Audition Tips...

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Post by sc_curtis »

TubaBluba wrote:Also i'd just like to know what your all-state audition music in texas is.Brian
2006-2007 TMEA (Texas) All-State Audition Music consists of three etudes and NO scales. This year's etudes are found in the 2nd Blazhevitch book, 70 Studies, vol. 2, and are numbers 45, 51, and 50.

This music is used for the preliminary rounds (district and region level), and also at the next level, Area. Area is the level that determines who places in All-State.

Once a student advances past Area (means they made State), there is one more audition in February to determine placement in the All-State groups. The music changes to usually include at least one of the etudes, as well as band and orchestral excerpts of what the All-State groups will be performing in February.

Once auditions are complete, students choose their group, starting with the top (2 orchestras and 2 bands). The orchestras are usually picked quickly within the first five (one in each), then the rest are distributed amongst the Symphonic and Concert bands.

Some of the things may have changed since I was in HS, but at least this was how it was done when I did it!
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Post by TubaRay »

bloke wrote:
NO scales.
I guess I should have seen this coming:

1/ Professional auditions usually do not include scales...and today's kids are the same as adults...right?

2/ Since "spelling" is no longer considered a critical nor important part of the study of languages, why should "scales" be considered an important part of the study of music?
And Texas kids have been so good for a very long time, now. They no longer need scales OR sightreading to be included in the audition process. I realize not all states have such awesome players, but in Texas we discovered that we didn't need scales and sightreading some 25+ years ago. Amazing, isn't it? :oops: :cry:
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Post by passion4tuba »

We do have to play scales, just not at the area and state level.. :?: is it different in other states? why the diss?

I kno all my major scales and about 6 minor ones, i know i am by no means amazing in the grand scheme of things, and i'm still not any where where i need to be if i want to be successful in the professional world... i just dont want people thinking i'm some cocky teenager
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Post by tubaguy9 »

passion4tuba wrote:We do have to play scales, just not at the area and state level.. :?: is it different in other states? why the diss?

I kno all my major scales and about 6 minor ones, i know i am by no means amazing in the grand scheme of things, and i'm still not any where where i need to be if i want to be successful in the professional world... i just dont want people thinking i'm some cocky teenager
Are you in High School, or Junior High? I'm from NE, and I knew all 60 by the end of my 8th grade year...
I think I might end up as a grumpy old man when I get old...
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Post by EQueg »

a couple of suggestions that i did'nt see: play through the first few bars of each excercise during the couple of days before the audition for tempo and consistancy, this does not mean don't run them, you should, just in another part of your routine.

also find some people it doesn't really matter who, and play the audition for them. have them pick the exerpts and then play it as you would for the audition. this will help with nerves(generally playing in front of friends is more nerve wracking than some random auditioner). also get the thoughts of the people who listened musician or not, you can never tell who might be listening. in all-state type situations they generally find a person of your instrument to judge. but you can't count on that and certainly in pro auditions you will almost never be playing for a tuba player so getting the interpretations of someone who's not neccesarily familiar with your instrument can be helpfull(be very carefull when taking their suggestions but listen to them none the less)

oh yeah...might be to late for this to be really helpfull at this point but record yourself as often as possible, it's essential to get an idea of whats coming out of the bell and what you hear is never what the audience hears

hope some of that made sense and good luck
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Post by Mike Finn »

tubaguy9 wrote:
passion4tuba wrote:We do have to play scales, just not at the area and state level.. :?: is it different in other states? why the diss?

I kno all my major scales and about 6 minor ones, i know i am by no means amazing in the grand scheme of things, and i'm still not any where where i need to be if i want to be successful in the professional world... i just dont want people thinking i'm some cocky teenager
Are you in High School, or Junior High? I'm from NE, and I knew all 60 by the end of my 8th grade year...
I'm from PA, and didn't even know there were 60 scales! I mean, I guess if you count the Algerian, Byzantine, Balinese, Raga Hanumat Todi, Hungarian Gypsy Persian, Neopolitan minor, Hindustan, Chinese Mongolian, Marva Raga, Japanese Ichikotsucho, (and Taishikicho, Hyojo, Kumoijoshi...), Mohammedan, Jewish Ahaba Rabba, Spanish Gypsy, Enigmatic, Arabian Major, the altered scales the jazzers use, and of course the "church modes"...
OK, in all seriousness, kudos to you Tubaguy9 for knowing your scales. I hated them until I realised how important they really are, now I play them every time I pick up my horn. It's nice to see young musicians growing up with an appreciation of the fundamentals.
Passion4tuba, if you know your major scale in all 12 keys, you know the minors too! I'f you're playing a Bb major scale, for instance, just back up two notes, down to a G, and play from G to G with the same notes as Bb major: that's G minor. They're called relative keys; same notes (same key signature) just a different starting pitch. Of course, that's the natural minor, for the melodic and harmonic minors you need to make the appropriate changes, but it's a start. To find the other relative keys, just start your minor scale on the 6th note of any major scale. Another way of thinking about minors is with Parallel keys (instead of relative keys) which just means you start the scale on the same pitch, but the major and minor scales have different notes in them. Specifically, the minor scale has three lowered notes, the 3rd, 6th, and 7th scale degrees. So a C major with no sharps or flats, becomes a c minor when you add three flats to the key signature.

