BGSU College of Musical Arts: Audition Prep Virtual Information Session

Yes, I can hear you yay. Hi, I'm Colleen.

I.

Yes, we can hear each other awesome. Well I'm Kelly, Carlton and I work in the awesome admission. I just want to let you know that I hear awesome things about you. I guess you're all busy. Um, I am also a musician. I graduated from the college musical arts back in 2003.

Also, right before I came on, yeah I came in 2004.

Yes, right? Yes, right before you came on literally, I remember hearing about you and so Mrs Bentley was my professor.

Oh cool.

Yes, yes.

No, you're a flute student. Awesome.

Nigerians.

Yeah.

Yes, yes I love Oh my gosh, she's a basey. I just saw her in October.

Choose me.

Oh yeah.

And it was so great I I cannot wait to see here. Once the pandemic, you know, once we get the vaccine and everything again, but I still called Mrs. Bentley sick. You don't have to come in. I'm like no, I will never not call you that like ever ever, ever, ever. Yes, Oh my God, just so good to like meet you officially.

Yeah, this is great, so you must have a busy day today.

Yes, yes very much so.

Nathan

It's so yes, and it looks like we have some students here as well. So yes, so Doctor Pelletier and I were just meeting each other. So first of all, welcome everybody.

And so I'm clear out some senior missions. Cowser an awesome admissions, so I promised him a little bit under the weather with my voice.

But then when I voice major 'cause I would be terrible, right? Um, so just let you know I am here along with some other colleagues and so they will introduce themselves in the chat. But I will be here as a moderate are as well. But just wanna let you know that I am also a musician. So I graduated in 2003. So when you guys were born

and graduated with a flute performance degree from the college musical arts, and so I am so excited to be here and to introduce Doctor Pelletier as well, he is in acclaimed.

Horn professor here. In around the world as well, and so without further ado, I do want to introduce him. Just want one thing before I do that. Please feel free to interact in the chat. We are here to answer your questions as well. Anything related to music to campus life. Of course, the audition process to admission process as well. Just let you know that we have opened up bar.

Um commits options. We love to commit not only to cause me, so I put the Bowling Green State University and then to break the ice. You know, please look for the last know your name, your hometown, and A twist. We usually ask, like what your favorite movie or TV show, but let's let us know when you're famous, famous, famous favorite composer or musician is so my favorite composer is Igor Stravinsky.

And my favorite pieces rite of spring. When I heard that I was aghast and there have been the same ever since. So well further do Doctor Alattar.

Thanks so much, thanks.

Thanks yes.

Or peltier?

Also, joining the Hat is Doctor Nelson, our assistant Dean for admissions for the college musical Arts, and the greatest bassoon professor you could imagine. So she's a fantastic person. Great colleague, so feel free to reach out to her in the chat as well.

I would say I guess my favorite composers Benjamin Britten and his serenade for tenor horn and strings really changed my life when I first heard it, but back when I was in high school, so welcome to everybody. I'm glad you're here. I my job today is hopefully to make your audition process easier. As easy as it can be, an more successful and to take some of the question marks out of the whole process of auditioning. So on your screen right now with the slides, you should have the front page up.

And there's a lovely photograph of Brian Recital Hall. That's our kind of 2nd. We have three kind of performance venues for the college musical Arts Spring Recital. Hall seems to be the one that gets the most traffic. You'll have some of your classes in their music theory. Some of the music history classes you will probably be having your degree recital there as well. An going to other faculty recitals and chamber music recitals. There's also the Conrad room in the Donnell Theatre, as well in the Wolf Center for the Arts.

As well as Kobacker Hall, which is our alive large live venue so.

Let's talk about auditioning. Everybody's favorite thing right circa.

Here we are, so let's talk about a few things for you to consider.

When you are preparing for your audition, so things to think about before the audition, OK?

I can't stress this enough for you to to think about and that is in the audition process. Everything that we do is about the quality of the audition. Kualiti is number one in audition so I remember back in when I was in high school thinking about college Edition. Some of my friends would often get into the trap of thinking that the more things that you audition on, the better odds you had of getting into music school when really it's.

All about quality. So if you're someone who's blessed enough to be a multi instrumentalist, really your best bet is to choose one thing that you do really, really well and make that where your center of your audition will be is on that discipline.

So it's important to check all repertoire in audition requirements for your audition set. You don't want any surprises, right? The last thing you want is to feel really prepared for your audition. You go in and the person you're auditioning for. So let's hear this other thing that you had to prepare, and you only have the one that's a killer for your nerves, right? It will make your nerves go out of control. So the best thing we can do for our nerves is be prepared. So do the research.

