Commercial Music and Audio Production Audition Guidelines
To be fully admitted into the School of Music, prospective students must:
1. Be admitted to Western Carolina University. Note: admission to the University does not guarantee admission to the School of Music. 2. Apply to the School of Music through our Online Application. 3. Complete a satisfactory live audition for the music faculty. Audition requirements are listed below. 4. Submit a letter of reference concerning your prospect for professional study. 5. Complete the Music Theory Placement Test on the audition day or during the first week of classes.
Music Theory Placement Test The Music Theory Placement Test is designed to assess your knowledge of the basic language of music. It will be used to place you into music theory courses appropriate to your skill level, but will have no effect on your acceptance into the School of Music. If you have transfer credit or advanced placement in music theory, you may be placed into more advanced theory courses upon demonstration of advanced competence. Topics assessed in the Music Theory Placement Test include: • Clef reading • Key Signatures • Interval and Triad Qualities • Scales and Modes • Non-Chord Tones • Meters and Rhythmic Notation • Simple 4-part writing • Harmonic Analysis
Instrument Specific Requirements
Drum Set Prepared Piece Your prepared piece must be: • performed live (it cannot be pre-recorded) • three–five minutes in length.
Improvisation You will improvise over a short instrumental backing track.
Sight Reading Students will be asked to sight read a piece of music on drum set.
In addition to the above requirements you may also be asked to play selected examples from the following list of grooves: • 4/4 swing • 3/4 swing • Jazz shuffle • Funk • Rock • Bossa nova • Mambo • Calypso/soca • Reggae
Audition Day Checklist 1. Sticks 2. Practice pad and stand (for warm-up) 3. Drum key 4. Ride, hi hat, and crash cymbals (if preferred) 5. Double bass drum pedal (if necessary)
A complete drum kit with snare, toms, bass drum, ride, hi hat, crash, and throne will be provided for the audition. However, there will likely not be a kit provided in the warm-up room. Plan to bring your own practice pad and stand for your warm-up. You are welcome to bring your own cymbals, but be prepared to use the ones provided as some of our kits cannot accommodate other cymbals. We do not provide double bass drum pedals.
Hand Percussion (Note this is an option in addition to your drumset audition) You may audition with hand percussion instruments such as congas, bongos, cajon, timbales, frame drum, or another primary instrument. Be prepared to demonstrate the following: • Specific, basic tone on the conga drum (closed tones, open tones, heel-toe, hand-rocking motion, slaps muted, and slaps open) • Basic performance of timekeeping for cha-cha and mambo • Congas: basic tumbao rhythm at a slow tempo—including some basic variations and improvisations • Bongos: basic martillo rhythm at a slow tempo—including some basic variations and improvisations You may also demonstrate any knowledge of basic Afro-Cuban and/or Brazilian accessory percussion instruments.
For further questions please contact. Jon Henson [email protected]
Jazz/ Commercial Piano Scales Demonstration of fundamental piano technique by playing one major and one minor scale, two hands together one octave apart, four octaves up and four octaves down in slower to moderate tempo.
Prepared Piece Demonstration of jazz/pop music styles by playing at least three of the following choices: A Blues – a melody and 2-3 choruses of improvisation, either solo or with a play-along A Rhythm Changes – such as I Got Rhythm, Oleo, Anthropology, or the likes – again melody and a few choruses of improvisation if possible A standard jazz song in a swing style – anything from Ellington, Monk, Bill Evans (the pianist), Mingus, Coltrane and the likes should be fine A jazz ballad and own arrangement of it A bossa-nova piece such as Blue Bossa, How Insensitive, Recordame, or Girl From Ipanema or similar
Any piece of prospect’s choice, be it an original composition or arrangement of cinema, pop, or jazz song or film music
If the prospect has played any classical music, it would be helpful to hear that as well – Bach’s Invention or part of Prelude and Fugue, some Classical period piece such as first movement of Haydn or Mozart sonata, and/or Romantic piece by Chopin, Schubert, Schumann, or similar (not too complicated or too difficult). While this part is not required, it is welcome to those who recently switched from classical to pop/jazz piano.
Sight Reading Sight Reading is required of all Jazz and Commercial Piano Majors. Each prospect is encouraged to demonstrate sight-reading of a standard real book lead-sheet with proper harmonization in left hand and melody in the right hand, as well as a sight-reading of a short two-staff piano excerpt from classical repertoire (both to be determined by the instructor at the end of the audition process).
For further questions please contact Pavel Wlosok [email protected]
Guitar Audition Scales and Chords 1. The performance of major and natural minor scales is required for jazz guitar auditions. Please be prepared to perform 2 octave major and minor scales using at lease 2 different scale fingerings (the shifting of one scale fingering to a new position does not fulfill this requirement).
2. Demonstrate major, minor, dominant, half diminished, and diminished 7th chords off a given root in two different fretboard positions.
Improvisation Perform an improvised solo over a rock or funk backing track of single chord. Many backing tracks are available on YouTube and Spotify, and should forwarded to Dr. Beyt prior to audition.
Performing a Jazz Standard With a backing track, perform a jazz standard of your choice. Examples would be Autumn Leaves, All The Things You Are, Blue Bossa, Recordame, etc. Play the melody for the first chorus, comp the chords of the form for the second chorus, and improvise for one to three choruses over the form. Backing tracks without a recorded bass part can be made available upon request.
Sight Reading Sight reading is required for all jazz guitar auditions at WCU. Students should be prepared to sight read melodic material in traditional music notation (not tablature), and an understanding of key signatures will be required. Open position reading is expected, but it is a good idea to read in higher positions on the guitar neck, such as 2nd, 5th, and 7th positions. Prospective students will also be asked to sight read a chord chart consisting of major and minor chords as well as major, minor, dominant, half diminished, and diminished 7th chords.
