<p>Okay, I'm in the process of finding songs for my college auditions, and most schools say your selection should be 16 bars (or sometimes 32 bar uptempos). I've been finding songs that I love, but unfortunately, even though they would take just as much time to sing as a 16 bar song, many of them go into the 18 bar zone. Would it be a big deal to an audition panel if a song went two or three measures over, but still wasn't obscenely long?</p>
<p>Whoops, I looked back at my schools, and most actually say they should just be under 32 measures (woohoo!). HOWEVER, for those that DO specify 16 or 32 bars, is that an absolute?</p>
<p>Some schools are okay if it’s close - others absolutely want the 16 or 32. I’ve been told one school has the accompanist stop playing at 16. So, if you’re in doubt, double check with the school directly.</p>
<p>When my D auditioned several years ago, a couple of schools also had stopwatches sitting out, and cut you off if your mono was over the minute time limit, so be prepared for an abrupt ending, if you don’t follow the guidelines.</p>
<p>I was told that, as long as it’s close to 16 bars (like 17 or 18) it isn’t really a problem. As for 32, it’s probably a little easier to get an exact cut.</p>
<p>Some schools are seriously strict about the 16 bars, so be prepared. Others are a bit more flexible and they seem to let you know that on their websites.</p>
<p>I’m wondering if a school with very strict requirements would care about a vocal pick-up into the first complete bar? Would that bar that is mostly rest at the beginning of the song need to be counted as one of the 16? (Why does the daughter keep finding these cuts that aren’t quite right?)</p>
<p>^Haha, right? It’s so hard to find a perfect 16-bar cut. There’s always something off. </p>
<p>In music, pick-ups aren’t counted. Not sure about auditions, but I’ve personally never counted the pick-up as one of my sixteen (guess that’s my background in music kicking in). So no, I think your d is ok on this one. :)</p>