M.I.

So, im sure this has been brought up 10000000 times over, but.....

I am going to be putting in my audsih to Musicians Institute in LA.

Anyone been there, or will be? What can I do that will give me an edge to my audish vid that i will be putting in? Is it really hard to make it in the industry after your done be it the BA, or AA degree? What is LA really like? Is it hard to find gigs? Hard to make friends?

Yea, I really want to go. I knew about MI from a good friend of a friend and he is now playing on the cuise ships after doin the AA degree. If I could pick what I wanted to do after MI it would be a studio/touring musician. I love the idea of spending hours at a time perfecting drum parts in the studio and I loooooovvvvvve to play live.

Were Im at right now, i understand music better than others, my edge is that I have a great ear, but I cant read music. Is it an absolute asset to be able to read? Does MI teach theory from the ground up? I do understand most theory though. When I jam with some of my friends were always shouting, "Ok now go to a 5/8 and ill go to 7/16," "Lets do a 5/8 to 3/8 funk groove." My ear is to the point that I can work out most Dream Theater songs by writing down the time siggies, not to great with poly rhythems though. But in the industry, is it about what you know, or what you can play?

Lots of questions i know, lol.

Steve.

I graduated MI in 1999 and lived in LA for 10 years

you will love it

getting gigs in LA is not difficult but not easy either

you pretty much have to get yourself in the mix, go out and meet people every night, show your face, and be a good reliable player

you just have to get out and do it....go to auditions, answer ads, put out ads, go to shows...lots of shows... mingle and meet as many people as you can.....whatever it takes

I definitely owe some of the living I make today to MI and the time I spent learning the ropes of the biz in LA....wouldnt trade it for the world

to be honest...no one really cares if you can play in 7/16....they just want you to be solid and reliable

I'd be glad to talk to you about it further if you wish

another question i forgot top put it was the cost??????????? I hear any and all things. From 25,000 for an AA, up to 40??????????????????????????????????? for AA.

sbowman128675 said:

another question i forgot top put it was the cost??????????? I hear any and all things. From 25,000 for an AA, up to 40??????????????????????????????????? for AA.

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I don't remember the actual cost but I did just finish paying back my loans about 5 years ago

I'm sure tuition is a bit more now than when I attended

you can get in touch with their financial people and work out your grant and loan situation

I went 91-92. At that time, the school was under different ownership and they only had the one year program. The degree programs are newer features.

What can I do that will give me an edge to my audish vid that i will be putting in?

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The truth is, it doesn't matter. As long as you can hold the sticks, there is little chance you'll get rejected.

Is it really hard to make it in the industry after your done be it the BA, or AA degree?

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The harsh truth is when it comes to auditioning for bands and real gigs, no one cares if you have a degree, or how you learned to play. The best players get the gigs, regardless of how they learned. But of course, an education is a great way to learn what one needs to know.

What is LA really like? Is it hard to find gigs? Hard to make friends?

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The weather is usually nice. As far as gigs, they are abundant, but so are the number of the players going after them. Laws of supply and demand become a factor, because quite frankly, the supply of musicians is greater than the demand. But that said, this is where things happen. I know people I went to Ml with who make a nice living touring with major bands, and I know many of us were forced into alternate career choices.

At least kids today going to MI can make better contacts. When I went, we had no computers. No myspace, no facebook, not even email. So soon after graduation, we all lost contact with each other. So many times I've found myself thinking "if only I had a guitar player for this gig/recording/whatever.." with no easy way to track down fellow grads.

Now, the school maintains alumni websites and mailing list, and everyone can friend their classmates on whatever social media site, and have an endless supply of contacts for future gigs.

I am really jealous the internet wasn't invented sooner.

Is it an absolute asset to be able to read? Does MI teach theory from the ground up?

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To get through the school, yes, you will need to read. They stress reading strongly. Yes, they will teach you from day one, but I do recommend getting at least a basic understanding of simple note values before the 1st day of class.

the cost

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I can't really speak to that. When I went, it was relatively cheap compared to today.

So. Ive almost assembled all the parts to put this thing together

Gonna film it at my church. Im having one of the tech guys doing the sound and another puttin the video together.

Im gonna have a 4 peice for the two performances.

