College is a wonderful time of exploration and discovery. Many go into their first year with no clue as to what major they will label themselves with for the next four years. However, music majors know MONTHS in advance. There are two levels in being accepted to a university's music school. The first is being accepted into the university itself. Yes! You made it in, congrats! What if I told you, however, that the shiny card with "Congratulations" scrawled on it was NOT your ticket to college. For music majors, it is simply the first, and often easier, obstacle.
The true "Congratulations" comes when you get the second shiny card saying you have been accepted into the music school. Hopefully, it comes with a nice music scholarship as well. This was only after the audition where you almost threw up, the nine months of practicing the piece that you played after you almost threw up, and the seven years of training on the instrument that you played that piece on after you almost threw up. Fun, right?
You would cringe too if your colleagues with different majors constricted your major, rather your life, down to a word that describes a basketball or a piece of sidewalk chalk. Sure, playing music every day is wonderful, but it also involves having seven classes a day, practicing two hours a day, and waking up at 7 am every day. What if I told you that you could be enrolled in 13 classes, yet only have 19 credit hours? Well, you can! Just become a music major.
When the music major is called "fun," the speaker forgets the anxiety that the music major has. "Fun" forgets that the music major obsesses over whether they are good enough. They begin to equate their musical ability with their personality, character, and even worth. "Fun" forgets that the music major started hating music last month when they did not get into the ensemble they had worked so hard for. "Fun" forgets that the music major has difficulty remembering why they are even here.
I love being a music education major. My career of showing the future generations the magic of music will be the most fulfilling thing I could ever dream of doing. It may not always be fun, though. I will be tested with numerous challenging ranging from income to the removal of music programs from schools. I will continue moving forward, though, because music is so important and so crucial for the wellbeing of humanity.
All I ask is that if you see a music major, know that he or she is going through just as much stress as you with your science major or business major. We are all preparing for our amazing careers; no path is easier than another. Hopefully, everyone finds the major for them, even if it is not fun.
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