As auditions will be starting within the next few weeks, I was wondering what the audition spaces are like? All I’m going off of in my mind is what I’ve seen in movies, lol! Does the audition typically take place in a classroom? In a hall of some sort? How many people are typically there? As the parent, I wait out in the hallway, right? Can’t wait to hear responses from some people who have gone through the audition process with their musician(s).
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We only went to four flute auditions with our D23, one she attended on her own - our state flagship SOM at UGA (she played for a whole woodwind faculty there, but I do not know other details), another was an online live audition (USC one, it overlapped with the Northwestern audition, same date, so had to be done from a hotel room - I was hiding in the bathroom for 10 min., that was the closest I got to an audition, lol) and a couple of “auditions” were done via submitted recordings (NYU, MSM, BU):
- Vanderbilt - we waited in the parent waiting space/lounge, while our kid was taken into a warm up space and later to an audition space by volunteer students - far enough, different floor, that we did not hear her. I think it was a woodwind panel she played for, five people. Nice coffee truck outside of SOM building - they had good stuff.
- NEC - escorted our kid to a warmup room, stayed outside while she warmed up, walked with her to an audition part of the building and waited in the hall during her audition, kinda far away, but we could still hear her play, she performed for all three flute professors in a panel in a large(r) classroom where audition took place.
- Rice - escorted our kid to a warmup room and stayed right outside her audition room - again, just a very large classroom, one flute professor listened to her.
- Northwestern - escorted her to a warm up room, waited outside, went together to a family waiting area, they had food and refreshments served for waiting parents, which was so nice and thoughtful of administration! No panel - flute studio professor.
What instrument does your kid play though? I would guess it could be a totally different experience and space for piano/voice and other instrument groups.
Hope it helps! Good luck!
Oh, things to have handy: handwarmers - she had battery powered ones, lots of fluids/drinks, always bananas, healthy light snackage, noise cancelling headphones, and super comfortable, but very put-together outfits, get extra pair of shoes for your kid to change into, if it makes them more relaxed - important for auditions in the north.
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I had 2 kids go through the process.
Absolutely no parents in audition rooms in our experience. I think following your kid’s lead is fine. But my kid would peel off, often for an hour or 2 to find a practice room, maybe chat with students, work out some nerves, and I would just go find a place to hang out, go for a walk, get a coffee, knit, etc. She would find her audition room 15-20 minutes early and wait. I was more nervous than them, they were independant and stoic. So I didn’t want to be taking up space with other nervous students and parents. That worked best for us.
For my kids, some auditions were in classrooms, some were in ensemble rooms, and a couple were in large performance spaces. My daughter auditioned on the stage of the opera hall at the school she is now attending.
There is usual a schedule of events for audition day. There may be info sessions, student panel, various tours, FA, study abroad, housing, scheduled meals and breaks, etc. Some locations had parent specific sessions to attend.
We found it helpful to plan food, snacks, water bottles, possible clothing swap if we were on the road after the audition, maybe a shoe swap for walking tours after an audition, etc. Just generally planning the day out ahead of time.
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I think I saw in another thread that the OP’s kid is a violist. I think in general, the classical instrumental auditions are fairly similar to the scenarios posted above.
What may vary more is the way your particular student chooses to approach the audition process.
In my opinion, this is really the most important role a parent can play during auditions.
Some kids like a parent nearby, some need their own space. I agree that our musicians seem to handle the process, the pressure, the nerves far better than we do.
My son opted to go to all of his auditions without a parent. 6 auditions in 5 different weekends all with flights, trains and overnight stays in cities he had never been to before. He liked the feeling of being by himself as it gave him more confidence. I was truly amazed at what a 17 year old could manage. He not only had great auditions and acceptances, but he learned so much along the way.
The audition process is such a challenging time in their lives. (And ours as parents!) But hopefully it is also a time of excitement and growth for your musician. For many of them, auditions will be part of their lives beyond school. And this is the time for them to lead the way. 
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Violist? My son auditioned last year at U Michigan, Rice, JHU, and Northwestern, all in-person. If your student is auditioning at any of these schools I can ask him for more details. I basically dropped him off at the curb, and picked him up several hours later. He had friends at all these schools.
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Yes, my son is a violist! Gearing up for no free weekends until March with auditions, all-state, and solo ensemble competitions coming up. He will be auditioning at CCM, UIUC, Mead-Witter (virtual,) Butler, Michigan, Jacobs, and Ball State. For other things we’ve done in the past, he likes me there, but I typically do my own thing while he navigates whatever the activity is, so I’m thinking that’s how this will go as well. It humbles me when I see how responsible he has become, but I guess that’s what we all work for, right?
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That’s a lot! He will have a very hard time choosing later which ones to say no to 
At U Michigan, my son said that there’s a big check-in table in the lobby of SMTD. It was audition day for many different majors so lots of students. There were seats in the lobby for waiting parents.
There were practice rooms. His audition was in a classroom. Two adults were there, one was the professor whose studio he was applying to.
There were group tours for applicants after audition, not sure if it was on scheduled time or whenever there were enough participants. My son didn’t go on the tour. I guess this kind of tour would be standard practice everywhere.
