Whether you are just a freshman or a junior going through the stress of deciding to major in music, most have probably had these thoughts before. And no, this is definitely not all of them. I just didn't have that much time to type them all before I got back to rehearsal, oops.
1. Nobody cares if you sleep all of the time. They might not understand, but they obviously get that you're busy all of the time and have no other time for sleep.
2. Yes, it does normally take longer than four years to get your degree. Unless you are just feeling eighteen hours per semester, but I can guarantee you that I am not.
3. My schedule is literally so screwed up. Classes starting at 8:45 up until marching band practice that evening and then I, obviously, need to go practice. And you can't forget food. I hope my roommate has been getting used to me coming in near midnight. No, I wasn't out partying. I was just in a practice room for a few hours.
4. Yes, you are likely to meet your future spouse in the music department or in the marching band. But can't that be a little scary? You fall in love, have a tragic breakup, and then you have to see them three times a week in rehearsal? Or everyday at band practice until the summer? Yeah, that is just terrifying to me. I'll just stick to myself.
5. But while you may want to avoid people who are involved in the same things as you, it is also as if you are seeing an alien when you see someone who is not involved in the same things as you. Or, at least for me, it is, especially when the only people I talk to who are not involved in music or band is my roommate.
6. Everyone thinks it is weird to have as many zero or one credit hour classes as music majors do. But hey, I just can't get around them or else I wouldn't be taking 10-12 classes this semester.
7. Most of us love our music professors. So don't talk bad about them in front of people. Most of the time someone will defend them or just have a new reason to hate you.
8. What are core classes or basics? No, we can't really take our basics in two years and then work on classes for our degrees the last two. It just doesn't work that way.
9. Oh, you want to hang out? Please ask 3-5 business days in advance. Between marching band, private lessons, my class schedule, rehearsing in ensembles, my online work, and going to see my family, we will probably have to thoroughly schedule this "hang out session" and it will most likely be in my planner somewhere. Sorry, not sorry.
10. "What do you even plan on doing with that degree?" a non-music major may ask. And then you literally have to explain all of your future goals to someone who does not understand at all or just thinks you made a very bad decision and is very bad at hiding it.