Forgive me if you already knew the scale stuff, I don't know how much theory they teach in school these days, or if they just drill the notes. To me, it has always helped to see connections, hopefully this will be helpful to someone else in a small way...
Best of luck on the audition!
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Post by tubatooter1940 »

As an ear player, (it's so hard to get both ears on the tuba at the same time) scale knowledge is all that saves me when playing with guitarists or harmonica players who are too cheap to buy twelve.
Do NOT bring a beer to an audition and you might want to do something about that breath. :shock:
P.S. No cussin' either. :roll:
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Post by passion4tuba »

we dont even have music theory classes* at my highschool... :(
i can play all the minor scales, but not all of them by heart, but if one was to say for example "d minor, 1 flat" i could play that since i know how major minor scales operate on a basic level. Also, Bloke I didn't think the comment by Doc was about me personally, just about texas music students in genneral, and since i'm in that category i posed that question.






[size=0]**also, the by the WIB thread, do you mean the question i posed about racism in the music world? The thread took it somewhere else but i was asking a simple question that i had a right to ask, duces :roll: [/size]
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Post by tubaguy9 »

Mike Finn wrote:
tubaguy9 wrote:
passion4tuba wrote:We do have to play scales, just not at the area and state level.. :?: is it different in other states? why the diss?

I kno all my major scales and about 6 minor ones, i know i am by no means amazing in the grand scheme of things, and i'm still not any where where i need to be if i want to be successful in the professional world... i just dont want people thinking i'm some cocky teenager
Are you in High School, or Junior High? I'm from NE, and I knew all 60 by the end of my 8th grade year...
I'm from PA, and didn't even know there were 60 scales! I mean, I guess if you count the Algerian, Byzantine, Balinese, Raga Hanumat Todi, Hungarian Gypsy Persian, Neopolitan minor, Hindustan, Chinese Mongolian, Marva Raga, Japanese Ichikotsucho, (and Taishikicho, Hyojo, Kumoijoshi...), Mohammedan, Jewish Ahaba Rabba, Spanish Gypsy, Enigmatic, Arabian Major, the altered scales the jazzers use, and of course the "church modes"...
OK, in all seriousness, kudos to you Tubaguy9 for knowing your scales. I hated them until I realised how important they really are, now I play them every time I pick up my horn. It's nice to see young musicians growing up with an appreciation of the fundamentals.
Passion4tuba, if you know your major scale in all 12 keys, you know the minors too! I'f you're playing a Bb major scale, for instance, just back up two notes, down to a G, and play from G to G with the same notes as Bb major: that's G minor. They're called relative keys; same notes (same key signature) just a different starting pitch. Of course, that's the natural minor, for the melodic and harmonic minors you need to make the appropriate changes, but it's a start. To find the other relative keys, just start your minor scale on the 6th note of any major scale. Another way of thinking about minors is with Parallel keys (instead of relative keys) which just means you start the scale on the same pitch, but the major and minor scales have different notes in them. Specifically, the minor scale has three lowered notes, the 3rd, 6th, and 7th scale degrees. So a C major with no sharps or flats, becomes a c minor when you add three flats to the key signature.

Forgive me if you already knew the scale stuff, I don't know how much theory they teach in school these days, or if they just drill the notes. To me, it has always helped to see connections, hopefully this will be helpful to someone else in a small way...
Best of luck on the audition!
MF
Yeah...There's the 15 majors...then 15 Natural minors...then 15 Harmonic Minors...then 15 Melodic minors make 60 scales, if my math is right, 4 types, times 15 scales is 60 :shock:

Right now, from my Sophmore year, I learned 4 of the blues scales...so that means I know near 64 scales...

If that weren't enough, I'm learning the Ionian, Dorian, Phryggian, Lydian, Mixolydian, Aolean, and well, that's them...so that could say that I know how many...WOW! :shock: I know 184 scales...When I learn the rest of the Blues, I'll know 192 scales...Aren't those some numbers?...

Oh...I just noticed...Sorry about seeming like a braggart...
I think I might end up as a grumpy old man when I get old...
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Post by sc_curtis »

tubaguy9 wrote:...I'm learning the Ionian, Dorian, Phryggian, Lydian, Mixolydian, Aolean, and well, that's them...so that could say that I know how many...WOW! :shock: I know 184 scales...When I learn the rest of the Blues, I'll know 192 scales...Aren't those some numbers?...
Don't count those again, they are fancy names for major and minor.
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Post by Allen »

If you really are interested in scales, check out Nicholas Slonimsky's "Thesaurus of Scales and Melodic Patterns."

http://www.amazon.com/Thesaurus-Scales- ... F8&s=books

In this book you will find over 1300 scales!

