How to Pick Your Audition Repertoire
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Congrats, you decided which music schools to audition for! This is an awesome first step to getting into your dream school. The next step is to start picking out your audition repertoire!
Recommended Reading
Haven’t picked our your music schools yet? Then you should read this article first!
What marimba solo should I play? Is this snare drum etude going to set me apart from the other auditionees? Should I go for a more difficult xylophone excerpt or an easier one?
All of these questions are valid and can be difficult ones to navigate. Luckily though a ton of people have gone through this process and have learned some really valuable lessons including myself and trusted colleagues/teachers. Below, I list some of the insights I think you will find the most useful.
Create a Master Repertoire List
Once you have solidified the schools you are going to audition for, I would gather all of the lists into a single document or spreadsheet. There are certain things that I would make note of including if a piece of repertoire is required for pre-screening, if a school requires a specified piece (ex. Bach Cello Prelude No. 1), if a school requires a type of piece (ex. one of the Delecluse snare drum etudes), or if the list has suggestions. Below I will use the percussion audition lists from the University of South Carolina, the University of Michigan, and the University of Miami. For all pre-screening repertoire, I put an asterisk next to it.
University of South Carolina
Snare Drum
Concert Etude or Solo
Orchestral Excerpt
Marimba
4-Mallet Solo
2-Mallet Solo
Bach Cello Suites or Violin Sonatas and Partitas
Xylophone
Orchestral Excerpt
Timpani
Etude or Solo
Orchestral Excerpt
University of Michigan
Snare Drum
Concert Etude or Solo*
Rudimental Etude or Solo
Orchestral Excerpts (3)
Marimba
4-Mallet Solo*
2-Mallet Solo
Xylophone
Orchestral Excerpts (3)
Glockenspiel
Orchestral Excerpts (3)
Timpani
Etude or Solo*
Orchestral Excerpts (3)
Master List
Snare Drum
Concert Etude or Solo*
Rudimental Etude or Solo
Orchestral Excerpts (3)
Marimba
4-mallet solo*
2-mallet solo
Xylophone
Exotic Birds Excerpt
Two Other Excerpts
Timpani
Etude or Solo*
Orchestral Excerpts (3)
Tambourine
Carnival Overture Excerpt
Cymbals
Romeo and Julliette Excerpt
Multi-Percussion
Solo*
University of Miami
Snare Drum
Concert Etude or Solo*
Rudimental Etude or Solo
Orchestral Excerpts (2)
Marimba
4-Mallet Solo*
Xylophone
Exotic Birds Xylophone Excerpt
Timpani
Etude or Solo
Tambourine
Carnival Overture
Cymbals
Romeo and Julliette
Multi-Percussion
Solo*
Fill Out The Rest of Your List
The next step in this process is to fill out all of the pieces that are not specified in the lists. While there is no exact science to finding pieces, below are some guidelines that I would use if I was to go through this process again.
Find Repertoire That Shows off a Variety of Musical and Technical Skills
This is something that I wish I had done a bit differently, especially when picking my marimba piece. During my master’s auditions, I decided to play Khan Variations by Alejandro Viñao. While I LOVE this piece, it may not have been the greatest choice in an audition context.
This piece is super difficult, but it doesn’t show off everything I wanted. For example, I would have really like to show off my roll technique and manipulation of rubato. Ultimately, Khan Variations worked out for me, but a piece like Druckman’s Reflections on the Nature of Water may have been a better fit in the context of showcasing a variety of skills.
I would apply this advice to each individual instrument. For example, when picking Timpani excerpts I might have one that focuses on quick tuning, one that heavily uses rolls, and one that showcases my time and rhythm. This is done in hopes to cover all of my bases and basic skills.
Avoid Repertoire That Is Too Hard
This is a trap that I think younger students, especially when auditioning for Undergrad fall into. While the difficulty of a piece is an aspect of your audition that the panel will consider when evaluating you, it is not the most important. Playing Velocities poorly is not better than playing Rotation 4 extremely well. When choosing repertoire it would be wise to pick something that will push you through the preparation process but can also play well.
It’s worth mentioning that if you can nail something like Velocities and prepare the other parts of your audition well, then by all means go for it! If you play a really difficult piece with great technical facility and tasteful musicianship, you are sure to impress the panel.
Find Repertoire That Show off Your Personality and Strengths
This was something I think I did really well. I made sure to include repertoire in my audition that would showcase who I am.
For example, I have a long history with rudimental Snare Drum, so I made sure to include a Tompkins French-Rudimental Solo in my audition. I remember having a particularly awesome run during my second audition and getting a “Nice!” from one of the teachers in the room after finishing. It was a small moment, but I was proud of it. Khan Variations also seemed to really work well with my playing personality and voice. I think this piece has a ton of attitude and performing it really brought forth this aspect of my voice!
While I can’t give you any specific advice with this, because everyone is different I do suggest that you reflect on what can set you apart from the other auditionees. Whether you are a kick-ass timpanist, have been listening to Bach since you were four, have snare drum chops for days, or have a knack for theatrics, make sure you showcase these aspects of your playing in your repertoire choices.
Refer to Audition and Repertoire Lists Online
Thankfully, the musical world has a ton of resources when finding appropriate choices for auditions. Below are some that I would recommend checking out:
The Original School Audition Lists
It can never hurt to pick pieces from the lists posted by the school you are auditioning for. A majority of the pieces I chose were already suggested on at least one of these lists.
Professional Audition Lists
You can find really large lists of orchestral repertoire if you look up the required auditions material for open positions in the professional world. I would often cross-reference these and pick out the excerpts that would show up the most on each of these lists. If an excerpt only shows up on one list out of ten, it may not be a good choice for auditions.
Summer Festival Audition Lists
You could also reference summer festival lists. These are often shorter and pick the most popular excerpts from the repertoire. These are almost always going to be safe choices.
Next Steps!
Congrats, you have the first version of your master audition list! At this point, I suggest you bring this list to a trusted teacher or colleague and have them give you some feedback. They are going to be able to tell you if you have holes in the list, if a piece conflicts with another, and more. If they give you the go-ahead, it’s time to start practicing!
Don’t Be Afraid to Change Out Pieces
When I was working up my repertoire, I was really struggling with one of my xylophone excerpts. I practiced it a ton, worked it every which way, and had multiple lessons on it, but it just never clicked.
After two months of this, I finally decided to switch up this excerpt with another one. The sting of defeat was there for maybe two or three days, but the satisfaction of playing a new piece of rep at a high level overtook that feeling pretty quickly. My only regret reflecting back on this was not making the change earlier. It could have saved me some hours in the practice room, or I could have reinvested that time in another aspect of my playing.
Good Luck!
I hope that this information helps when picking out your rep. If you have any questions, feel free to shoot me an email using the contact form or posting a comment down below. I would love to help!