Every music school, including the College of Musical Arts, has all of the audition requirements posted for every musical discipline. So you have a chance to be prepared.

It's also going to need to check to see if there are scales or sight reading that will be involved in the audition process.

Also, you want to make sure that you double check all audition dates and deadlines for applications or registering for the audition date.

Now in the college musical arts, we have three more audition dates coming up soon, the 20th next week, as well as the 26 in the 27th, the week after. Now, these are important because this next bullet on the slide where it says double check, scholarship and financial aid deadlines. So for us in the college musical arts, we have a scholarship program called the Bravo Music Award and that is a merit based scholarship that is determined solely on the quality of your audition.

So.

But the deadline for that is the audition date on the 27th. Now the sad news here is that our deadline for registering for the 20th, 26, or 27th has passed. Unfortunately, it was yesterday the 13th, so I can say this 'cause Doctor Nelson's on the chat. If you really want to audition on the 27th and make it for the Bravo Music Awards, you could beg. And I mean big today. Send her an email and see if you can get it under that audition date.

And if not, you can always schedule a private audition with the studio that you're auditioning for before the 27th. As long as we hear auditions by the 27th, you're automatically eligible for a Bravo Music Award, which is again a scholarship based solely on the quality of your audition. Grades are not involved. Any of those kind of standardized testing? SCTS 80 not involved at all, just on the quality of your audition, but it has to be done by the 27th, so it's really important that we have all those dates and deadlines.

In our mind.

Our last edition date coming up is on April 17th, so if you can't make any auditions before the 27th, you can also audition in April. Sadly though, that audition is pasta Bravo Music Award deadline, so you would not be eligible for one of those scholarships if you're a junior. I can't stress this enough that April Day is also our junior audition day and what that is a program that allows you to go through the entire process of the senior audition, just like you would do next year.

But get feedback right then and there from the faculty to get an idea of how to be better prepared and have a more successful addition. The year following, which I find always yields a greater audition for the senior. If they've done the junior audition 'cause all the question marks are moved and the student feels. Of course more relaxed in the audition 'cause they know what to expect. So I really, really recommend you take a look at that. If you're a junior, that again is April 17th.

It's also a great time now to start considering your grades. I know we hate to talk about it, but.

You need to start looking at your grades in high school as free money. The higher you can get your GPA, the more financial aid comes to you from the University.

Based solely upon that, it's free money from the state, so the better you can get your grades, this more solid your GPA could be. The more financial opportunities coming your way and those are independent of anything from the college musical arts. So it really is free money in a lot of ways. Something to think about. OK, now preparing for the big day.

For some reason I cannot control my slides.

I am having hope here. We are so preparing for your big day. How to be prepared for your audition to make sure that you feel as prepared as possible.

Well, first private lessons are critical to having a successful audition.

For two reasons, one of course you're going to have someone who's going to give you some objective feedback and help. This is so important we can't tell what's going on in an objective way all the time of what's going on in our performances.

You know part of us is busy performing at the time. We can be listening with our full attention and paying attention 'cause we're actually doing it, so it's important to play for somebody else or perform for somebody else. Seeing if you're a singer and get feedback because they're going to tell you exactly what's happening. The other thing is that's a benefit with lessons as it gets you nervous and we get into the practice of being nervous and performing anyway. It's important to understand that nerves in performance don't.

Actually ever go away for us. We learn how to deal with them and we learn how to make them give us actually a better performance overtime.

But they only get under that kind of control through regular exposure. So performing for somebody else does really do good things for us. So lessons are a must. Don't ever be as afraid to ask for feedback.

People do want to help any professional musician likes to see the next generation coming up and will do anything we can to help out. It doesn't have to be a particular specific instrument either.

Do some trial lessons with your high school band director, Choir Director, Orchestra director. Anybody who can listen and give feedback.

And it's not always about money. I understand how difficult that can be. I grew up poor myself originally from from a northern New England. And you know, I felt strapped for cash a lot and it was hard to pay for lessons, but I will tell you.

If you show interest and a real desire to improve.

People will want to help and I have done lots of different things for lessons. I have shoveled driveways for lessons I've mowed lawns for lessons, I've babysat for lessons I've painted garages for lessons in the summer time. There's always things that you can barter for a lesson that doesn't just involve money so they don't get into the nasty trap of feeling it always has to be about money. And I can't afford lessons. I can't take them. Find a way. There's always a way to have lessons.

