Music Undergraduate Pre-Screening and Audition Guidelines
All undergraduate applicants must submit a pre-screening audition recording in SlideRoom* along with the non-refundable $57 audition fee plus the $5 SlideRoom fee for a total of $62 .
Applicants can upload sound files (.mp3), video (.mov), and/or any required documents (.pdf).You may choose to submit your audition in either a video (.mov) or sound (.mp3) format, but please choose one or the other (CDs or DVDs are not accepted). For information about acceptable media files and sizes please go to File Sizes and Types in SlideRoom.
Optional: If you wish, you may also submit up to two (2) letters of recommendation from music teachers. Slideroom allows you to submit email contact information for your teachers and Slideroom will email your teachers to submit recommendations online.
Please follow the submission instructions carefully for your particular program(s) of choice in SlideRoom. If you wish to audition for more than one program, you must submit a separate pre-screening audition and fee for each program.
Once your audition materials are uploaded and processed, they will be evaluated by the Conservatory of Music faculty. If you are selected for a live audition, you will be notified of your audition date and time via email. Please be sure to give us a viable email account, and check it regularly.
Only students selected for a live audition will be eligible for admission to the Conservatory of Music. Students who are not selected for a live audition will be denied at the prescreening stage.
Live Auditions: By Invitation Only
- Spring applicants will be notified of results of pre-screening auditions by November 1, 2019.
- Fall applicants will be notified of results of pre-screening auditions by February 5, 2020.
Students selected for live auditions will be notified by email directly from the Conservatory of Music and will be assigned a live audition date at that time.
All live auditions take place in the Music Building on campus. In order to qualify for a live audition, all applicants must first apply for admission to Purchase College and submit all pre-screening materials and the audition fee in SlideRoom. Only student who pass the pre-screening audition will be called back for a live audition. Students who do not pass the pre-screening audition will not be eligible for admission to the Conservatory.
Please follow the submission instructions carefully for your particular program(s) of choice in SlideRoom. If you wish to audition for more than one program, you must submit a separate pre-screening audition and fee for each program.
For additional information about the Music MusB program, visit the Conservatory of Music page.
Details for pre-screening and live auditions, per division, can be found below.
| Bass |
UndergraduateLive Audition DateFebruary 20, 2020 Prescreening AuditionPlease submit the following:
Live AuditionPlease prepare all selections listed below. One major and one minor two-octave scale and arpeggio.
GraduateLive Audition DateFebruary 20, 2020 Prescreening AuditionPlease select two pieces in contrasting styles from the list below. Live AuditionPlease prepare all pieces.
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| Brass |
UndergraduateLive Audition DateFebruary 17, 2020 Horn, tenor trombone, bass trombone, trumpet: audition on Bb and C trumpets only, tuba: audition on Eb, CC, or BBb only. Prescreening AuditionPlease prepare the following pieces:
Live AuditionPlease prepare the following selections:
GraduateLive Audition DateFebruary 17, 2020 Horn; tenor trombone; bass trombone; trumpet, must audition on Bb and C trumpets, and can choose additional option of performing on D, Eb, and/or piccolo trumpets; tuba: addition on F, Eb, CC, or BBb tubas. Prescreening AuditionPlease select two pieces in contrasting styles from the list below. Live AuditionPlease prepare all pieces.
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| Cello |
UndergraduateLive Audition DatesFebruary 20, 22, and 24, 2020 Prescreening AuditionPlease submit two selections in contrasting styles from the list below. Live AuditionPlease prepare all three selections.
GraduateLive Audition DatesFebruary 20, 22, and 24, 2020 Prescreening AuditionPlease select two pieces in contrasting styles from the list below. Live AuditionPlease prepare all pieces.
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| Classical Guitar |
UndergraduateLive Audition DateFebruary 18, 2020 Prescreening AuditionPlease select two pieces in contrasting styles from the classical guitar repertoire. Live AuditionPlease prepare three works of contrasting style (Renaissance, Baroque, Romantic, and/or contemporary) from the classical guitar repertoire. You will also be asked to sight-read. GraduateLive Audition DateFebruary 18, 2020 Prescreening AuditionPlease select two pieces in contrasting styles from the list below. Live AuditionPlease prepare:
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| Composition |
Undergraduate and GraduateLive Audition DateFebruary 17, 2020 Prescreening AuditionPlease submit two original scores (required) and recordings (if available), one of which must have been written within the last two years. No MIDI, please. Live AuditionPlease bring three pieces as described below.
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| Harp |
UndergraduateLive Audition DateFebruary 18, 2020 Prescreening AuditionPlease submit two pieces in contrasting styles from the standard harp repertoire. Live AuditionPlease prepare:
You will be asked to sight-read at your live audition. GraduateLive Audition DateFebruary 18, 2020 Prescreening AuditionPlease select two pieces in contrasting styles from the list below. Live AuditionPlease prepare all pieces. All compositions must be performed from memory.
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| Jazz Studies |
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Please note that we offer the following instruments as part of the jazz studies program: saxophone, trombone, trumpet, piano, bass, guitar, drums, voice. Undergraduate and GraduateLive Audition DatesFebruary 21 and 22, 2020 Prescreening Audition(The total length of your materials should not exceed 10 minutes)
Live AuditionOnly those applicants who pass the recorded audition will be invited to a live audition. Students will play in ad hoc groups that will also include current students and faculty as support players/accompanists. More formal than a jam session, opportunities will be provided for each invited applicant to be featured as a soloist, playing in a group setting. Instrumentalists should prepare the following repertoire, in the indicated keys. You may be asked to read these tunes in other keys, but lead sheets will be provided. Singers should prepare the same repertoire in their preferred key but must bring three copies of a lead sheet in that key.
