<p>…and I am a bit weary. This is my third child, but my first to enter the music arena. It seems as though there is so much secrecy and drama at these auditions. It would be nice if the teachers would at least give them some idea of how their audition went. Maybe, a thumbs up-thumbs down-thumbs to the side gesture or something. 
My hats off to the rest of you who have been doing this for awhile. I’m exhausted! :)</p>
<p>Jazz/shreddermom – I think your s. had a (hopefully) telling experience perhaps in the comment “What if you’re accepted to all of them.” I think the question that was really being asked might have been “how much are you going to cost us” ; ) Which is why I think Binx’s d’s response is a great approach, from a negotiating standpoint.</p>
<p>Not to take this in a different direction, but … Related to the “what other schools” have you applied question encountered in auditions, we just completed the CSS Profile financial aid form required by two of the schools to which my son is applying (Michigan, Northwestern). In addition to all of the basic information provided (assets, debts, etc., etc.) schools can request customized information. One of the two schools (and I can’t remember which one at present) asked for a rank ordering of my sons’ preferences for the universities to which he has applied. Our response was “undecided” (as in, I’m not sure how much I want to go to University X if it will be costing me $55,000 out-of-pocket per year).</p>
<p>Peabody today! I got here yesterday afternoon by train. I had a lesson that evening, which was great. Before that, I got lunch in the cafeteria, which i’m afraid to say was terrible. My mom picked up food from Donna’s, which is across the street, for dinner. We stayed at the Peabody Inn, which was clean, right on campus, and comfortable. Breakfast was at a nearby coffee shop, the Cozy Corner. Affordable and delicious. I had another lesson this afternoon, quick rehearsal with my pianist, and then checked out the Peabody Bookstore/cafe. Very nice and relaxed. My audition was in the evening, and it was ridiculously hard to find a practice room. After finally getting one, I warmed up and went to the audition. The faculty was so friendly and kind; they made it easy to feel comfortable. I got my theory/ear training tests out of the way yesterday, which was really helpful. It gave me time to sleep in and focus for my audition today. I played through 3 out of 4 pieces; they didn’t hear my Paganini. Hopefully that’s a good sign. A friend of mine did play hers, but it looks like glassharmonica’s D didn’t play hers either, so who knows. I really loved it here, so I hope I get in!!</p>
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<p>+1 on Binx’s D’s response to questions about choosing a college. Not only a great negotiating response on behalf of parents, but a good sign that student (Binx’s D/others) can look after themselves in the future competitive music business!</p>
<p>lastroseofsummer, it sounds as though you had a better experience that we did at the Peabody Inn, although ours turned out okay in the end. We arrived at night by car and found that the entire corner and entrance was cordoned off by caution tape, so that the building seemed, confusingly, closed or abandoned. </p>
<p>We called the telephone number and the work-study student at the desk instructed us to enter through the main campus gate. The loading zone also featured-- a fire hydrant! (and later the guard told us that the Baltimore police regularly ticket people in the marked loading zone because of the hydrant.) </p>
<p>The campus door was locked. We pushed the emergency call button, as instructed by a sign beside the door and the guard who answered told use he did not want to let us in because he was “on the other end of campus.” We called back the desk for help, but it went straight to voicemail. </p>
<p>There we were with all our stuff, locked out in the snow. After a few attempts, we got an answer at the desk and she sent the second guard, who appeared about ten minutes later, led us through the conservatory building and out into the interior courtyard and into the back entrance of the Inn. We got keys to our room, in the basement, and there was a HORRIBLE electric buzzing noise coming through the wall (we were next to the elevator.) The noise was very loud and irregular, and the room was very narrow. Kind of like the set of a David Lynch movie. </p>
<p>I went back upstairs and told the student at the desk who came downstairs and agreed that no one could sleep in that room with that noise. But, she told us, unfortunately the Inn was completely booked. She promised to call the coordinator and tell her our problem. </p>
<p>Then the guard led me back to my car, telling me that he, too, had received a ticket while parked there. I drove around to the Peabody garage, as instructed, but found the entrance closed up. So I drove straight through the exit, as the guard had warned I might have to. Then I learned that swipe card was broken and I could not get back into the campus. Fortunately, another mom and her daughter, whose luggage had been lost, appeared in the garage with working swipe cards and I followed them back into the Inn. </p>