It's a great idea.

To take a trial lesson with the faculty that you'll be auditioning for, and it's literally just a matter of contacting them via email and see if you can set up a trial lesson before the audition, and this is really strategically very intelligent for you the auditioning. Let me give you an example. True story here. I had a student who is interested in joining the Horn Studio at the College of Musical Arts. Contacted me and said they wanted some lessons before the audition, so they took three lessons with me.

And I got to see that student improve over the course of those lessons and we worked well. Interacted well.

Came the day of the audition. The student got very, very nervous and did not play very well. To be honest compared to what I had heard in the last lesson leading up to the audition. Now let's think about this. Had that been the first time I heard that student perform.

I would have thought this person is really not ready for music school.

But since I had had all that exposure to that student through the lessons before the audition.

I knew this student is good, they wanna learn. They're just getting really nervous and it's affecting their performance. So the fact that we had those trial lessons beforehand was an advantage to the student. They got accepted into college. Musical Arts, made it through their education and Bachelor music education just fine. Went out, got a job there now finishing up their Masters degree in music education. So this is all doable but impossible. Had I?

That student not had that trial listen experience with me before the audition, so it's really a good idea to do that. And you also in music school. The most intense personal relationship you're going to have with a faculty member is your private instructor in the studio. It's the one faculty member you're going to be on. A one to one relationship with every single week.

So we want to make sure that you're working with someone who you enjoy, but they also challenge you. They don't just tell you everything you're doing is wonderful. I mean obviously it may not be. You're not playing in the New York Lemanek yet, but so they can challenge you. But you also feel like you respect them and enjoy their company and learn from them. It's a two way relationship. You want to be looking into.

And of course, the third bullet there about preparing practice getting nervous. Like I said earlier with taking lessons, it gives you a chance to get nervous, create little mini events that are not really official, or have any bearing, but it'll be surprising to you how much adrenaline, how much nerves they can create, like?

Just.

Get a few of your friends together. You know of course, distance and masked, but put them in your living room and play your audition material for them. Four or five of your best friends who you really care about and really love. You're going to be stunned how nervous you get because you care about what they think. And in the end you're not doing it to impress them. And it really doesn't matter how well you perform in that moment, it's just to get used to the nerves more you play in front of people. The more you get.

Exposed to nervous energy, the more you're able to control it and the less it affects your performance. So play for everybody, friends, family, enemies, pets, you name it. Play for everybody to get through that nervous anxiety and super forming.

I answer the next slide.

Here we are.

Here we are on the big day preparing and you're all ready to go and now it's the day of the audition. What to expect.

So remember that your audition is your official college musical arts application.

But you're still going to need to do a BGSU application, so we need both. You'll need to apply to the University proper through the University website. The whole applications online.

And for this college musical arts, your official application is the audition.

So this year, all of our auditions thanks to covid all of our additions are online via zoom through, get accepted, but Doctor Nelson's been incredible at trying to create as much of the environment and the excitement and the interaction of our usual in person audition days. So there will be a lobby where you can chat with other people meeting with the faculty as well as having your audition. In the audition, you'll be performing solo selections. There may be some scales or maybe some site rating.

OK, so this is where it's important in your preparation knowing.

As you found out, if they need scales.

Understanding that we need to make scale practice part of our daily Life OK, you may be asked to do.

Have all of your scales prepared all the majors and all three forms of minor, and that sounds like a huge amount of scales. But what we do is we break it down. Don't try to do all of your skills every day. Have the major day a natural minor day, a harmonic minor day, a melodic minor days circle back the major, but make scales a daily endeavor to make them more and more stable and predictable. An able to be performed well.

Remember, it's all about quality. It's also knowledge of self. If you're primarily playing in hand, and that's been your experience at this point, you're probably really experience of playing in flat keys. You probably haven't played a lot in sharp keys like E major or a major, so in your scale practice, be strategic. Understand you may have to spend more time on your sharp keys. Then you're flat keys. Just 'cause of exposure.

In the Horn Studio, I'll tell you right now, I almost never asked for a flat key in the audition because I know more and students can play them. I will go to the sharp keys. Two mistakes that I see frequently in scale worked that will help you in your preparation. One make sure that you put your scales in a standard stable tempo. Give them a pulse. Don't just play a scale, put them in a rhythm with A pulse. That's the second Step 2 is. Put them in a rhythm, so I always recommend.

1/4 note on the octaves and 8th notes in between. Bah Bah, Bah Bah puppy puppy puppy.

