audition pieces for community band

[PaulMaybery]

Let me preface things here: Besides being a tubaist, I am a serious conductor who for the past 35+ years has worked with select groups of mostly professional musicians. From many years of experience I have a very good take when it comes to listening to new players. It usually boils down to "do they have the skill sets that I need for my groups?" There are many different types of players, from classical, jazz, broadway, chamber, solo etc, etc, etc. and various schools of playing within all those subcultures. It becomes a matter of matching the player with the appropriate skills in order to get the job done.

Now: It seems like most of the issues have been address and rather well. The important point for me - when I audition or inquire is the level and agenda of the band. Yes, some are rather competitive and have a preference for modern or traditional style of repertoire. I can think of a handful here in the greater Minneapolis area.

A wise conductor will be looking for certain skill sets, which will probably be obviously demonstrated in the first few moments of the audition. Rhythmic accuracy, technique, tone and intonation, general musicality (usually displayed in more legato playing) and a certain confidence or aggressiveness in your approach. Some might ask you to sightread a passage to get a feeling for how well you actually read. I suppose in cases that are not so competitive,the 'gauntlet' may no be so rigorous. But if you want in, you need to show them that you are the best candidate. Prepare, prepare & prepare. Then, relax, relax & relax, and then have fun playing the audition. Being tense and stressed never helped anyone. Talk to whoever is in charge of the audition well ahead of time and try to get a fix on what to expect and how much time will be allotted to you. Also try to be very well warmed up before hand and play into the room.

Etudes and solos, carefully chosen to showcase one's skills are a wise decision.

For tuba etudes I tend to like Blazevich Vol 1 & Bordogni. There is so much in them to demonstrate mature playing. Tyrrell is good, but they tend to be mostly receptive patterns.
Pick two that are contrasting in style and technicality.

For 'solos': Well that is a pretty open issue. So many to choose from - but they should be extremely well prepared. Yes. it could be (from my list of favorites) Air and Bouree, the Capuzzi Rondo, Beelzebub, The Carioca, Dave Uber's Jazz Rhapsody, or a movement from the Vaughan Williams.

What I have found with 'excerpts' is that most (not all) modern tuba (and even euphonium) band parts are no where near the level they were a couple of generations back. Granted much of the "meat and potatoes" were the transcriptions from orchestral music and marches. They required technique and strong chops.

I'm thinking of:
Russlan and Ludmilla
Marche Slave
Entry of the Gladiators
Die Meistersinger Prelude
Yes: the Chaconne from the Holst 1st Suite (for kicks prepare it an octave lower as well)

Then there are the "dog fights" from circus marches and galops.
Circus Bee
B & B's Favorite
Storming of El Caney
Storm and Sunshine

Sousa: Free Lance March.

Non of these are for the "faint of heart" (especially 'at tempo') but they have appeared on major service band auditions and would be suitable for 'competitive' community bands. The other issue is where to find these and other parts. Most are at the Chatfield Band Music Lending Library. Here is the link: http://chatfieldband.lib.mn.us" target="_blank

Good luck. ... and remember - music is to be enjoyed.

A rather wise conductor, Keith House, from Central Methodist once said: "relax, it all depends on you."

[The Big Ben]

The Vivaldi Allegro from Sonata No. 3, arranged by Ken Swanson is fun to work on and would impress the listeners. It's the last page in "Solo Sounds For Tuba" vol.1, published by Belwin. You should buy the book if you don't already have a copy.

https://app.box.com/s/2uljp7t2u95ehlr6fyb0eyg0as9imu2x

And here:

http://www.sheetmusicplus.com/title/sol ... ic/1436029" target="_blank

[Tom]

Just a story...

Several years ago I joined a "high level / semi-pro" 'community' wind ensemble (they called themselves that and had instrumentation much closer to that than a 'symphonic band')...anyway...

I had been corresponding with the music director about their need for a tuba player. I asked him about auditioning for the position and rather than setup a formal audition, he said that he'd prefer that I sent him a resume and then sat in with the band on one of their regular rehearsals.

I showed up early at the place I was told to be. I introduced myself to the music director and he had the librarian pull a folder for me to use. I took my seat and got setup as the rest of the band trickled in. As the clock ticked closer to the designated rehearsal start time, it became clear to me that neither of the other two tuba players that I knew regularly worked with the group weren't going to show up.

I checked out the music as the rehearsal was about to begin: Holst Second Suite, Lincolnshire Posy, Eternal Father Strong to Save (Claude T. Smith), Bernstein Symphony No. 1 arranged for band, and a number of other fairly substantial pieces.

For the next hour I played the parts with the band on my own. After an hour, we took a break and the other two tuba players walked in. The music director approached me at that time and said "nice job on your own - we have a place for you." The other two players just smiled...the whole thing was a setup! Sink or swim.

Although I've since left that group and moved to a different state due to my day job, that audition experience has always stuck with me. That music director didn't care AT ALL about if I could come in and rip off etudes, excerpts, or the Vaughan Williams or Gregson Concerti --- they ASSUMED I could do all of those things already and threw me into the deep end on day 1 - either I could accomplish the task at hand or I couldn't... and it wouldn't take long to find out.

Did he play a trick on me? Sort of, but I don't feel that I was taken advantage of. The music director's approach was probably the most accurate measure of how well I could actually contribute to that group vs. the countless other group auditions I've played over the years.

[happyroman]

How about this as an audition piece?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PTmfBTfY0AY" target="_blank