Slonimsky was an amazing musicologist and scholar. Years ago, he did a regular radio broadcast in the Boston area regarding the week's Boston Symphony Orchestra program. His Russian-accented English was always witty, and sometimes hilarious. He claimed that he had learned English exclusively from the study of Gilbert & Sullivan.

Cheers,
Allen
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Post by tubaguy9 »

Doc wrote:
tubaguy9 wrote:
Yeah...There's the 15 majors...then 15 Natural minors...then 15 Harmonic Minors...then 15 Melodic minors make 60 scales, if my math is right, 4 types, times 15 scales is 60 :shock:
15 majors?

Do we not use the 12 tone system anymore? 3 standard minors for each major? All that = 48? Did I misunderstand what you were saying?

Doc (noting that modes and oddball minors are not designated as "standard" scales, despite being a fan of people learning all they can)
No, really you're right, but it's just sort of fun to say a big 15 rather than 12...
I think I might end up as a grumpy old man when I get old...
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Post by tubaguy9 »

Doc wrote:
tubaguy9 wrote: No, really you're right, but it's just sort of fun to say a big 15 rather than 12...
I hear ya. It's fun to imagine bigger and better.

Doc
See? YOU DO UNDERSTAND!!! :lol:
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Post by Steve Marcus »

There are three kinds of musicians: those who can count, and those who can't...
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Post by passion4tuba »

Can it not just be said in English?
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Post by SplatterTone »

I think I'm going to get some really geeky ones with the old-lady-chain
And the rhinestones. Don't forget the rhinestones a la 1950/60s and Farside cartoons.
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Post by passion4tuba »

richland tuba, my audtions are in tyler, but i'll see you at state hopefully.
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Post by tubaguy9 »

the elephant wrote:
Doc wrote:12 majors + 36 minors = 48. Hmm... Apparently not. And don't ask me to spell anything either.
I teach 12 chromatic as well.

ALL scales aid in reading, and chromatic runs do not always start and end on Bb. There is a chromatic scale for each of our 12 tones, and everyone should practice running from A to A and Db to Db, etc. quickly and cleanly, in all registers, because the chromatic scale was not invented for contests to show how low and high you can play. It is a part of our language as much as any major or minor scale.

He also might be talking about the Blues scale, whole tone, octotonic or pentatonic, or whatever idea his teacher put into his head to give him the seemingly arbitrary number of 60.

There are 48 major and minor scales. But there are many, many more forms of Western scales out there, each with 12 tonal centers, and each of some use to the performer.
Well, for the 60, three of the majors count as 2 scales...
Db=C#,
Cb=B
Gb=F#...
so, therefore, 15 majors...making their minor counterparts
Bb=A#,
Ab=G#
Eb=D#...
That's what I'm meaning...
I think I might end up as a grumpy old man when I get old...
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Post by tubaguy9 »

Doc wrote:
the elephant wrote:
Doc wrote:12 majors + 36 minors = 48. Hmm... Apparently not. And don't ask me to spell anything either.
I teach 12 chromatic as well.

ALL scales aid in reading, and chromatic runs do not always start and end on Bb. There is a chromatic scale for each of our 12 tones, and everyone should practice running from A to A and Db to Db, etc. quickly and cleanly, in all registers, because the chromatic scale was not invented for contests to show how low and high you can play. It is a part of our language as much as any major or minor scale.

He also might be talking about the Blues scale, whole tone, octotonic or pentatonic, or whatever idea his teacher put into his head to give him the seemingly arbitrary number of 60.

There are 48 major and minor scales. But there are many, many more forms of Western scales out there, each with 12 tonal centers, and each of some use to the performer.
I wrote:Do we not use the 12 tone system anymore? 3 standard minors for each major? All that = 48? Did I misunderstand what you were saying?
No argument there, according to my original wording.
I also wrote:Doc (noting that modes and oddball minors are not designated as "standard" scales, despite being a fan of people learning all they can)


I didn't see where I was off from your assertions, based on my original text. Can I jump up and down now and shout, "King's X, King's X?"

:P :P :P

Oh yeah...lemme find the sheet that says the pattern for blues scales: okay, this is based upon the major scale:
Root, b3rd, 4th, #4th, 5th, and b7th...
See? It's not made up...
NOW LEARN EM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
(or die)
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Post by MaryAnn »

Doc wrote:Sounds great. I've already sprung cork sandals, shorts, and black crew socks on them. My kids are still young, and they couldn't believe I was going to town like that. Positively thrilling! :lol: Almost as fun as blaming a silent fart on them in the checkout line. :twisted:
HA! I used to do that to my mother when I was in my 20's. She was always really hung up on appearance, and when I was visiting I'd go out to the store wearing plaid shorts and a patterned shirt and black socks just to get the unavoidable bug-eyed comment from her. It's probably much more painful for your kids though; you really should show a little mercy. Heaven knows what they will do for revenge when they are teenagers....

MA
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