Impulse we can then regulate it if we just kind of launch into the scale without a pulse and without a rhythm, I find we get confused in the middle of the scale, usually on the way down.

And then we stumble, which then of course gets us more nervous. So put them in rhythm, put them in a tempo that does not have to be fast, it just has to be good. Remember, it's all about quality.

Now, in the audition itself, you may be performing for one faculty member. You may be performing for all of the faculty in your discipline or some faculty member and their graduate students. It does vary studio to studio. So for instance, BGSU. If you're a pianist or a vocalist or a string player, those areas all the faculty like to hear everybody. So know that you will be performing for a group of people.

In the other studios, it varies in the Horn Studio. It's just for me, say for instance in the clarinet studios, the Professor Chef is on sabbatical this year. I believe he's hearing auditions though. He likes to hear it with himself and his grad students, and he uses it as a pedagogical tool to teach his grad students what to listen for an audition for when they run their own studios. So you may be playing for a couple of different people. It does. Fairy don't freak out.

It's gonna be fine.

In any audition, there's usually going to be a little bit of time at the end of the audition, usually for us to get to know each other a little bit.

We may have questions for you. We will ask if you have questions for us and this is a chance for us to interact. Now, that's always a hard question. You know when you just played this audition, you've been nervous out of your mind. You can think, and the faculties are. So do you have questions for us?

My next slide.

We'll have some suggestions for you. Here are some good questions to consider asking when we give you that dreaded question of so do you have questions for us?

These are some great ones to think about. It's it's perfectly fine to ask how big is the studio normally. What's the studio makeup in terms of Rieti of majors? What's the undergraduate graduate student ratio you want to get an idea of what the community is like within that studio? You know how many people you're going to be around that are similar to you and experience in degree course of study. People. You'll have relationships with, not a problem to ask that question.

Another great question is what is a regular lesson look like with you on a weekly basis in the CMA? What kind of music would be working on? Are there particular books you think I should pick up before I come to school? What are perhaps a tudes or studies that use a lot gives you an idea of what you may already have in your library or what you may need to pick up?

I love this one Anna. Few students have asked me this over the years and I always love it when I hear this one. What things are you looking for in a new student? So you're asking this faculty member? What for them?

Makes an excellent college music major.

What makes a student stand out?

And this gives you an idea of what kind of work ethic that professor is looking forward. Kind of creativity or initiative. Self discipline, all those sorts of things. You get a sense of how you'll work with this faculty member. Then there's all these personal questions you can ask. Very simple ones like or your favorite parts of working at BGSU or living in Northwest Ohio because we may give you some insight into the cultural life of the town or what's available, or things that you can do off campus that might be good. Stress reliever is when you're in the middle of your music study.

Better in town. All good things to think about. And again it's creating a relationship between you and your professor. Like I said, will be the most personal relationship you'll have the faculty member in your time of music study.

So next slide. So some important things for you to think about when you're in the process of auditioning. I find these help.

Number one.

No one who's auditioning is having a good time or a great day or feeling wonderful, and everything is great. No, everybody is scared, everybody is stressed, and that's all totally OK. That's to be expected. OK, don't think I'm a nervous wreck, but everybody else is very calm and they're all playing much better than I am. No, no, no, we're all struggling and we're all thinking exactly the same thing. We're taking an audition.

No one feels wonderful in an audition.

What is important though to remember is that all of us on the faculty we all want you to succeed and we all are hoping you have a great audition. No one is rooting for you more than the faculty that are hearing your audition. We're not sitting there hoping for you to mess up like oh good. They screwed up. I don't have to accept them. I'll have no one in my studio. Exact opposite. We all want you to audition. Well, we're all rooting for you to do well, we all.

Understand what it feels like to have a rough audition or be particularly nervous. I mean, think about it. Any faculty member that you auditioned for has probably had.

At minimum 50 auditions in their life.

At minimum, we all get it, we understand, so don't think they were all sitting here counting every mistake or not. We're just trying to see you do your best.

Take your time through the audition process. There's no rush to get on to. The next thing you know. If you need a little water, have a drink. That's fine if you're a brass player for a horn player, get the water out of your horn. Or if you're bassoonist, get the water out of your vocal. Take the time to set yourself up for a good performance in the next piece. Take your time. We all understand.

Important, regardless of what instrumental, discipline or vocal discipline you have, especially voice, but any of us breathe. Make sure you're breathing when we get nervous, the first thing that goes out is our breath. We start breathing very shallow and from our chest and more like a panting breath, which creates more nervous anxiety. So make sure you're breathing before your audition. In the audition after audition, just to keep you centered.