For more information please contact Dr. Chris Beyt [email protected]
Bass Audition Scales The performance of major and natural minor scales is required for jazz bass auditions. Please be prepared to perform one octave major and minor scales using at lease 2 different scale fingerings (the shifting of one scale fingering to a new position does not fulfill this requirement).
Performance of Jazz Standards 1. With a backing track, walk and solo over a jazz blues form.
2. With a backing track, perform a jazz standard of your choice. Examples would be Autumn Leaves, All The Things You Are, Blue Bossa, Recordame, etc. Play the melody for the first chorus then walk for the second chorus. Backing tracks without a recorded bass part can be made available upon request.
Funk Bass Line Improvise a funk bass line with a single-chord backing track that does not already have a bass in the recording. Many backing tracks are available on YouTube, and should forwarded to Dr. Beyt prior to audition.
Sight Reading Sight reading is required for all bass auditions at WCU. Students should be prepared to sight read melodic material in traditional music notation (not tablature) and an understanding of key signatures will be required. Prospective students will be asked to sight-read a lead sheet style song by performing the melody for a chorus and improvising a bass part over the chord changes as if accompanying a soloist.
For more information please contact Dr. Chris Beyt [email protected]
MIDI / Synthesis Keyboarding Performance Prepare a piano performance for your audition. You should either play a jazz standard or classical piano piece. You don’t need to play both. Acceptable repertoire examples include Duke Ellington’s Mood Indigo and J.S. Bach’s Minuet in G minor, BWV Anh 115. Here are guidelines to further clarify the requirement:
1. For a jazz standard, you only need to learn an accompaniment part. This means you should play the chords of the lead sheet in your right hand and the bass notes in your left hand. You do not have to play the melody. 2. For a classically notated piece, you need to play exactly what’s on the page.
Bring 3 copies of the sheet music. Please do not get your sheet music from MuseScore! Also, you may not play your own composition for this part of the audition.
Scales (keyboard) Be prepared to play any major scale, 2 octaves, with your right hand. You may also get asked to play a natural minor scale.
Sight Reading (keyboard) You will be asked to sight read a melody with your right hand. After that, you’ll be asked to look at a lead sheet and play a bass line with your left hand. You won’t be asked to do any hands- together sight reading.
Live Technology-Driven Performance You must perform a piece of music that utilizes music technology. You choose your own instrumentation for this. Most auditioning students use their own gear. Here are some examples of commonly used equipment set-ups: • MIDI keyboard and laptop • Launchpad and laptop • Analog synthesizer and guitar pedals • Turntable • DIY Electronic Instrument (circuit-bent toy, Arduino project, etc.)
Your performance should, as much as possible, be an embodied expression of music making. This means your body should physically be engaged in the sound-making process. In other words, do not press a playback button and then stand still while the track plays. Your body should be making the sounds we hear.
For the live technology-driven performance, you are encouraged to play your own composition. It can be any genre. Arrangements are also acceptable. The piece should be 1:30 to 5:00 minutes in length. The composition can be something as simple as looping on a MIDI keyboard or something more virtuosic.
Here is a list of performances that illustrate what we’re looking for: • Koji Kobura’s cover of Around the World by Daft Punk • Panos La’s live ambient performance with the Push 2 • Lisa Bella Donna’s “At Home with Moog Grandmother”
Here are more virtuosic examples: • Grandmaster Flash’s performance in the film Wild Style • DJ Step1’s "Guess Who’s Back” • Clockwerk’s Push 2 Performance • Neon Vines’ Give It Up
Virtuosic performances are not expected of auditioning students, but they are welcome.
MP3 of Original Composition (optional) You are invited to share an MP3 of a composition you have created. This can be any style of music (EDM, hip hop, avant-garde, orchestral, etc.). Submitting an audio file of an original composition is not a requirement; it is optional.
Audition Checklist 1. Send an email to Dr. Kennedy 1 week before the audition with your equipment set-up and, if you like, an MP3 of an original composition 2. Bring 3 copies of the sheet music for your keyboarding performance 3. Bring the equipment you want to perform on (laptop, MIDI keyboard, etc.)
A PA system and a 2-in/2-out audio interface will be provided for you at the audition. In cases of financial hardship, a student may request to use other school equipment on the day of the audition.
You should email your equipment set-up and, if you like, an MP3 of an original composition to Dr. Kennedy 1 week before your audition at [email protected]. Please also notify him if you need to use school equipment for your audition and detail what that equipment is.
For more information please contact Dr. Justin Kennedy [email protected]
Commercial Voice Prepared Pieces – 2 contrasting in style • Perform a memorized classical song with live piano accompaniment. An accompanist will be provided, but you may bring your own. • You MUST provide your own score for the pianist. This score should be either from an original book or copied back to front and placed into a three-ring binder. • Perform a memorized commercial song. The singer has the option to accompany themselves if they prefer. Please note that the audition committee may ask you to perform the song a second time without the use of an accompanying instrument. • Although the faculty audition panel fully appreciates your ability to accompany yourself and play while singing, your audition is for admission to a voice studio. Be sure to sing selections which show the panel WHAT YOUR VOICE CAN DO.
Sight Reading Sight reading and tonal memory exercises is required of all Commercial Voice Majors. You are encouraged to sing with solfege or any sight-reading method you know. If you do not know a sight singing method, it is acceptable to sing with neutral syllables.
Interview The faculty will also have a short discussion with you to get to know you a bit better and to offer a time for the student to ask the panel questions.
For more information please contact Dr. Mary Kay Bauer [email protected]