<p>This is my favorite thread for those starting out on this journey: <a href=“http://talk.qa.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/258796-so-you-want-to-be-music-major-one-family-s-experience-p1.html”>http://talk.qa.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/258796-so-you-want-to-be-music-major-one-family-s-experience-p1.html</a> Lots of great advice in the first posts from @BassDad (whom we miss!)</p>
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<p>If you don’t pass the pre-screening you won’t be invited to schedule an audition. </p>
<p>After the pre-screen results it gets interesting. We kept a spreadsheet of all of the dates for each school with all of the applications so that we could set up a schedule. Preferences were noted to optimize travel. We had a couple of plans set up. The results don’t come in at the same time so keeping dates open for those not in yet and adjusting on the fly are necessary. At least one school set the date for us and we had to request a change. Keeping an early one without a pre-screen can help. </p>
<p>It seems pretty overwhelming, to be honest. </p>
<p>And I do realize that if you don’t pass the pre-screening, you won’t have an audition, but upthread, it was mentioned that they were already scheduling travel for auditions, so I wondered how that can be if the pre-screening hasn’t been passed.</p>
<p>Question: Is it best to bring an accompanist for a concerto, or if the school doesn’t specify a concerto is necessary, is it better to just do unaccompanied stuff?</p>
<p>The non-conservatories have a wide variety of possible music combos.</p>
<p>For instance, can someone interpret what kind of rep would be appropriate should my son decide to apply to Stanford and do the live audition? It’s supposed to be only 10 minutes, but I’m really confused about if it should include a whole concerto or not. Help!</p>
<p>I guess that’s my other question: Does your student prepare like 20 or 30 minutes of rep and then choose from it depending on the school?</p>
<p>I’ve looked at bassdad’s thread before, but man, it’s a lot to digest. I’ll read through it again, though.</p>
<p>Not feeling prepared in the least.</p>
<p>@Sbjdorlo, not all schools require prescreens. </p>
<p>Schools are pretty specific on their sites about what they require for auditions and none of the schools my son auditioned for wanted accomp. for live auditions for cellists. He did use accomp. for prescreen as it was requested but check the requirements as it may be different from school to school. I seem to remember it was a movement of concerto that my son played. The teacher should be looking at requirements with the student and making a clear chart of what student will play for each. The prescreens are due early and most told us pretty quickly. I think Eastman took the most time to tell us but we still had plenty of time to make airline reservations for all other schools. Keep a chart. It will help. </p>
<p>Yes, I need to make a chart. Thank you!!</p>
<p>So, if they don’t want accompaniment, what does a cellist play? Just Bach, Popper, unaccompanied solo stuff? Or can you play parts of concertos, just doing them without the accompanist? The beginning? The cadenza?</p>
<p>My son’s teacher is so busy, though, so no, he’s not looking at schools, just giving us suggestions. I’m the one trying to figure out what each school wants. He teaches during the say as well as rehearses, and plays in the symphony at night. He’s done a lot for my son, but I am not expecting him to do all the research.</p>
<p>The schools list what they want the student to perform - both for the pre-screens and the auditions. You can find this information on their websites. For instance, here’s Bard’s requirements (of which I’m most familiar):
Prescreen: A movement from an unaccompanied Bach suite
A movement of a concerto
A work of your choice
Re accompanist for prescreens:
"With the obvious exception of works for solo instrument (e.g. Bach Partita, Kopprasch etude), repertoire for the prescreening submission should be accompanied. In addition, appropriate chamber music works may be used as the “work of your choice.” </p>
<p>Audition:
Two contrasting movements from an unaccompanied Bach suite
A movement of a standard concerto
A movement of a sonata
A work of your choice
And for accompanists for the auditions:
Accompanists are provided free of charge at all live auditions, and come from our Postgraduate Collaborative Piano Fellowship program.</p>