And relax, there's a breath that I like to do. I do it every time I go on stage. I do it before I come on stage. I'm off stage, I do this breath. I do it before major performances. I do this in any audition I've done it. You take a very nice long slow breath in through your nose and then release it through your mouth. So let's all do that together. So in through the nose out through the mouth.

Do that again.

When one more.

I bet every single one of you right now feel calmer than you did 10 seconds ago.

That breath lowers our blood pressure.

And it just makes everybody feel more centered, more stable, calmer. I do that all of the time off stage before performance, before I come on for a recital. If I'm taking an audition, I do this all the time. Take that time before your audition. I mean, I will tell you with covid, we're in a strange time. No one would have ever thought that sitting in your living room in front of a computer.

Waiting to be admitted to an audition room would make someone nervous, but it really makes someone nervous in many ways, more nervous than standing out in the hallway, hearing the person auditioning before you. That's the perfect time to do this. Press is before you get admitted into the audition room. Take the time breathe. Remind yourself that the faculty wants you to do well. We're all rooting for you.

Take your time and just do your best. No one's expecting you to be perfect. We just want to expect you to do your best. And remember Lastly that in the audition process.

You're auditioning us every bit as much as we're auditioning you.

This is not all us judging you. This is also you getting a sense of do I feel welcome at the College of Musical Arts. Can I see myself there?

Does this faculty member seem to have my wish? Is my my hopes my future and in their heart and Dan are rooting for me and want me to do well? Do they challenge me? Do I respect their work? Do I feel like I'm learning from them? These are all important questions, so it's a two way St, not just us.

Judging you.

And finally, after you do your audition.

Come the result. So no no no call.

Understand that depending when in the year you're auditioning and we're getting into the thicker part of the year February into March with lots of audition results that we have to go through, it might take a few weeks, two or three before your audition results. Bcom. That does not mean it's an automatic, no. It means we're getting through all the audition results.

I understand there are some studios that put everybody on a wait list.

Now wait list is not a know. It means, uh, wait. Some studios like to hear everybody before they make their decisions. I don't know if he still does this, but doctor Salmon in the saxophone studio traditionally has done this. He puts everybody in a wait list until he hears everybody. Then he makes his decisions. So it's not a negative. If you get a result back this as you're on a wait list, you calm. It's just the way that studio maybe working their studios at year.

An important thing also is that if you do happen to get your audition results, they come back.

And it's a no.

That you have not been accepted into the college musical arts.

I know is not necessarily always a know. Sometimes it's a not yet. So let me give you an example. I had a student years ago who auditioned for the college musical arts and they were dedicated to come and work with me at the CMA. They really, really wanted to be part of the Horn Studio an. The audition was not very good sadly, so they were not accepted. They contacted me and said look, I really want to come to BGSU and work with you in the College of Musical Arts. That's the only place I want to go. I'm not interested in going to school anywhere else.

You recommend.

And he said, well, why don't you come?

Come in as a non uh unidentified. You know non major basically undeclared major.

And you can come in and start doing your general education classes, understand that and a liberal arts education like BGSU. Everybody has some exposure to certain studies that everybody should know freshmen writing. There's going to be some science is there may be a math class in there. So I told this person come start that process. Take some of those general studies classes that you're going to have to take anyway, regardless of your major.

I will set you up with one of my graduate students to get lessons throughout the year to keep your chops going forward. I will meet with you 2 three times. You know, maybe once a month or something to prepare you for your audition. An re audition.

And this person did. They came in as a undeclared major, started the class work, or to the Grad student, took lessons with me, got into the studio, auditioned beautifully and successfully, completed their degree. So here's a good example of the initial response was no. But this person said.

It can be done, so I want to go to BGSU. I'm going to make this happen so don't always consider that the no is a no is sometimes and not yet. I would act would actually also add one more thing. Understand that when you hear back from us on your audition results.

It will probably be just a notice about the result of your audition, but not of the Bravo Music Award. Those decisions are made after we've heard everybody after the 27th of February, so those results come out in March, so again.

You'll get the results from the audition. Don't feel like you didn't get a scholarship because there's no mention of that that's coming later. So again, be calm.

So, as with all things, if you have any questions, here is the email for the music. Admissions. Doctor Nelson and her team are fantastic, and we'll take some Q&A now.

Yes, so I'm back.

Um, so first of all, thank you so much. Doctor Pelletier really appreciate you and all of your wise wisdom feedback that you've given on the audition process.

