FluteMomLiz

No Julliard does not have a minimum age and I recall 13 and younger, I think even a 9 year old having gone there. A post grad degree competed at 17 and such.

And of course there are kids who academically qualify at pre teen ages to go to University.

But again not an area I have much interest in.

I am still wondering about auditions in fall of junior year of HS regardless of age.

StringMom

Your friend may have been referring to "Early Admission" at Peabody. This is how they explain it on their website:

"A typical "early admission" situation is when a high school student only needs one course (usually senior English) to get a high school degree. The student goes to college instead of to his or her last year of high school, and the high school agrees to accept completion of the first year of college English as meeting the remaining high school requirement. The college transcript is sent to the high school, which awards the diploma."

I've seen another school offer the same thing, but can't remember which one.

I'm new to this board - just found it last weekend - and I think I've read every post! D is a HS senior, violin, going the conservatory route. It's been absolutely great to learn from others who have gone through or are going through the same things. Anyone going to the open house auditions at NYU in November?

CollegeMom

I have featured this thread as this year's seniors are starting to apply to and prepare for auditions to music programs. Keep the suggestions and tips coming. We've had some good ones so far. Also, for those who have been through the process before, if you could share experiences, that is always beneficial to those about to embark on this process.

BassDad

I went and dug up a portion of an article that I had written a while back (not on CC) concerning advice for Auditioners. Here it is:
______________________________

In an audition for admission to a music school, there are many things you are attempting to communicate in a small amount of time. Ideally, you want to leave the impression that

1) You have talent,
2) You have potential for improvement,
3) You are willing to work hard,
4) You are easy to work with,
5) You are willing to try new approaches,
6) You have innate musicality, and
7) You are aware of the customs and traditions of classical music in general and your instrument in particular.

That is a lot to ask for in a session that could be as short as 5 minutes.

I think the meaning of most of these items is clear, with the notable exception of the sixth. Musicality is something that is easy to hear but difficult to pin down in words. It is the quality that demands your attention and makes you care about what you are hearing. It is the added value that makes a musician more than a mere conduit between composer and audience. It is the difference between a series of sounds and a living, breathing work of art.

Before the Audition: The musician's mantra is practice, practice, practice but there is a fine line between practicing something to the point where it is as good as it can get and where you are so sick of it that it becomes stale. Build some break time into your practice sessions, particularly in the weeks leading up to auditions. Take most of a day off every once in a while to let your body and mind recover. Try to perform each piece for an audience before using it in an audition, even if that audience is a couple of friends or your parents. If the piece is not an unaccompanied solo, make sure you are quite familiar with the other parts and how you interact with them. Listen to as many recordings of the piece as you can find and try to analyze what you like or dislike about each of them and why.

If auditions are being judged in real time, try to schedule your audition somewhere in the middle of the pack. Scores awarded to the first couple of people who play may be on the low side because the judges are leaving room for higher scores. By the end of the day, scores may again creep down because the judges are getting tired. Most schools now videotape the proceedings, so this is probably less important for school admissions than it is for one-shot competitions and honors ensemble auditions.

Many auditions take place in winter in places where it snows. If this is the case and finances permit, try to spend the night before the audition as close as possible to the audition site, preferably within walking distance. The last thing you need on audition day is a long drive on slippery roads in an unknown area. Some schools have a policy of never cancelling auditions, while others may want to reschedule in case of a blizzard. Make sure you know the school's policy and who to contact in case of any doubt.

Know what to expect in advance. Find out who will be in the room, and what the room will be like. Other students currently at the school are a good source for this information. I know one young man who auditioned at Curtis on bass and did not realize until he got into the room that he would have Edgar Meyer's undivided attention for the next 30 or so minutes. (For the non-bass players, that would be kind of like auditioning for James Galway on flute, or Yo Yo Ma on cello.) You want to come to grips with that possibility before encountering it.

If nerves permit, get a good night's sleep before the audition. Eat a decent, but not overly filling breakfast on the day of the audition. Attend to personal hygiene and dress appropriately. Don't go overboard on scents or cosmetics. You want them to remember you for your playing, not for the outfit you wore. (Note: I have observed that vocalists, particularly females, tend to get really "done-up" in terms of outfits, hairstyles and makeup for their auditions. Perhaps this is expected and therefore necessary. You'd do far better asking someone else on this one.)

Some schools schedule a warm-up room and some just let you find an open practice room on your own. Some have everyone warming up together in one large room. Some schools want you to take tests in things like music theory, ear training, sight singing and keyboard skills while you are there. Make sure you know exactly what is expected and arrive early to sign in and get situated. Plan to stay late in case the judges want to hear you again or are simply running behind schedule.

While warming up, focus on your own playing and not anyone else's. That fellow in the next practice room who you think sounds like the next Joshua Bell may be auditioning for graduate school or a summer fellowship. It may just be your nerves talking and perhaps he is thinking the same thing about you. Either way, your job is now to do the best that YOU can and let the judges sort it out from there.

During the Audition: Take a deep breath or two before going through the door. Unless you have been instructed not to address the judges or they are situated behind a screen, look them straight in the eye, smile and say hello. Do whatever it takes to get ready to play efficiently but not in a rushed or paniced manner. Let them know when you are ready to begin. Sometimes they will ask you to play things in a specific order and sometimes they will ask you to pick the first piece. If the latter, start off with your best material. Very often, they will stop you before you finish a piece. In and of itself, that is neither good nor bad, it just means that they have heard what they wanted to hear from that piece and want to move on. Some judges like to turn the audition into a mini lesson. If so, go with the flow and do what they ask. When the audition is over, regardless of how you feel that it went, look them in the eye again, smile and thank them. Leave the room as you entered it, with your head held high and with a confident step.

