<p>Most of the schools our dtr. is looking at have listed as their audition requirement "a concerto from the standard repertoire". There appear to be one or two concertos that a lot of applicants do, but our dtr. really loves a less commonly played oboe concerto. Her teacher has not given her a yes or no yet about doing it, but said he wonders if it would hurt her chances. She is trying to contact the teachers at some of the schools she is applying to so she can ask them, but with it being summer, it's hard to get hold of them.</p>
<p>Do you have any thoughts on playing something that she loves versus playing something more traditional that she doesn't feel excited about? The rest of her audition pieces (sonatas, etudes, etc) will be the more typical pieces.</p>
<p>My D is a violinist. She hasn't done college auditions yet, but lots of auditions for youth orchestras, competitive summer programs, etc. From what I've learned from her teachers, the key thing to consider here is, what is "standard"? </p>
<p>There are certainly advantages to standing out a little from everyone who will trot out the same old warhorses, especially if your D's musicality and love for the piece comes through in her performance. But make sure that it's a piece at the appropriate level of difficulty, and try to determine (perhaps with her teacher's help or if she is able to connect with the teachers at the schools) if the adjudicators will be familiar with it and therefore able to assess her performance well.</p>
<p>(A year ago, in a field of seven auditioning, a boy in my D's orchestra won the concerto competition playing the "Butterfly Lovers Concerto" -- everyone else was playing the Bruch Violin Concerto.)</p>
<p>In any case, it IS important to get a read from the audition office just how much leeway they allow in students' choice of rep. The guidelines may be worded the same but some might actually be intepreted more narrowly -- or more broadly -- than others.</p>
<p>We are always told and we have asked a ton of professors, that play a piece that you will sound best on. If you daughter loves the piece she will probably be at her best playing it. So if it is of a difficulty level that is appropriate I would say go for it. One thing they hate is hearing the same piece over and over all day so staying away from the most popular pieces has advantages. </p>
<p>Then again if it is so bizarre a piece none of them has ever heard it before it could be a problem. Her teacher should know. There are tons of choices for Oboe. If its something that makes the S & E lists from various states and of the proper difficulty level it should be fine.</p>
<p>Contact a few of the professors at the prospective schools and ask if they would consider the piece your daughter would like to play acceptable for an audition.</p>
<p>I wouldn't worry too much about it if the rest of her audition is pretty standard. As long as the piece is not considered too elementary, she should be fine. They want to see how well she plays and are not as concerned with exact repertoire.</p>
<p>As an oboist, I have gone through the audition process this past year. If your daughter is applying to the top conservatories it might be safer to choose a concerto that is standard as the standard works do show off technical and musical proficiency very well. However, she needs to find a work she loves. If she doesn't enjoy working on a piece for her auditions she won't play it as well. When I was choosing all of my repetoire me teacher asked me each time if I enjoyed playing it. Maybe she can look at the standard concertos and choose which one she most enjoys. You can reach me privately to tell me what the specific concerto is so I might better understand what direction she's going in. Hope I could be of help. Good luck</p>
<p>For oboe, most of the schools just say "a concerto from the standard repertoire". Our daughter has sent emails out to the professors she is applying to, but it is hard to get responses from them at this time of year. She is not wanting to wait too long if she has to change, esp. since school starts in a week here : ( Thanks for the input.</p>