He waited until all violists were done then they all went to lunch with the professor and some current students, followed by a studio lesson (current students and applicants all attending). Not sure if it was a regular studio lesson or an additional one. Also not sure if the group lunch was regular practice. He was friend with two (then) current students and another applicant so it could be them hanging out then turned into group lunch. During auditions at the other universities he only went to lunch with his friends, not the entire studio.
I dropped him off and went to meet with my friends, then explored Ann Arbor and U Michigan campus. When I went back to pick him up, we explored the SMTD building.
There was a metered parking lot right in front of SMTD. I didn’t pay attention to how full it was when I dropped him off. When I picked him up in the afternoon there were plenty of spaces. We flew home that evening.
I hope this information is useful 
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There is quite a lot of variety in auditions. My son auditioned last year on violin, but not at any of the schools on your list. (I also have a younger violist!) At most auditions, he went into the building himself without a parent and handled everything on his own. I think a couple had parent meetings or other things parents could do. Parents definitely aren’t in the audition room!
Audition rooms varied from a classroom to a gorgeous hall and everything in between. My son found out ahead of time where each one would likely be in order to prepare a mock audition in that type of setting.
For string players, some schools require you to audition with an accompanist. Some make it optional. Some forbid it. This is definitely something to know in advance, because playing without an accompanist is a very different experience. You also need to figure out how to rehearse (if allowed) and arrange the accompanist.
For strings, at most schools there will be multiple teachers listening to the audition. Some are well-behaved; others not so much with talking and eating during auditions. Expect to deal with distraction. In most cases, it was in and out without much discussion other than name and repertoire.
Warmups can be problematic. At most schools they give you a private room but only for a short period of time. Some schools have a common warmup room. In one case, my son only got 10 minutes.
The last thing to know is that timing can be quite strange. Some schools require you to be available from 8am to 7pm, which makes things difficult with flights, though in both cases he was done early and flew standby home. Some give you an exact 10 or 15 minute slot ahead of time. Some don’t specify entirely – my son missed his flight home from Curtis when his final round audition ended up being scheduled at around 6pm, which we didn’t know until the day before.
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Every school had a different audition arrangement. My kid auditioned a long while ago, but I think some things are the same.
Does the audition typically take place in a classroom?
usually this was the case
In a hall of some sort?
Not that I recall.
How many people are typically there?
this varies by program. Sometimes there were two or three. Very often the audition was recorded as well.
As the parent, I wait out in the hallway, right?
this varies as well. At some schools there are actually info sessions for families. At others, we were invited to a breakfast reception (not kidding, and it was very nice). Most places had a place for parents to wait. I only waited in the hallway one time.
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Wanted to add, on topic of sample lessons and auditions: during our D23 audition visits, two different professors requested time for a “sample lesson/conversation” after the audition, both meetings were in the same day/next day timeframe and very informal, as well as complimentary. Offered as an opportunity “to get to know” applicant better. No indication was given if our kid passed the audition and no reference made to the audition decision.
She had previously scheduled and completed virtual paid sample lessons with both of these professors fall of 2022.
Be ready in case you are asked to “chat” or have these one on one opportunities with professors. My daughter says it was thrilling and very special. One of the professors asked us, parents, to join their conversation with D23 for the last 10-15 min of it.
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New question- should the musician send a thank you note afterwards like you do after a job interview? A thank you email? What’s the proper etiquette?
I’ll be interested to hear what others did. My son sent thank you emails after trial lessons. He did not correspond with professors/teachers after auditions.
In the cases where my son auditioned for a specific professor, he sent a thank you after the audition. When it was a whole panel of people, some who he didn’t even know, he did not.
Another question about attire, specifically for women strings (guessing it may be different for voice?)
My D thought it should be formal, like a dress she’d wear to play a concerto. I’m not so sure about that, but maybe?
Generally for classical instrumentalists, I have seen concert black. So for women, long black dress or dressy pants with either a formal black top or conservative blouse.
And this may be obvious, but make sure all clothing is very comfortable to play in. We have a dear friend who is one of the tiniest bassists I have met. When she auditioned years ago she had special “solo shoes” at the correct height to manage fingering near the bridge more easily. 
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Last year my son sent an email to the professor the day after his audition. He had trial lessons with all of them before so they had been in communication already.
For his first audition he wore khaki pants and polo shirt, then realized everyone else was in performance attire. He wore black dress shirt and black dress pants for the other three.
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Thank you! My bassist is average height but having the same height shoes as she’s used to is very important! So I’m guessing her fancy dress might be too fancy…
She can look up recitals on YouTube for each school and get an idea of what students wear. Know that this is what the panel is used to seeing with their students. For Curtis and Juilliard, for example, not much variation from concert black.
When I go see my son perform at his conservatory, I am always in awe of the gorgeous gowns and costumes that the opera singers wear.
And then I am so grateful that he is still wearing the same outfit as he embarks on his professional auditions that he wore as an 18 year old. 
It might not be flashy…but certainly more economical.
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I would say dress nicely, either concert black or nice dress/suit. We rarely saw girls in gowns like you would wear for a solo performance.
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Ty! That was the same advice we got from the teacher today… Standard concert black, no ball gowns.
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