Music
 mid-size to large cities often draw big ticket concerts, especially in large outdoor amphitheaters. small towns sometimes host concerts in parks with local or older bands. other options include music festivals such has san diego's street scene (http://www.street-scene.com/) or south by southwest (http://www.sxsw.com) in austin. classical music concerts are held year round and performed by semi-professional and professional symphonies. boston, for instance, occasionally puts on free concerts in the public park. many cities and regions have unique sounds. nashville is known as music city because of the large number of country artists that live in the city. it's home to the grand ole opry, one of the most famous music venues in the country. country music is popular throughout the u.s. but is particularly concentrated in the south and rural west. seattle is the home of grunge rock. many of the most popular bands are based out of los angeles due to the large entertainment presence and concentration of record companies.
Work in America is best arranged long before you enter the United States. Young people who are full time students of certain nationalities can apply for a J1 "Exchange Visitor" visa (http://travel.state.gov/v...) which permits paid work as au pairs or summer work for up to 4 months in virtually any type of job. The United States Department of State has full information on applying for this type of visa including the precise categories that qualify.
The H-1B visa allows a limited number of skilled and certain unskilled employees to temporarily work in the United States. It usually requires a tertiary degree and is based on a petition filed by an American employer. The job you wish to apply for should be related to your degree. The most common careers of hard-to-get H-1B visa holders are nurses, math teachers, and computer science professionals. On the other hand, there is the more permanent employment-based immigrant visa which has similar requirements to the H-1B visa. Whichever visa you wish to apply for, it is important to note that the employer must ensure that nobody within his locale is willing or qualified to do the job before considering you.
Paid work is generally not allowed on a B1/B2 visitor visa. Working unlawfully in the United States runs the very real risk of arrest, deportation, and ineligibility to re-enter the country. Illegal immigrants also run the risk of dangerous work conditions.
If you are seeking to adjust visa status or to enter the U.S. on a working visa you should first check the official government websites of the U.S. Department of State (http://www.state.gov), which issues visas abroad, and the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (http://www.uscis.gov) which administers immigration programs within the United States. Unfortunately, con artists both in the U.S. and overseas often prey on people's desire to travel or work here. Keep in mind that while visa applications do not usually require an attorney or other intermediary, be wary of and verify any "advice" offered by third parties, especially non-lawyers. If in doubt about properly applying for such visas, it is best to get a licensed immigration attorney.
Keep in mind that anyone entering under the Visa Waiver Program cannot adjust their status for any reason.
Short courses may be undertaken on a tourist visa. Community colleges typically offer college-credit courses on an open-admissions basis; anyone with a high school degree or its equivalent and the required tuition payment can generally enroll. In large cities, open universities may offer short non-credit courses on all sorts of practical topics, from ballroom dance to buying real estate. They are a good place to learn a new skill and meet people.
Studying full-time in the United States is an excellent opportunity for young adults seeking an advanced education, a chance to see a foreign country, and a better understanding of the U.S. and its people. It can be done independently by applying directly to a college for admission, or through the "study abroad" or "foreign exchange" department of a college in your own country, usually for a single term or one year. Either approach requires, at minimum, an F or J student visa. The latter is usually easiest; the two institutions will handle much of the arrangements, and you don't have to make a commitment to four years living in a strange country. Be forewarned, however: many state universities and private colleges are located in small towns, hundreds of miles from any big urban centers. Don't expect to spend your weekends in New York if your college is in North Dakota unless it is part of the academic activities in your school/course.
The common requirements to study at a higher education level will include your admissions essay also known as the statement of purpose or personal statement, transcript of records, recommendation/reference letters, language tests TOEFL is most widely accepted but it can be waived if your previous school primarily used English as a medium of instruction, standardised achievement tests SAT for undergraduate, GMAT/GRE for graduate, degree certificates. As the TOEFL, SAT, GMAT or GRE are administered by the New Jersey-based ETS, you can sit the exam in your home country well beforehand and arrange for your scores to be directly sent to the school you are applying to. You may need to present these documents including your acceptance letter when applying for a student visa.
The types of schools vary dramatically. In conversation, Americans tend to use the terms "school" and "college" inclusively: any college or university might be referred to as "school", and a university might be called "college". State university systems are partially subsidized by state governments, and may have many campuses spread around the state, with hundreds of thousands of students. Private colleges are generally smaller hundreds or a few thousand students, with a larger percentage of their students living on campus; some are affiliated with churches and may be more religious in character. Other kinds of colleges focus on teaching specific job skills, education for working adults, and providing inexpensive college-level education to local residents. Although nearly all colleges are open to students regardless of race, gender, religion, etc. many were originally established for a particular group e.g. African-Americans, women, members of a particular religion and may still attract primarily students from that group. Several private colleges remain female-only, there are a few male-only private colleges, and private religious colleges may expect students to practise the school's faith.
Colleges are funded by "tuition" charged to the student, which is often quite expensive, very commonly reaching into the tens of thousands of dollars per year. The most selective colleges and hence, often the most desirable run up to $40,000-$50,000 dollars per year, including both tuition and "room & board" in that price. Most U.S. citizens receive substantial financial assistance from the federal government in the form of grants and low-interest loans, which are not available to non-citizens. Often financial aid for foreign students is provided by their home country. They may be eligible for privately-funded "scholarships" intended to provide educational opportunities for various kinds of students. Some U.S. banks offer loans to foreign students, which usually require a citizen to guarantee that they'll be repaid. Contact the Financial Aid Office of any college you are interested in attending for more information about the sources of aid available.
Almost all U.S. colleges and universities operate web sites in the .edu domain with information for prospective students and other visitors. Information on touring a handful of them has been collected into Touring famous universities in the U.S..
Marching Band
 in addition to traditional music concerts, a quintessential american experience is the marching band festival. one can find these events almost every weekend between september and thanksgiving throughout the country and again from march to june in california. check local event listings and papers to find specifics. also notable is the bands of america grand national championship held every autumn in indianapolis. those looking to see the best of the best should acquire tickets to the "finals" performance, where the ten best bands of the festival compete for the championship. this event is now held at the lucas oil stadium. both "street" or parade marching bands as well as "field" or show bands are found at almost every high school and university in america.