<p>Just getting nervous after sending in my 5 prescreening recording. I am by no means a polished singer, and have only been taking private lessons for a year and only been really taking it as something I know I want to pursue for the last 6 months. I am not very polished yet in my rep; however, I've been told my legitimate and some very well-known voice teachers that I have talent and have everything necessary for a career as an artist (despite being underdeveloped and a little behind at this time).</p>
<p>Now getting to my question:</p>
<p>I was wondering how much schools weigh persons talent over how they sound now. I obviously know that technique will bring out talent, but if someone shows true talent will they be admitted. Thanks I am obviously just nervous about these prescreening recordings; however I know if I don't get in that only means I am not yet prepared and will work as hard as I can to get prepared.</p>
<p>We do not know you, have not heard you and have no way of knowing what will happen. Welcome to the world of classical voice and just about any other sort of performing art. Get used to it. My D is out of grad school, has a pretty good fix on where she is in the talent pool, has gone through 17 main stage and YAP auditions in the past four weeks, got some pretty good reactions at the auditions, BUT she has no idea what will transpire. Just do your best.</p>
<p>Feel better? ;)</p>
<p>Certainly having potential (talent) helps, but being talented and further developed may help even more in getting scholarships.</p>
<p>There is a lot of fretting at this point, but if you’ve already submitted, don’t beat yourself up. The pieces will fall as they will and you will THEN respond to that. Don’t waste the holidays fretting, but instead find ways to keep busy, practice, and enjoy.</p>
<p>Agree with the others, it is done at this point. I am no expert on voice, in one sense you may be better off with voice then with some forms of instrumental music in terms of where you are, simply because the voice takes a long time to develop and potential may be a lot of what they see in auditions (and again, this is from someone not in the voice word, just my impression). In the violin world, if you told me you had a lot of potential, but only had been studying for a year or 2 seriously, I would tell you that for a top level program you stood almost zero chance, because the level with violin is out there, because kids start early and get serious early, too, and the audition is almost entirely on how well you play, not on potential. With singers because of the late start and with the late development of the human voice, it may not be the same thing.</p>
<p>All you can do is hope for the best. Keep in mind your options are never dead, you have the option of taking a gap year and auditioning after another year’s experience, or perhaps going with a good teacher at a relatively unknown school, and focus on grad school, which seems to be de facto required for voice these days (and prob will be for instrumental, too, more and more).</p>
<p>Agree with all points. The test has been taken. Time spent worrying is time wasted. Practice so as to give your best at the audition.</p>
<p>I would like to add on the issue of potential that some schools may pay more attention to potential than others. But it is always potential judged within the context of the particular school’s program. A school may think someone may have potential but if the school does not think that it is the best place to develop the potential then the potential doesn’t matter. I could see this being a factor in judging composition applicants as well as voice which are two concentrations that may be later developing than instrumental performance.</p>
<p>Because there is only a fraction as many male vocalists that apply for music school, your chances are better than a female’s. Sopranos need not only potential, but also a great deal of skill to be serious contenders for top schools. Many lower-level music schools will admit male voices almost solely on the basis of potential.</p>
<p>As well, lower voices tend to develop later so that may give even more slack. </p>
<p>Your question concerned “how much schools weigh persons talent over how they sound now.” If you don’t sound good now, then I’m not sure you have genuine talent. No one is looking for a well-developed technique in the voice of a 17-year-old male; but they certainly don’t want to hear bad technical habits which are difficult to eradicate. Usually a vocalist with talent has a natural ear (that allows them to produce a beautiful resonant sound which study will strengthen and improve) and a musical intelligence (which helps them produce pleasing nuanced phrases). While some diction issues in foreign languages can be forgiven, if you can’t master the texts of a couple of songs in several months, then you probably don’t have an ear for languages (or sounds).</p>
<p>As others have noted, violinists and pianists need years of development before serious schools will consider them (most violinists admitted to places like Juilliard have been studying for 11 to 13 years, and some even longer). Most vocalists admitted to top programs have been studying for only 3 to 6 years (and while some might have studied longer, the initial study would have been on an entirely different instrument and thus of relatively little value). So you aren’t that different from many other vocalists.</p>
<p>Some schools are more willing than others to take the risk of admitting the students with “potential.” There is always a fairly large element of chance when admitting a 17-year-old to a vocal major since all vocal instruments will continue to change. </p>
<p>Continue to work hard. If you pass your prescreens, then you have a two or three more months to improve.</p>