I’m getting excited for you all! Can’t wait to start hearing about auditions! Break legs/toi toi toi!
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I guess there are several different routes to prescreens to be waived, I am more familiar with the instrumentalist/woodwind player path to that:
- If your sample lesson goes really well
- If you participated in the selective summer program affiliated with the certain school (think BU & BUTI Tanglewood)
- School of music’s faculty teaching there during summer festival - you are basically having a summer long sample lesson
- You are part of the NYO/NYO2 orchestra, NAfME band or orchestra
- Being a finalist or even semi-finalist of a prestigious competition, like YoungArts, for example
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Thank you! It’s so interesting–a world I’ve never been part of. We are just diving in.
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Hi there! I can’t find a thread I saw yesterday about how to dress for auditions. (I have searched.) The advice we’ve gotten from private teachers is to dress like yourself, in a way that will be comfortable and not add an element of discomfort. As my marathon coach used to say, “no new is good new”. I think it’s great advice, but I also wonder what we might see there. Are students wearing formal clothes?
My experience with the classical instrumental music crowd is the general rule of thumb is to dress as if you were performing in a chamber recital. Not a solo recital. Many wear all black or black slacks/skirt with a white or conservative dress shirt.
My son was advised by his private teacher to minimize anything that is a visual distraction. For my kid that meant a good haircut so he wasn’t brushing his hair out of his face between excerpts. Many suggest avoiding flashy jewelry, neon hair color and so on. You want the panel to listen to how you play and present yourself, not wonder why you chose a particular accessory. And a reminder that your audition may be on a stage, skirts should be adequate length. I will defer to others for tips for vocal performance and jazz auditions.
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I think it is just the date you submit the application by that matters for scholarships. By December 1st.
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My son wore a suit for most (voice and cello auditions) but at one school he took off his jacket and tie and rolled up his shirt sleeves for the cello audition. I about had a heart attack but he was still accepted on both instruments and attends there now. I can’t remember why he did it, but I recall not thinking his reasoning was sound at the time!
I think as long as you’re dressed decently it only matters how you sing/play. As a general rule, dress professionally, neatly, and not in a way that distracts from your performance.
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for Opera major auditions - formal dress - my mezzo wore either a very nice pantsuit (which is ok for a mezzo) or a black recital dress
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It sounds like your son was comfortable, and it totally worked out. From what I’m hearing, that’s most important, and that makes sense.
My son just had his Berklee audition. In person - they came to our city. Does anyone here know if they do rolling admits or if it the decision lands on the last day 1/31?
My DC was advised not to wear formal dress at the Northwestern audition, rather something nice (just not formal).
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I’ve seen a few general comments here and thought I’d share a few comments based on being at auditions (UG and grad).
Formal wear (tux and gowns) - no at most schools. It wouldn’t sink you…it’s just not necessary or common.
Sometimes VP candidates will be a bit more formal or colorful. I suspect jazz may be more relaxed or not. Still dress wear is what most kids will wear.
Dress wear - YES! - knee length (about) dress, slacks, nice shirt, tie (with suit coat if you want) and dress shoes. Closed toe and not too high shoes for girls. No distracting jewelry, make up or hair pieces. Think NEAT.
Your kid can wear any nice shirt, pants, dress. Just be sure they are comfortable. And if you can manage it…check the “fit”. Poor girls get judges if it’s too tight in the wrong places (outside the audition room…inside I’m not sure). But there are boys walking around obviously in their dad’s dress shirt and wrinkly pants. I think that you can get a lot of mileage out of ironed/steamed clothes that fit. Don’t forget a decent pair of shoes particularly for the boys.
I have always said (and don’t know it to be true) that you should remind yourself or your kid that teachers are looking for someone who can do the basics right. Wear clean clothes and looked put together. Who wants to take on a kid with an attitude about dressing? What else will you need to deal with??
You will have passed half the audition by doing a few simple things:
Dress neatly.
Be ready on time.
Have your music ready and neat.
Smile and be friendly when you walk in the room.
Be curious and courteous throughout the audition.
Some people focus so much on musical talent that they forget to be a good human. The audition is about talent but also about a connection with the faculty.
Good luck!!
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This is such good advice. I would guess that things like curiosity and readiness are more important than shoes or pants (as long as they are clean). Also, from these responses I get the feeling that opera and classical music have more formal dress codes than jazz or contemporary.
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Yes, curiosity is so important.
Musical skills/talent must be there. But if you pass a pre-screen, the panel has most likely deemed you talented enough for the program. So, my limited understanding is that they are now confirming talent but looking closely at fit. Do you seem a good candidate for their program and faculty? Do they see you as a good addition to their program? The best way for that to be determined is for you or your kid to be your best self. Be authentic (while be neat and respectful). Someone on the faculty will most likely “see” you.
And be curious and coachable. Some auditions may be 5 minutes. Little may be said. That’s OK. Others may be longer…and you may be asked to make modifications. This doesn’t mean you did anything wrong, they may be looking to see if you are “coachable” and/or how you react when not “perfectly prepared”. You should keep positive and try your best…even if you feel that it wasn’t great. It’s the attempt and a positive attitude that matters.
Also, if you do several auditions something is bound to go wrong. For VP, you will get a bum accompanist for example. Again you need to handle it with a smile and a positive attitude. Panels have seen it all. They understand.
So be curious and be prepared for the unexpected. A positive disposition and/or a sense of humor is the best reaction to an unexpected challenge.
Enjoy!!! It’s quite the ride.
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Does anyone know if Berklee has rolling decisions or if they give all decisions for EA on 12/31?
Wow…that was down to the wire. Applications are all submitted as of 30 minutes ago. My D just kept re-recording. She’s never satisfied. A real perfectionist. I feel like I can relax now and maybe enjoy the holidays until we start the audition circuit.
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Anyone headed to Blair for auditions this weekend? Or have any intel/experience to share from the past with Blair ED? We have a very limited idea of what to expect for numbers because not many seem to ED to BMs.
I’ll be honest and say that I don’t really know if it was advantageous to ED. My daughter made the decision very quickly because she loved her visit and lesson and also I think she just likes the idea of having things settled. However, we did not seek out any information regarding whether it would actually be beneficial from an admissions perspective so we feel pretty in the dark.
The niche element of the BM has also been eye-opening. Because of the December 1 deadline for so many prescreens for the regular cycle, she had to apply and pay regardless. Without that component, she could have waited until the mid-December decision to invest the time/money.
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Not much advice to offer as S22 didn’t do any ED, but I imagine there has to be some advantage as they know your D is committed to go there if admitted. A friend’s S23 just came from NU ED audition and felt very welcomed. But yes, with their hearts set on one school, it’s hard to get them invested in doing the other submissions, even though. they have to with the wonky timing.
Break a leg! Can’t wait to hear how it went.
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All but one had prescreens, but she was able to just record 5 songs, and they met the various requirements. She got all her applications submitted that had to be done by Dec 1, had a great first audition yesterday, and comes home to finish a couple more essays for the last one (due Dec 15, but they’re only 150 words and 250 words, so wahoo!). That plus one scholarship essay, and the application process will be DONE! On to more auditions…hopefully!
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Sounds like my girl. Wearing semi-formal (non glitzy, knee length) dress the same as she would wear for any large competition, such as CS Music or Schmidt. Nice, but not formal.