Photo: UNT.edu

OK, so maybe it’s just another click-bait listicle. Still.

Number one is Juilliard in New York – such a surprise – and the usual suspects fill out much of the rest of the list: New England Conservatory, Royal College of Music, Curtis Institute, blah blah. But then, just below the Conservatoire de Paris and just above London’s Guildhall School of Music & Drama, there’s the University of North Texas in Denton. It’s worth pointing out that a) UNT is one of the largest music schools in the country, so this is a testament to quality, not quantity, and b) it’s the only music school included from Texas. In fact, it’s the only music school west of Indiana … until you hit California.

Nothing in Chicago, New Orleans, Seattle, etc., although, geez, there are FOUR in and around LA. Wonder how the Hollywood Reporter came up with that?

Here’s the full tout:

Austin is a famous music capital, but plenty of hipsters prefer Denton, which has its own music festival with 200,000 fans. The school boasts an incredible procession of alums including Roy Orbison, Pat Boone, Norah Jones, Meat Loaf and Deep Blue Something (“Breakfast at Tiffany’s”).

Notable alumni: Don Henley, Lyle Mays