I just wanted to just reiterate you know there were some questions, or if you could reiterate. There were some questions in the chat about the audition. If people had conflicts, how do you work through conflicts with audition dates of students? Have you know you know being in different orchestras, you know, so there's still some performances and things are going on with bands and things like that. Work through that.

Yes.

Sorry.

Oh yeah, or yeah, where there's a family event or something and they can't make it that audition date. So in that scenario in fact I just heard an audition this morning before this webinar.

Did the student Contacts me directly and says look, I want audition but I can't make any of the audition dates and we just schedule a private audition date. I then let admissions know I've scheduled this. A date with this person and it's perfectly fine. And then I submit the the audition results after the audition. Very simple. Just contact the faculty member directly as well as the admissions office. Contact both and say look. What can I do? I can't make the official audition dates.

That's awesome. Yeah, we work very closely with all the fact different faculty members. So like Doctor Pelletiere doctor Sam pin, you know all different staff members as well to make sure that this is a seamless process for you so you know we want to make sure that is, you know.

This is the best fit for you and that you're feeling comfortable throughout this whole process because we understand that this is a very unconventional year to say the least. With our pandemic going on with the audition process, and so you know, feel free to reach out to any of us throughout this whole thing, yeah?

Yes.

Yeah, and they may want another thing, it just popped into my head with with the pandemic with covid understand all of you that we know that zoom is not necessarily going to recreate your sound exactly the way it is in an acoustic, so none of us are gonna take a hold. The student responsible for weird technology issues or if zoom freezes up, or if the sound is not right.

We all get it you. We will roll with it. It's not your fault. It's all out of our hands so don't worry bout that.

I do have a question for you.

At last, students will ask, you know me as well when you're talking about skills. Are you looking at major minor scales? Are you going? Are you looking at mode? You know different modes with scales. Where are you looking forward to looking at different octaves? What kind of baseline? Looking at when looking at scales?

So this is where you need to go to the CMA website and check audition requirements for each studio consumed. Studios are different than others and and we we've been good about posting them on the CMA website. Exactly what will be asking for, like for instance on the Horn Studio. It's all scales. So all major, all forms of minor, no modes in two octaves.

Awesome.

You know, So what will post it? It's all on the CMA audition requirements.

He

That's great, thank you for that. Appreciate that. Does anyone have any questions as we're kind of going through what will be here, you know, for a couple, definitely for a couple more moments. If you have any questions, this is a great opportunity. You're getting a great insight that allow other students aren't getting. It's the audition process, so please feel free to ask any questions as a safe place so no ones judging you.

This opportunity.

Right there questions. They're all good questions.

Yes, are all good questions, so no one is using this for you. Guess you anything like that so please feel free to ask. I wish I would have had this opportunity. I was auditioning.

Is there a member sitting there like Oh my gosh, I thought that felt that they were checking everything, but definitely was not the case and I actually had the opportunity to sit in on junior audition days and actually my professor at the time allowed me to do audition dates and it was very insightful as well. So it's a great opportunity.

Yes.

They put you through the whole process, so there's no question marks. The next year you know exactly what's going to run, how to be prepared, what's expected, which takes so much of the nerves away, 'cause you know what's coming.

Yes, absolutely. It says there's a question about. In order to qualify for classes, do I have to have a live audition or can you pre record have do prerecorded videos so?

Can you? Yeah, it can be prerecorded or live so long as it's done before the 27th or on the 27th or before the 27th is the last day of hearing auditions that make you eligible for the Bravo Music Award. They can be pre recorded, it can be live either.

Great, and then there's another question about do you usually specify what time natural, harmonic minor are natural, harmonic, or melodic minor scale? Do you want to play an unusually specific on how many octaves? So I would say yes to that, yes.

Yes again, double check on the CMA audition requirements for your discipline. It will be posted there, for instance in the Horn Studio. I will say in the audition you know, give me a B natural minor for two octaves. You know I'll be very specific in the audition.

No no no.

No.

Yes, so yeah, there won't be any of those surprises. It sounds like you know you know like play a whole tone scale or on to tonic scale or anything like that, yes?

Yes.

Yes.

No, I I I want to make sure there's absolutely no surprises for the students. You know, auditioning are enough on its own. We don't need to make it harder.

No no.

Oh, another question, do you? Are you going to require your pianist during the audition process question?

Oh, that's good. That's a fantastic question, um.

I do not. I know the only I don't think any studio is requiring it. You don't need to have pianists at all. The question I'm having in Doctor Nelson may be able to chime in with this. Is the voice area. I don't know how they're doing it.