<p>The work-study student got the coordinator on the phone, who told me that she was aware of the noise and had heard it that morning but that no one had ever complained about it before. (The place is used primarily as an Elder hostel and that the guests probably just turn off their hearing aids.) But, suddenly a new room, also in the basement, was discovered, and although plain it was quiet. We were so grateful.</p>
<p>We were bothered that we were not warned in advance that no practicing is allowed in the hotel-- ever. Not even during daytime hours. My daughter had a late audition, and since practice rooms were de facto unavailable she had been counting on the hotel room for practice. Despite my misgivings, she decided to try anyway, reasoning “What is the worst thing that could happen? I will be asked to stop.” This was 1 PM and the floor was totally silent-- no one around. In a normal hotel, it would NOT have been a problem to do some practicing at this point, as she has done literally dozens of times on trips in the past. Within 2 minutes, there was a 2-fisted pounding on the door. I cowered in the bathroom and overheard the coordinator questioning my daughter in a rather aggressively Socratic manner: “Do you know why I am here? What do you think it would sound like if all 45 guests were practicing?” My own thought was, it might sound like a building in a music conservatory, which it is. But my daughter apologized, gave up trying to practice, and took a nap. </p>
<p>If I had to do it again we would just drive in the day of the audition, or maybe stay in a regular hotel.</p>
<p>glassharmonica:</p>
<p>I thought you were complaining that the Peabody Inn was non-responsive. Heck, they were pounding on your door only two minutes after your daughter started playing! Now that’s responsive!</p>
<p>The stories posted here are great … Better/stranger than fiction!</p>
<p>A couple of past threads on the topic <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/812993-why-do-audition-committees-want-know-where-else-you-will-auditioning.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/812993-why-do-audition-committees-want-know-where-else-you-will-auditioning.html</a></p>
<p>Tenordad, even though the experience was frustrating at the moment, since we survived and all was fine in the end, I am actually glad for the hilarious memory.</p>
<p>My D auditioned at Peabody on Monday, which went pretty smoothly. We had no problems finding a practice room to warm up in, and she was allowed to practice with her accompanist, which was nice. We stayed in the Tremont Plaza, which was pretty sound-proof and she was able to vocalize there without complaints. The only weird thing about the Peabody experience was that I had signed D up for her ear-training test in the morning when I went for the Parent info session (her audition wasn’t til the afternoon); when we got to the room for the test, it had been cancelled. When we went back downstairs to doublecheck the list, it turned out that someone had erased D’s name and inserted her own (the sign up was all done in pencil). I found that particularly disturbing.</p>
<p>We’re off to Rochester later.</p>
<p>Quick question regarding the ‘what other school are you applying to’ question…</p>
<p>What is the best way to answer this if you have been rejected from one of the music schools you applied to that is similar to that school you are auditioning at? </p>
<p>Just curious as sometimes nerves or other things get in the way of an audition and a student may not do as well as they normally would. I would hate it to look like a student may not be qualified to attend a similar school and have that impact the current school audition. And, on the other hand, I would hate it to look like the student could go to that other school (but yet wouldn’t even be considering it due to not getting accepted).</p>
<p>Any advice on how to handle this type of situation? Thanks</p>
<p>I don’t think I’d mention that school at all. Just name the similar schools that you are still waiting to hear from.</p>
<p>My son has two auditions this weekend. One of the schools has asked him to bring a “Musical Background Information” form which asks for a list of other schools to which he is applying. This will be shared with the faculty while he is auditioning. He has been accepted at two music schools, one of which is generally regarded as a very strong program (a peer or better of the school requesting the form). Opinions as to whether he should indicate the fact that he has been “accepted” at these schools? Or should he simply list the schools? I can’t see how it would hurt his chances to let them know he’s been accepted by a very strong program — but I’ve been wrong once or twice during my lifetime. :-)</p>
<p>I would like to know if, from those who already auditioned’s experience, it is possible to practice in the hotel rooms in NYC and Boston hostels. I don’t feel confortable performing before having done one or two hours of scales, exercices, ect…</p>
<p>Also I’d like to know how piano rehearsals work. I guess I should rather not say to the pianist things like please slow down here, please do a decrescendo/crescendo before my entrance, ect… and I let him/her do him/her work. They probably know the dynamics better than I do.</p>
