rich for your contribution.

I just received this book and all I can say is Bravo! It is well written, concise and chock full of information that is extremely pertinent to students majoring in music. I am a university music advisor and when I meet with the incoming freshmen during orientation this year I am going to strongly encourage all of the students to purchase and read this book before school starts!! It will make their transition and my job easier!

This is a wonderful book for high school students thinking about majoring in music,college freshman wondering what to expect when they get to college, or parents/advisors trying to help young people make decisions about school. Everything you need to know in an easy to read format. Informational and fun. Highly recommended.

The book didn't take forever to come in the mail. About average time. Over all I'm satisfied with the book, and book delivery.