After the audition: If you are the type to keep a journal, record your thoughts immediately and include everything you can remember. Everything will blur over the next few months and those impressions from the audition may eventually be important in deciding among offers in April. Write a short handwritten thank-you note to each judge. No matter how good or how bad you thought things went, put the experience behind you and start to focus on the next audition. Once you have gotten through the last one, a modest celebration is in order. You have earned it.

-Allmusic-

Bassdad, you are a real gift on this board. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and experience.

Seriously, do some schools actually do auditions behind screens? Like a real blind audition? Which schools (so we can avoid them LOL!)? For my son, his ease of communication with judges/people is always an asset, and the blind audition would be a bit of a detriment.

I knew blind auditions existed at the professional level, but never heard they were the way at the college audition level!

BassDad

I do not know of any colleges in particular that do blind auditions, but I wanted to allow for the possibility so that I would not be advising someone to break protocol should they ever run into that situation.

FluteMomLiz

IF you have 3 or 4 pieces that meet the audition requirements for 95% of the schools you intend to audition for. but one or two schools have odd requirements that force you to learn additional piece(s). Would you consider just dropping them? Or take them as late as possible to get that additional work accomplished after your other auditions? Just split your time and work as hard on the additional pieces? Or a better solution.

Any advice on pre-screening recordings of pieces that you will be required to play again live if you get passed the pre-screening?

How about the accompanied vs unaccompanied auditions. Some school supply a piano player, some do not(anyone travel with a piano player), some want you to play without the piano. How does this figure into audtion preparations?

BassDad

Now that I think about it, I remember a couple of blind auditions that daughter had for regional and all-state ensembles while in high school, and even for solos in her youth symphony. (Im sure the youth symphony judges knew who was who in the first ten seconds because they worked with those kids every week and knew their individual sounds. They just wanted to give them the experience.)

So blind auditions do indeed exist outside of professional circles.

ImperialZeppelin

As to the "odd" pieces, sometimes they are "negotiable." One school, that we had visited a few times and had discussed audition strategy with, had an odd piece that kind of snuck up on us until we realized it in December. D contacted professor and he said not to sweat it as they had already discussed what she was going to play and he wanted her to stick with that. Once again, never hurts to ask.

There is always the potential for a "surprise" piece too! D plays clarinet so THE standard is Mozart's Clarinet Concerto with a "you pick" the movement option pretty common. Her choice was the 3rd movement, but one school dictated the 2nd movement. So there was nervous Dad outside the audition listening to her play the 2nd movement. Suddenly she starts playing the 1st movement, something I knew she really hadn't practiced much so I was really scratching my head. Sounded good so I wasn't too concerned. When she got out and I asked what was going on she replied that one of the profs asked her about the 1st movement. She said she informed them that she wasn't very prepared, but she went ahead. Luckily, he stopped her about 2 measures before she would have stumbled upon an area she had never really practiced... I would assume that D managed the situation perfectly in that she did say she was far from adequately prepared, but went ahead and played it the best she could. A combination of candor and determination can't hurt...

All our auditions were unaccompanied and I can't think of a school that asks for a clarinet pre-audition recording, so I can't comment on either of those two areas.

BassDad

FluteMomLiz,

I would try to resolve the situation up front if at all possible. Many schools will accept a piece of similar difficulty in lieu of their own odd requirements, but you have to clear it well ahead of time with the department. If the school persists in requiring a piece that you know will not be useful elsewhere (and furthermore is likely to take away from the practice time you need on a piece you intend to use at all the other schools) then it may be time to reconsider whether you really want to apply to the odd school out. We used that information early in the process to help narrow the possibilities. Holding off on one school as late as possible is a risky strategy because both the students and the judges tend to get more and more burned out the later into audition season you go.

All of my daughter's auditions were unaccompanied and she did not make it through the pre-screening round at the only school that required it, so I can't offer any informed advice there.

BassDad

Hey Zep, were we separated at birth or what?

musicmomic

Just a note about vocal auditions -- the advice D received was to dress conservatively and to be well-groomed from head to toe. Choosing something comfortable is also important so that there is no constriction on the diaphragm. D chose a classic black dress, pearls, and moderate-hight heels. She always wore hose and closed-toe shoes. On more than one occasion, the faculty commented (positively) on her aesthetic presentation.

We saw a range of clothing but I do think it has an impact on the judging -- perhaps more in vocal that in instrumental auditions. Boys were typically in sweaters and trousers/dockers and leather shoes. We saw a few suits but that was not typical.

I agree about trying to be in the "middle" if you have a choice. At one of D's violin auditions, it was -17 (actual temp) and she was first. Her fingers were still very cold just from walking from the car to the conservatory. It wasn't ideal. It turned out ok but she would have preferred to have "warm" fingers for her audition!

ASW

This is wonderful information and will be really helpful, so thank you! One further question is whether most people play from memory or with their music? Also, at schools where specific pieces are not required, are you expected to provide the judges a copy of your pieces?

-Allmusic-

ASW, I have heard some folks say that playing from memory is not required. However, in checking websites, I have seen that it is required that pieces be memorized for certain schools (this is for piano). It's a heck of a big repertoire too.

PS How do you know what audition number you are? Do they say, "You are playing 7th", and you just assume that it is around 11:00?

bkb1958

Check individual school websites. Most list the audition requirements. To be perfectly honest, I don't recall a vocal audition where music was allowed. Everything was done from memory. This may not be the case w/instruments.