We have the audition requirements for these colleges. I am wondering for IU and FSU, if some could provide their pieces used for pre audition and actual audition? It seems like a lot of material for IU especially. And, how long did your auditions last?
Hi rundmcone, since a student is not chiming in I will respond as well as I am able as the parent of a sophomore piano major. I am assuming by IU you mean Indiana University, which I see requires a Bach Prelude and Fugue, a complete Beethoven sonata, a piece from the 20th/21st century, and a Romantic piece (all memorized). That is pretty standard and actually not over the top for material, as some programs also require 1-2 etudes. The result is probably 40-55 minutes of music if your student were to sit down and play from beginning to end - which no pianist, as far as I know, is ever asked to do in an audition. My D did 8 live auditions, more or less; they all ran 10 to 15 minutes.
As far as selection of pieces, many people recommend that by spring of Junior year the student has his pieces well underway, because by mid-October or early November they will be need to be ready to be videotaped for prescreens, and then auditions begin as early as November, but otherwise late January through early March. For my D, pre-screen pieces = audition pieces. Was she heartily sick of them at the end? Yes she was, but the pieces needed to be familiar and polished and have LOTS of performance experience, each and every one, for the best audition possible.
For the actual repertoire used, I can tell you that the sonata was “The Tempest” and the Bach came from Book II. Let me know if you want to know more and I’ll send you a PM, out of respect for my D’s privacy 
I hope this helps! Good luck to your student.
Thanks, this was very helpful. She is considering a BSOF so that she isn’t a performance major, as she has interests in several areas. And candidly, she would be hard pressed to have the pieces totally complete, even by November. But, it would be helpful to know your student’s specific pieces as a reference, if you don’t mind PMing me. I assume that for the pre-audition, they record the pieces in their entirety?
Separately, if the major is non-performance, I assume the level of play isn’t quite as high? She will prepare well, but it’s helpful to know.
Thank you!
I am not familiar with a BSOF, but usually it is true that performance majors will be held to the highest standard. The better your D plays, however, the better her position will be at the end of the process.
As for recording the pieces in their entirety for the prescreen, check the website. Usually they will just want one movement of the sonata recorded, and possibly fewer of the other pieces.
Thanks! I did get your message - and the BSOF is bachelors of science in music with an outside field (alas, BSOF), so she earns a minor+ in another field. But it’s NOTE a performance major.
My daughter is a BSOF in VP at IU. It is a performance degree in the Jacobs Music School. She had to do the same audition as everyone else. After accepted, you can choose the BM track or the BSOF track. The BSOF allows you to have fewer music electives and recitals in order to have some more classes in selected area of study. You do have to know the area right away to make everything fit in. Arts administration for example is popular. It would be similar to a minor as people in BM programs know a minor is hard to fit in with class requirements and performing. BUT besides missing a few music electives and some recital requirements she had to do everything else including auditioning and performing in opera chorus twice a year, do her junior recital to find out if you could continue in Jacobs etc. So in my experience it’s hard to say it’s not a performance degree. However Jacobs is big and maybe a different dept handles it differently. It would be best to call IU and ask them about auditioning requirements for a BSOF if you are serious. Most people are working on the audition material well in advance (a year or two) prior to auditions.
One other comment: Jacobs is quite competitive. Expectations for anyone showing up to audition will be very high. There’s no lower expectations for anyone. BUT there are a lot of schools out there that would love a students with musical skills and outside interests! If the audition material looks daunting, look for ones that are a better match. While Jacobs is a great school, it is just one of many great schools. And the best schools are the ones that match your particular interests. Not saying that you shouldn’t consider Jacobs but I wouldn’t get stuck on a school if the audition material doesn’t feel right. It may distract you from other great schools.
Bridgenail, I agree we shouldn’t exclude other schools. I’m open to yours/anyone’s opinions on what those may be. I don’t think she is going the true conservatory route as she has interests outside of music. Note, the piano BSOF requirements for audition are different than BM Piano audition…
I did ask IU about the pre-audition requirements, and they said there’s no recording time limit. Nor did they say it’s okay to play just a portion of the required pieces. Still looking into that.
rundmcone, I’m not familiar with good piano performance schools nor know your child’s other interests so I can’t make any recommendations. But I ran into the same situation with my daughter when looking at schools - although my daughter did want the music to be primary. She did decide against traditional conservatories as she wanted a university degree and wanted to explore other interests hence the BSOF. Here outside field is theatre. You would think that would be easy to coordinate. But what I learned from going around to schools and what we have experienced at IU, is the music degree BM or BS is quite demanding and it is difficult to get outside the music bubble…at least for a vocalist due to the demands for ensemble performance. So you may want to look at the ensemble requirements at IU for BS in piano performance (or at any school). Theatre and another interest area for my daughter had a lot of club meetings or their own performances in the evening. With the ensemble requirements in the music school, it became very clear after a year, it was going to be tough to pursue those interests outside of classroom time since evenings get full with studio classes and rehearsals. It was not negative in the end…just a learning experience. I do know some kids that went to schools like Lawrence or Luther to pursue other interests but wanted to continue in music. These two schools have strong music programs available to all students whether in music or not. Some of them continued to compete and perform but had more freedom as they weren’t formally in the music school. Just food for thought.