Collaborative pianists for the zoom auditions. Historically, when we have live auditions at the CMA, we will provide you with a collaborative pianist. If your voice student 'cause they'll expect you to have a collaborative pianist with you, so I'm not certain how we're doing it this year with the zoom auditions.

So there's one if you're. If you're vocalist, it's a matter of just sending an email to music admissions, or to doctor Critial, who's the coordinator of voice study and just say I'm auditioning. I makes you know. First off, of course, check the audition requirements on the CMA. It will be there and there may be discussion about collaborative pianists. If you still have questions, contact music admissions or the individual faculty member that will be auditioning for or the coordinator of that area. And say, do I need a collaborative pianist?

Yes, that's a great. That's great question. Another question that is commonly asked. Um, is after the audition, so you know, allow students you know. Maybe two more players or some other players who maybe not traditionally may not have a tuba. Using the schools, how does that work?

Yeah.

If they are admitted with.

Yeah, so if you are, if you audition an are admitted and you don't own your own instrument.

I would say the first thing you do is contact the studio instructor and say OK, I don't have an instrument. What do you recommend because two things will happen. One you want to make sure you're doing it as early as possible 'cause they may have resources for you to purchase an instrument at a very low price. They may know people who sell instruments, used instruments and then you have like the rest of the spring in the summer to maybe get a job, hopefully pay for it.

If that's not a possibility, they will also give you resources, perhaps in the CMA to use a studio instrument or instrument owned by the college.

But the more lead time they know who needs them. They can then make arrangements for and make sure everybody's all set.

Yes, thank you for that.

Yes.

Yeah, absolutely.

Yeah, you don't need a 9 carat gold flute like I have, right?

Play.

Not as a freshman.

Right?

OK, there's a question. Is there a limit for how many people can get into a studio? What percentage of those who auditioned get in? Um, yes. So what is the percentage? Yes, they get in.

So that's that studio to studio and.

I would just recommend remember that it's all about quality.

Yes.

You know it's not about a studio, has these many slots that are open? My take is this.

It's all about quality for me. If I hear 15 horn players that I'm interested in and play well, and I want in the studio, I'm taking all 15. If I hear two that are good, I'm taking two so for me I'm talking As for my own studio, it's not about spaces in the studio and all that's about quality.

So just focus on the quality of your audition and being as prepared as possible and the rest will sort itself out.

Yes, I agree. I think I think just in this for my personally, for myself, I think sometimes two students will ask me the same thing about scholarships. Will Miss Kochler available. We want to just focus on you and what you bring to the table so we can always make concessions on you. Know how many can offer you know if we have a good candidate pool of you know 500 students and there we were only offering you know 300 or whatever it maybe we can make those we can make.

Exactly right.

Concessions on how we're going to offer and what we can do moving forward. So never get copper the number of what we could. What we initially think we're going to offer things. Change a pandemic hammock. We never thought that would happen in this world. We've changed so many things that have happened because of that. So you only want to focus on what you could bring and bring your personality through and things will always happen. If it's meant for it to happen for you.

Yes.

That's right, that's right. And and the one thing you can control in all of this is the quality of your performance.

You can control that you can't control what the studio sizes you can't control how many you know, how many instruments are auditioning in your discipline. We all know there is some instruments that are just more competitive than others. If you're a flute player versus your bassoon player, you know the numbers are going to be very different. So but in the end, it still is governed by how well that person performs. It's the only thing you can control, so focus on that.

Yes, absolutely. We have. Another question is so good one. How would how will you? The sight reading go via zoom?

Do you have sight reading?

Some studios are doing it, some are not. I mean I know for the Horn Studio this semester I've waved it this year anyway, because it just.

I don't have an easy way of doing it by assuming.

That may be one that if it would make you more calm and more centered to know beforehand whether you will be asked or not, contact the person you're auditioning for.

Yes.

And say how are you going to be doing zoom with sight reading? What's what's going to happen and they may say, oh, I'm not doing it this year, you know or let me tell you exactly what it's going to be like. And then you're prepared. You know what's gonna happen again? We want to take all the surprises out and don't feel like you're bothering a faculty member or asking a stupid question. I'm asking that there are no stupid questions we want to help. We want to make sure that you have the most successful audition possible.

Exactly 'cause I mean, this person is really going to be like a second parent to you almost. That's how I felt with my food professor and they really are going to be family to you. I mean I house sat for my my professor. I mean, I still talk to her today. She's like a second mom to me. So you want to have it build this relationship and report with them?

