Auditions

[Tubainsauga]

I have a question to everyone here who has experience in orchestral auditions. I will be preparing for 2 or more auditions soon and I was wondering if anyone had any words of wisdom about several exceprts that I will be auditioning with. I have the Gene Pokorny excerpt CD.

For the TSYO
Shostakovich Symphony #10 1st (34-37) and 2nd (77-79) movements
Prokofiev Symphony #5 1st movement (3-6)
Hungarian March (4-5)
Der Meistersinger
Brahms Symphony #2 Allegro con Spirito (O to the end)

For the NYOC
Prokofiev Symphony #5
Bruckner Symphony #7
Respighi Fountains of Rome
Berlioz Hungarian March
Berlioz King Lear
Wagner The Ride of the Valkyries
Wagner Meistersinger Prelude

I know there are some duplicates, but I figured I'd list then as written. If anyone has any words of wisdom they'd like to share that would be greatly appreciated. Also, I need a "slow movement of a sonata, concerto or piece of your(my) choice" Any reccomendations?

Thank you very much.[/b]

[WoodSheddin]

Shoot for at LEAST 4 hrs/day. Hit the fundementals first thing in the morning. Use the metronome, tuner, and recording device to keep things in check. Be sure to play through EVERY require tune EVERY day.

[UDELBR]

Sean's right on track. At the end of the daily excerpt practice session, I'd play the list down straight with the recorder on. I'd only listen to the recording later that day, when I could be more objective and was able to listen more openly.

[phoenix]

What about the Berlioz Symphony Fantastique excerpt?

[MaryAnn]

Sean's right on track. At the end of the daily excerpt practice session, I'd play the list down straight with the recorder on. I'd only listen to the recording later that day, when I could be more objective and was able to listen more openly.

Uh huh....I'd call it Extreme Critical Listening. Compare yourself to the excerpt CD; compare the little stuff, starts and ends of notes, dynamic changes, exquisite rhythm, impeccable intonation. If you can get close to the CD....

MA

[WoodSheddin]

Shoot for at LEAST 4 hrs/day. Hit the fundementals first thing in the morning. Use the metronome, tuner, and recording device to keep things in check. Be sure to play through EVERY require tune EVERY day.

Of the four hours, How much should be spent on the excerpts?

4 hours is a target minimum. Some days you might hit 2.5. Some days you might get 5.5hrs. Just aim for 4 hrs spread over 4-6 practice sessions/day. Don't force 2hr blocks on yourself or your practice time might become horribly inefficient. Shorter blocks spread throughout the day allows you to always practice on a fresh face. Keep a journal and log all your practice sessions to keep yourself honest.

As far as the content of the practice goes. That will depend on how your mind works. For me, and most people I know, working fundementals first thing in the morning is a great way to start the day. Long tones, slow intervals, scales, simple melodies, etc. This helps to solidify good sound, intonation, and embouchure form. This carries over to the other practice sessions that day.

Sometimes I might even begin the second practice session with some more fundementals, then start into the solo or excerpts. I like to spend the next 2-3 practice sessions working intenselly on the slurps. Earmark 15 minutes/excerpt. This ensures that you neither spend too much time on one slurp or spend too little time on a slurp which you believe is easy or already perfect. Most auditions I have played at which I did poorly were due to the "easy" excerpts biting me in the ***.

Earmarking 15 minutes/slurp also helps to keep things moving along and releaves boredom. You are not spending 1 hour working on the Ride. One hour on the Ride can cause you to get overcritical, and the excerpt to become stale. Keep moving along. 15 minutes/excerpt also helps to ensure that EVERY excerpt gets worked on. If you do not have time to fit EVERY excerpt in EVERY day then pick up where you left off the next day.

For solo preparation, use the same idea. 15 minutes/page or half page will ensure you both hit everything and do not overlook the "easy" parts.

Spend a good amount of time with a metronome. Pick a tempo for each excerpt which makes sense and write that number on the slurp. Set the metronome to that tempo everytime, and stick to it. This will come in handy when the nerves kick in behind that curtain and you need to depend on autopilot.

