<p>Did anyone check out the new NFAA website? Alot of new and interesting changes. I just checked out voice - instead of a CD you now have to submit a VHS or DVD like musical theater applicants! They get to judge the entire package now. I wonder if it will be hard to get the quality in video that you get in CD format without spending a ton of money recording?</p>
<p>It depends on what quality level you are looking for. You can get a decent but not great miniDV Digital Camcorder for under $300 these days and there is free software out there that will let you import clips into a PC, add titles and burn a DVD. I did the one video recording that my daughter needed this way and it came out reasonably well. We have had fun using the camera for other things since then.</p>
<p>On the other hand, those who want the best available quality certainly could go out and pay a pro a heck of a lot more for a full video/audio job than they would have paid for a professionally-produced audio CD.</p>
<p>We are definitely not in a position to pay for a professional videographer, lol. Did you add an external mike to the Camcorder or was the quality sufficient without one?</p>
<p>External mike is best. Sony makes a wonderful stereo external mike that really rocks. I've used it to record D many times.</p>
<p>I used the same audio setup that I would have used for a CD-only recording. That included two external microphones and a mixer.</p>
<p>They also have very specific requirements for the audition (specific concerti and pieces after 1930...at least for my kid). It will help him get ready for college auditions, but I was also worried about the new video requirements..I even manage to mess up recordings of my younger son's violin lessons (and I put the camera on a tripod:) I will have to try another microphone because ours is not that good. Sigh.</p>
<p>ask the music teachers at your high school before you get farther along in the process. it's possible the school has the equipment. I hate all that recording stuff, glad it's long over. The latest thing we got was some kind of fancy IPOD with external mike for recording.</p>
<p>Thanks, Jersey! We have a bunch of recording devices, but have to investigate the video aspect. There is a dad who records and videos all of the school orchestra performances...but I'd hate to bother him. I have a friend who is a film director and teaches at Cal...maybe she has a student who could help us out. And we had just gotten the knack of doing the CDs...I refuse to deal with sound and lighting...:)</p>