<p>Some past threads dealing with accompanists. So much of this is school or situation specific, there is no blanket answer. If the school provides the accompanist, there may or may not be a scheduled run through/rehearsal. If they just provide contact info or a list, it’s up to the student to make the specific arrangements.</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/851823-accompanist-advice.html?highlight=accompanists[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/851823-accompanist-advice.html?highlight=accompanists</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/662005-vanishing-accompanist.html?highlight=accompanists[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/662005-vanishing-accompanist.html?highlight=accompanists</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/653104-audition-scheduling-headache.html?highlight=accompanists[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/653104-audition-scheduling-headache.html?highlight=accompanists</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/628182-worrying-about-accompaniment.html?highlight=accompanists[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/music-major/628182-worrying-about-accompaniment.html?highlight=accompanists</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/1061201620-post109.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/1061201620-post109.html</a></p>
<p>As for practicing in hotels, I’d imagine you will find a range of reactions. I’d venture your warm ups far superior to any number of noises that I’ve heard emanating from hotel rooms over the years, and you never know how your “neighbors” will react (or not react). You can try, and if a complaint is forthcoming you may want to see if they would be kind enough to find an unused conference room or other room somewhere within the bowels of the structure that you could utilize. Time of day might prove critical here. You can often bend the envelope if there is more activity around you. Trying in the late evening or early morning may well yield more opposition.</p>
<p>I’d suggest utilizing the facilities at your audition schools, but this also can be difficult and wrought with frustration depending on the institution.</p>
<p>Fun story: We went on vacation the week before D had a big vocal competition. So we had the practice issue. There was a grand piano in the beautiful lobby of the hotel. Manager invited her to sing in the lobby - which I thought was great fun and had great acoustics. And the people in the hotel seemed really interested. She did that two days. And then we found the performing arts center was right next door and they allowed her to come in and use their practice rooms for free. At Eastman, everybody on our B&B hallway was practicing the morning of auditions.</p>
<p>Anyone have any words of wisdom before we head out for CCM audition?</p>
<p>My daughter practiced on bass in hotel rooms in Boston, Philadelphia and Baltimore with no problems. She did not audition for any schools in NYC and we live close enough that we would not have needed a hotel there anyway. If you don’t already have one, you may wish to spend $10 or so on a practice mute that will cut the sound a little bit. Don’t get the kind that remains attached to the instrument when it is not in use, rather the one that comes completely off.</p>
<p>It is always a good idea to err on the side of more communication with an accompanist rather than less, particularly since you have chosen a piece that is a little out of the ordinary for bass auditions. If you have time to run through it more than once in your rehearsal, then you may be able to see what the accompanist does before suggesting any necessary adjustments. If you only have time to do it once, it is essential that you take a minute beforehand to talk about anything that might not be absolutely clear from the written score. If you want very specific things like a decrescendo before your entrance, it helps to notate them in the score that you are providing for the accompanist. If there is anything in the score that you want the accompanist to disregard, cross it out in pencil before giving it to them.</p>
<p>Bach is particularly tricky in this regard, even more so if you are using an urtext edition that does not have had editorial suggestions for tempo, dynamics and phrasing added for you. There are many different approaches to playing Bach’s music, so you need to be sure that you and the accompanist are playing in compatible styles.</p>
<p>D has always gone to the front desk, explained her situation and then been set up in an empty conference room. Only once was she denied a room because they had some huge convention using all the conference rooms. So she practiced in our hotel room. No one minded. And, as others have mentioned, we have often heard others practicing in their rooms. In one hotel, she overheard another bassoonist brilliantly ripping through some excepts, which caused her a rather sleepless night. Turned out to be a grad student…whew!</p>
<p>The nice thing about being a singer is that you can warm up in the shower so that helps with the noise.</p>