what can i do to prepare for college and get colleges to notice me in the end of sophmore year

Answered

Make a YouTube channel! That shows that you are deeply skilled in music and are inclined to help/entertain/educate other which will look good to colleges. If you are interested, you could also try to learn composition and create some original pieces

If you are looking at a conservatory like Juilliard, Manhattan, Mannes, Cleveland, etc, literally the only thing that matters is your audition, so if that is your goal, practice as many hours as you can and practice performing for as many people as you can. In any classical music performance program (not sure if that's what you're after?) your audition is by far the most important component of your application. Taking a lesson with the faculty at the school you're looking at can help get you on their radar early, and give you a little edge of the auditions are not blind. It can also give you a good idea which teachers you mesh with. A good private teacher relationship in college is more important than anything else you do there, so making sure you end up with a teacher you love is almost more important than which school you end up at.

Hi!! I am so glad you are looking into a music degree! That’s very exciting. I am a pianist and am a Boston Conservatory student class of 2025.

First thing I would say is try finding ways for yourself to continue to grow despite this difficult time. For example there are so many YouTube videos of masterclasses, so many books of the lives of different composers to read, different skills you can acquire from some online music courses, Berklee online courses maybe interesting to look at. Also, since you must have ample amount of time right now, really try to EXPAND your repertoire and learn as much as possible even thought it might not be perfect. Now I don’t know which instrument you play so it’s hard for me to give you specific advice. But look for new ways to adapt to the situation. Regarding finding performances, there is a new initiative started by a HS Sophomore to give artists like you a chance to keep growing! It’s called Virtually Staged. Check them out on Instagram and sign up to have an opportunity to perform on a zoom meeting to other artists around the world! I hope this helps!

I'm not positive, but I would suggest you continue to sharpen and hone in on your skill so that you are at the best of your game when you can compete next.

If you play sports you can always go on the colleges website and get the email of the coach. Send him/her a video of you doing your thing and they'll look at you and if they like what they see they will contact you. Keep applying for scholarships and keep your grades up, they look for 3.5 or higher GPA's. You got this @sp15, even though I don't know you, I believe in you.