Diminished practice time leaves music students flat

For first-year music student Chelsea Lumley, practicing the
piano is equivalent to studying a textbook for a midterm.

While most students prepare for midterms by studying in their
rooms, study lounges or libraries, Lumley requires the use of
special facilities because of the noise created by playing an
instrument.

For music students living in the dorms, it can often be
difficult to practice because of the limited facilities available
in the residential area.

Hedrick Hall has two practice rooms, but they are both currently
inaccessible because of construction.

Rieber Hall, however, does have a functioning practice room. But
it is limited because it can only fit one or two students at a
time, and it is acoustically poor.

Lumley considers herself fortunate to live in a dorm that has a
practice room. But often, non-music students occupy it, preventing
students like Lumley from practicing.

“I cannot “˜study’ without a piano, so it makes
me wish music majors had some sort of logistical priority so that
it can be assured they have a chance to practice,” she
said.

Few universities across the country have practice rooms in their
dorms, and the rooms that do exist have poor acoustics, said Albert
Bradley, the undergraduate adviser for the department of music and
ethnomusicology.

The universities already provide good facilities for the
students, so it is unnecessary to build more in the residential
areas, he said.

Most music students at UCLA practice at Schoenberg Hall, which
is open every day ““ most days until midnight. Schoenberg
provides 26 practice rooms for music students or students enrolled
in music courses.

There are three kinds of rooms available to students depending
on their concentration and need. There are 10 rooms reserved for
students with music majors, eight for piano students, and another
eight for non-music students, if they request the rooms in
advance.

While the facilities are readily available, some students think
the walk from the residential area to Schoenberg is time consuming,
especially at night.

Sheri Guerami, a third-year music and psychology student, lived
in a residence hall her first year, and would walk to Schoenberg at
night. She had to make sure she would be accompanied by fellow
musicians for safety reasons.

Practicing in her room was not an option because of the noise
level of playing a flute.

“I felt it would be inconsiderate to play while others
studied,” Guerami said.

As a student with a double major, Guerami acclimated herself to
the walk to Schoenberg by practicing at night after class, followed
by studying at Powell Library, often until 2 a.m.

“It’s a lot harder because you have to work for one
major and practice for music,” she said.

Despite the hassle created by long walks to Schoenberg, more
students are practicing much earlier in the school year than
normal, and practice rooms in Schoenberg are being utilized
completely, Bradley said. There is a “high quality and
focus” in the level of playing, he said.

While many of the 201 music students have second majors or
minors, there are some that do not, and are less inconvenienced by
the lack of residential facilities and the walk to Schoenberg.

Jeff Peters, a first-year music student and resident of Rieber,
is taking only one non-music course this quarter, so he has a lot
of time each day to practice and does not share the aggravation
felt by some of his musical peers.