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| Percussion |
UndergraduateLive Audition DateFebruary 17, 2020 Prescreening AuditionPlease submit two selections from the list below. Live Audition*Please prepare all three selections from the list below:
*For the live audition, all applicants must provide percussion faculty with two copies of all audition pieces. GraduateLive Audition DateFebruary 17, 2020 Prescreening AuditionPlease submit two contrasting selections from the five “required” selections listed below. Live Audition*Please prepare all five “required” selections. Required
Optional
*For the live audition, all applicants must provide percussion faculty with two copies of all audition pieces |
| Piano |
Undergraduate and GraduateLive Audition DateFebruary 22, 2020 Prescreening AuditionPlease select two pieces in contrasting styles from the list below. Live AuditionPlease prepare all pieces. All compositions must be performed from memory.
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| Studio Composition |
UndergraduateLive Audition DatesFebruary 20 and 21, 2020 Prescreening Audition
Applicants are expected to have basic music theory skills, including sight reading and the ability to hear and sing back intervals and chords. Live AuditionPlease prepare 3 original pieces for the live audition/interview. You may bring a CD with your music selection, or you may perform your music live (or a mix of the two). There are no microphones or amps in the audition room, but there is an electric piano. If applicable, please bring scores notated conventionally so the faculty can see your ability to do so. The live audition will also include an interview with the studio composition faculty. GraduateLive Audition DatesFebruary 20 and 21, 2020 Prescreening Audition
Applicants are expected to have basic music theory skills, including sight reading and the ability to hear and sing back intervals and chords. Live AuditionPlease prepare the following:
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| Studio Production |
UndergraduateLive Audition DatesFebruary 17 and 18, 2020 Prescreening Audition
Note: the charts, resume and, cover letter may be combined into one document and uploaded as an additional media item. Live Interviews/AuditionApplicants with a successful prescreening audition will be invited to a live audition/interview. The live audition is really an interview with the studio production faculty where applicants discuss their experience, their goals for the program, and receive further testing in studio production, studio engineering, and music theory. You will not be asked to play your instrument as part of your Studio Production audition/interview. You do not need to bring or prepare anything specific beyond being able to speak to the topics listed above. Only those who are selected for a live audition/interview will be considered for admission. |
| Viola |
UndergraduateLive Audition DateFebruary 24, 2020 Prescreening AuditionPlease submit two selections in contrasting styles from the list below. Live AuditionPlease prepare all three selections.
GraduateLive Audition DateFebruary 24, 2020 Prescreening AuditionPlease select two pieces in contrasting styles from the list below. Live AuditionPlease prepare all pieces.
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| Violin |
UndergraduateLive Audition DatesFebruary 20, 22, and 24, 2020 Prescreening Auditionplease submit two selections in contrasting styles from the list below. Live AuditionPlease prepare all three selections.
GraduateLive Audition DatesFebruary 20, 22, and 24, 2020 Prescreening AuditionPlease select two pieces in contrasting styles from the list below. Live AuditionPlease prepare all pieces.
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| Voice (Classical) |
UndergraduateLive Audition DatesFebruary 17, 20, and 22, 2020 Prescreening AuditionRecording should not exceed 15 minutes in length and should include the following songs which should be in contrasting styles. One must be from the 20th-century repertoire:
Live AuditionOnly those applicants who pass the prescreening audition will be invited to a live audition.
GraduateLive Audition DatesFebruary 20 and 22, 2020 Prescreening AuditionYour recording should not exceed 15 minutes in length and should include the following songs. The songs should be in contrasting styles, and one must be from the 20th-century repertoire:
Live AuditionOnly those applicants who pass the prescreening audition will be invited to a live audition.
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| Woodwinds (Flute, Oboe, Clarinet, and Bassoon) |
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Please note that we do not offer classical saxophone. UndergraduateLive Audition DateFebruary 18, 2020 FlutePrescreening auditionPlease select two pieces in contrasting styles from the list below:
Live AuditionPlease prepare all pieces from the list below
Oboe, clarinet, bassoonPrescreening AuditionPlease select two pieces in contrasting styles from the list below. Live AuditionPlease prepare all pieces from the list below
GraduateLive Audition DateFebruary 18, 2020 FlutePrescreening AuditionPlease submit selections from the list below.
Live AuditionPlease prepare all pieces from the list below
Oboe, Clarinet, and BassoonPrescreening auditionPlease select two pieces in contrasting styles from the list below. Live AuditionPlease prepare all pieces from the list below
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On Live Audition Day
What to Expect
The faculty listening to your audition will represent your area of study. They may choose not to hear all the music you have prepared. Do not interpret this negatively: time limitations prohibit the faculty from listening to each applicant’s entire audition repertoire.
Plan to arrive at the Conservatory of Music at least one hour before your scheduled audition time. You will be brought to a practice room 30 minutes before your audition to prepare yourself both mentally and physically. Wear neat and comfortable clothing that projects your seriousness and desire to study music on a professional level.
What to Bring
Please bring a typed repertoire list and a typed list of the pieces you intend to play. Though not required, we encourage you to bring additional materials, such as a resume, letters of recommendation, and unofficial transcripts. (Note: Accompanists are only provided for voice/opera studies auditions; all other applicants are encouraged to bring their own, but accompaniment is not required). A rhythm section will be provided for all jazz auditions.
Placement Exams
Theory placement exams will be given online over the summer. Keyboard and Ear Training placement exams will be given during orientation week.
Students in Jazz Studies do not take any placement exams.
Questions?
Question-and-answer sessions will be held throughout the day. Specific times for these sessions will be available at check in. These sessions will be followed by a campus tour. All applicants, their families, and guests are welcome to attend. No reservations required.
After the audition, you are free to go.