That's right.

As much as they were pulling that rose from a poor with you, so please feel free to reach out. You're not like the other pill, Peltier said. You're not. You're not bothering them at all. In fact, they want to hear from you when they don't hear from you. This actually kind of their get worried you do get worried.

Yes.

Well, it also shows less interest in any live. If we see interesting initiative from a student, we go OK. This is a student that's interested in their own education. Then I just kind of leaving it to somebody else there actually owning it. That's great, well wanna work. So there are no stupid questions.

Absolutely. There's one question. Um is how much of your chance of getting in is hamper by not doing all of the optional requirements for your audition?

Optional requirements what do they mean by that?

I was wondering that as well.

Yeah.

Right?

You pay mean scales and sight reading and all that. That's an optional requirement. It's one of the things that we want to hear in the audition. You know, like 2 contrasting solos and scales. It's not two contrasting solos and perhaps scales or or scales. No, no, it's both. So we want to make sure we're all prepared. I mean this an I hear this all the time soon will come in play. A beautiful Mozart horn Concerto. Everything's fine.

Ask Chris kaylan. It's not good you know, so all that tells me I don't. Then think of this student can't play. I'm just think OK, their priorities where they put all their time into the Mozart and neglected their scales.

Right?

So that means that maybe is a student at some point. Want to talk about how we organize their practice to make it more efficient to cover everything you need to study, but you again, we want to make sure we're doing the best audition we can, so we're going to put in our time for everything and be prepared with everything that were asked to do.

Yes, agreed. And like Riley if you can, if you can come back in and clarify what you were talking about about the optional requirements, that would be great. Caleb, you asked about swimming at record audition, how a sight reading work now will go back to what Doctor Pillow?

Your said about that will depend upon the faculty member, so reaching out to them specifically would be would be great to see if they're even requiring sight reading and what that will be.

Yeah, that's the easy. That's the quickest and easiest way to do it is just contact the person or the studio. You'll be auditioning for an ask for clarification about that.

Yes.

Um?

And so we wait for just a moment to see if OK, there's really so she's so Riley is auditioning for jazz percussion in the requirements listed on the website. Says some of the materials required and some was optional.

So.

Some of the material. Oh OK.

So.

Not sure.

So there are. There are definite things that will be asked to do, and there are some optional things that they can do.

Yes, I'm wondering.

Yep.

With a little baby all done up, um, is anyone else have any questions as I'm kind of looking that up.

Yeah, Doctor Pickle is really close friend of mine so I'll know exactly what's going forward.

We put forward.

See.

Or even if Doctor Nelson might know what Brian might be referring to, feel free to.

Let us know too.

Or if not really, I'll be happy to follow up with you.

OK, says optional, but not required.

Precaution OK.

OK, but it can't be held against you if you don't do it, OK.

Yeah, so will be held against, yeah?

I did it.

I'm sorry.

Doctor Nelson just chime in.

Yeah, she just chimed in our chat so it would not be hard to kiss. Yeah, we're by no means trying to hold anything against you at all. We want to be, as you know, forthcoming as possible and would love to have you know students that are interested to be apart of it.

Yeah, so and again you can feel free to reach out to Doctor Piccolo as well, but yeah it will not be held against you if it's optional we would not hold that standard against one person.

Oh I'm sitting here. Yeah, OK I'm looking at it so some style demonstrations on onset sight reading a big band chart scales and sight reading on your keyboard. Percussion like marimba and then optional. Yeah, that's exactly encouraged, but not required. If you've got a transcription that's done or prepared drum set. So yeah, that's just something you can do, but not expected.

Yes hansmann.

Yep.

Yes, awesome. Is there anything else anyone has questions on us? We're looking to wrap things up.

Yes, well thank you. Thank you everyone. This was so much time. Like literally I want to audition again.

We'd love to have you.

Yes, I can redo my bachelors degree again, right?

Here you go do a Masters.

Do a Masters right awesome. Well thank you so much. I really appreciate this or appreciate all the students and you know all of our Windows, wonderful faculty and staff members are here today. Thank you. Doctor Pelletier for all of your great advice.

Um, you've been really wonderful today. It's been great talking with you students. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to me. Saint missions at bgsu.edu free shots. Your intended faculty member as well. You can reach out to me as well. You know, if you have questions, support live music. Of course. I look forward to.

Thanks so much. Wishing you all the best.

You know, seeing you as music students in the future and footnote so feel free to look at the beach sc.edu/commit. Check out the the junior audition site and we'll see you later bye.

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