<p>For schools that don’t require piano accompaniment as part of a prescreen or live audition (in case of schools that encourage or require accompaniment, some will set up an accompanist and you send music along in advance and maybe have a brief rehearsal right before the audition, some will have an accompanist standing by and you just hand over the part at the start of your audition, and some will provide a list of accompanists in advance and you work out all rehearsal arrangements on your own – and there are probably additional permutations I’m not aware of), you would simply perform normally accompanied works without accompaniment. Every school is different, and sometimes the websites aren’t clear, in which case an email or phone call to the school is necessary and easy. When my daughter (violin) auditioned at BU, the accompanist wasn’t in the room and no one seemed to notice or care until my daughter asked about it. “0h, you want an accompanist?” one judge responded, and went out to find her. The accompanist came bustling in a little later and she seemed a bit grumpy–until she started playing, which she did immediately upon opening the music. My daughter said she was amazing and had never felt so supported. At another (well known) conservatory my daughter found her accompanist had apparently never received or known about one of the many pieces she had prepared–and it wasn’t the concerto; it was a sonata that she had never played before (corigliano), and not an easy piano part, so that turned out to be a no go, but it worked out fine At NU, we couldn’t resolve an audition conflict, so she had to use her prescreen video in its place; she basically shrugged and wrote NU off at that point, but that worked out fine, too. So stuff happens sometimes. Careful organization and a willingness to roll with the punches will get the job done. </p>
<p>No, you can’t expect your son’s teacher to do the research. However, they should help your son choose which pieces to prepare (where there is choice in the requirements). What we did was start a binder and put audition requirements or prescreening requirements (copied right from the website exactly) for each school on a separate page. Then my son took the binder to lessons and the teacher helped him decide what to prepare for each school (since the specific requirements for each school will vary from a little to a lot). Then after prescreening results came back we updated the binder with the live audition requirements. My son’s teacher even helped him decide which piece to start with for each school–our organization paid off in really helping my son feel prepared for the auditions.</p>
<p>sbjdorlo, I am not saying have teacher do research. All teachers are very busy. Have your son print out the cello rep requirements from each school’s site. Your son should be the one doing the research. I played secretary for my kid and helped him stay organized. I typed requirements up on one page and made a chart for teacher to look at with blank spaces for teacher to write in pencil what should be played. Each school should have specific requirements for each instrument and they are likely not the same for prescreen and live. They usually say something like something by Bach, movement of concerto, movement of contrasting work. Might have a sonata requirement or request a contemporary piece. I also kept track of how many letters of recom. were required and who would write them as different school request different things. School website should say if they want piano accomp. or not. I think usually live string auditions do not use pianists but I maybe be wrong. If it does not say on website, email the school and ask. My son auditioned on both cello and composition and it was very confusing to keep it all straight. The chart was very important to us to keep it all organized. Son only applied to schools with auditions so I do not know anything about supplements to regular college auditions. I know in helping both my kids with camp auditions that requirements can really vary and my violin son needed to record his concerto for summer camps twice, once with piano and once without. I do not remember if the prescreens also had this requirement but I do know cello kid recorded at least some of prescreens with piano and did all auditions without. If you can go to a music college fair go. For example Eastman hosts one each Nov. but I know events like this happen at locations throughout the country. Good luck. </p>
<p>D’s cello teacher recommended Lawrence, Hartt, and Ithaca as safeties 2 years ago. Also looked at DePaul and Wisconsin-Madison; South Carolina-Columbia’s cello teacher was a former ASTA President, I think. Could check out Maryland-College Park, UNC Chapel Hill, Stony Brook and UT-Austin (strong music depts. but may be better for graduate level.) Rice and Bard are as competitive as IU and the conservatories; what about McGill or Toronto?</p>
<p>D’s at Emory (they have a BA program) and although she’s not a music major, studies with the Asst. Principal of Atlanta Symphony, whom she likes very much. </p>
<p>Elizabeth Simkin at Ithaca College is a wonderful cello teacher. Orchestra conductor is also terrific there.</p>