So its gonna go in this order:

Rudaments- Paradiddle (180 bpm), Two Stroke (200 bpm)

Groove to a Metronome- Still to be decided

Performances- Cover, Dream Theater- Never Enough, Then an origonal by the 4 peice. Just a cool rock tune to show stability, time keeping, groove and simplicity.

Then its gonna go to a slideshow with me talking for a minute as to why I want to go to MI.

Sounds good?

There's a lot to be learned at MI, Berklee, or regular university, but the degree itself means little or nothing in the real music world when it comes to getting gigs. Well, I'm being nice. It actually means nothing. You still have to do the audition and play the parts. Going to school is excellent for personal developement, but it is not necessarily the key to a music career (unless you get a degree from a university and want to teach in schools.) But a degree doesn't give you an edge in terms of preferential treatment. The "educated" players have to line up alongside all the rest.

There are certainly MI and Berklee grads who have high-profile gigs. But, they didn't get the gigs simply because they were grads. They also auditioned. That goes for Vinnie, Bozzio, etc etc.

But once again, there's a lot to be learned. It's what you do - or typically don't do - with what you've learned that will make the difference.

Bermuda

sbowman128675 said:

So. Ive almost assembled all the parts to put this thing together

Gonna film it at my church. Im having one of the tech guys doing the sound and another puttin the video together.

Im gonna have a 4 peice for the two performances.

So its gonna go in this order:

Rudaments- Paradiddle (180 bpm), Two Stroke (200 bpm)

Groove to a Metronome- Still to be decided

Performances- Cover, Dream Theater- Never Enough, Then an origonal by the 4 peice. Just a cool rock tune to show stability, time keeping, groove and simplicity.

Then its gonna go to a slideshow with me talking for a minute as to why I want to go to MI.

Sounds good?

Click to expand...

I honestly dont think you need to do nearly that much

but go for it

I could be working in N. Dakota right now, but I stuck around here for the music scene because I'd rather have that in my life than extra money.

When I got a good solid band together, I've never had a problem getting gigs. This is a great place to get to know people from all walks of life, and there is even the OC and San Diego pretty close by. Even the Bay Area and Sacramento, Las Vegas are all less than a day's drive. 5-7 hours depending on how fast you drive.

bermuda said:

There's a lot to be learned at MI, Berklee, or regular university, but the degree itself means little or nothing in the real music world when it comes to getting gigs. Well, I'm being nice. It actually means nothing. You still have to do the audition and play the parts. Going to school is excellent for personal developement, but it is not necessarily the key to a music career (unless you get a degree from a university and want to teach in schools.) But a degree doesn't give you an edge in terms of preferential treatment. The "educated" players have to line up alongside all the rest.

There are certainly MI and Berklee grads who have high-profile gigs. But, they didn't get the gigs simply because they were grads. They also auditioned. That goes for Vinnie, Bozzio, etc etc.

But once again, there's a lot to be learned. It's what you do - or typically don't do - with what you've learned that will make the difference.

Bermuda

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Honestly, i knew that already...lol. more or less.

I chose MI for four reasons......atmosphere, inspiration, contacts, and population density. I know i have to get my chain of contacts no matter what and i think MI is a great place to start for that, also I want to get solid on reading and get as much pro input into my playing as possible. If I get in I will apply myself %150000000000 in the school and in the community. Get the social netowrk started on good tearms.

sbowman128675 said:

So. Ive almost assembled all the parts to put this thing together

Gonna film it at my church. Im having one of the tech guys doing the sound and another puttin the video together.

Im gonna have a 4 peice for the two performances.

So its gonna go in this order:

Rudaments- Paradiddle (180 bpm), Two Stroke (200 bpm)

Groove to a Metronome- Still to be decided

Performances- Cover, Dream Theater- Never Enough, Then an origonal by the 4 peice. Just a cool rock tune to show stability, time keeping, groove and simplicity.

Then its gonna go to a slideshow with me talking for a minute as to why I want to go to MI.

Sounds good?

Click to expand...

I agree with Gvdadrummasum, you don't need to do that much. You could easily do 1/2 of all that and still pass admissions with flying colors.

But if it will make you more confident, go for it.