Most important of all. After a couple of weeks on the slurps, you should have the technical challenges mastered. Keep using the metronome, but spend more and more time focussing on interpretation and telling a story with every tune. No one ever gets hired in any full time playing job who is boring to listen to. If you are not intimatelly familiar which every phrase, dynamic, color, tempo change, etc of the tune, then those professional musicians listening to you will hear it. Nothing is hidden. 500 people can show up. No one will get hired unless they can both show mastery of the instrument AND mastery of the music.

[WoodSheddin]

Now, not that I have experience in this area, but I think that four hours a day is insane.

too little?

[Mudman]

Now, not that I have experience in this area, but I think that four hours a day is insane.

Most of my brass-playing friends who have won jobs went through an intense period of practice in their lives. A common figure that gets tossed around is five hours of face time a day for an extended period of time. When I was teaching college in a temporary position that was due to expire at the end of the year, I taught and played all day long and then practiced three to five hours in addition. It was literally practice or look for another line of employment. It worked. I managed to win teaching offers at a couple of universities--there is nothing like the fear of unemployment to give one some extra motivation.

If you want a full-time playing gig, you might want to make it a full-time job getting ready for the audition.

I would be curious to know how much daily playing somebody like Alan Baer did in the time leading up to his NY audition.

As was mentioned earlier, short sessions help you stay focused on small tasks. It is easy to measure progress on a small section of music. 15-20 minutes can be a perfect session.

The tape recorder is one of the best tools for audition preparation because you can rest your chops while critically listening to the playback.
(I hate/love using tape recorders because they are such harsh listeners.)

[Roger Lewis]

Practice the excepts in the worst possible order as well. One audition had a loud and low piece first, then a high and loud piece second then soft in the mid-register third. Many people stepped all over the third piece because they did not expect to have to do that. I recommend that you shuffle the order of your practicing and maintain a random feel to the order of the excerpts. If there is a problem area, work on them in a specific order to over come this problem.

[tubacdk]

Practice the excepts in the worst possible order as well. One audition had a loud and low piece first, then a high and loud piece second then soft in the mid-register third. Many people stepped all over the third piece because they did not expect to have to do that. I recommend that you shuffle the order of your practicing and maintain a random feel to the order of the excerpts. If there is a problem area, work on them in a specific order to over come this problem.

flashcards!!!

[winston]

.

[MartyNeilan]

Hence the reason I swallowed my pride and started a music ed degree several years ago. I like teaching and H.S age kids anyway, so it really wasn't too much of a compromise.

[RyanSchultz]

Well considering I haven't reached University, and will only be applying for Youth Orchestras in the very near future ... four hours seems like too much to me. I've heard that during University, you play ALL the time and so expect that then, but should I be building up to this even two years before? I'm actually worried about my social life now (which is surprising since I don't really have one).

Chriss Olka used to go home from high school and practice all night. I played sports. He has the symphony job; I have the ballet job. It is never too early to start your serious preparation.

[WoodSheddin]

Well considering I haven't reached University, and will only be applying for Youth Orchestras in the very near future ... four hours seems like too much to me. I've heard that during University, you play ALL the time and so expect that then, but should I be building up to this even two years before? I'm actually worried about my social life now (which is surprising since I don't really have one).

You will have LOTS more free time once you land a job. Think of it as an investment. Give up 3-5 solid years of your life preparing harder than every other tubist in the country for most jobs and harder than any other tubist on this planet for higher profile jobs, and then you might get payed to play fulltime.

If you really want to be enlightenned as to the payback for all the hard work, ask a professional tubist in a major ensemble how many hours/week (s)he spend at "work". There is PLENTY of free time after getting the gig.

Prepare at only 95% for the same 4-5 years and you will likely end up working 40+ hrs/week at a job which is nowhere near your dream's ideal.

It is worth it.

[SFAtuba]

I agree with this, but even if I am having a good day I will still take a break from the excerpts, so I can play an old solo, or just something that I enjoy. It just lets my mind take a break for a few minutes, and when I get back to the serious stuff I can concentrate better.