2013 New York String Orchestra Seminar Audition Information
"I participated in the program in college and it changed my life....These kids are the best musicians in the country, and the program led by Jaime Laredo is a true gem."
- Anthony McGill, principal clarinetist of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and NYSOS participant, 1998 and 1999
The 2013 New York String Orchestra Seminar Application and Audition Repertoire will be available mid-July, 2013.
The audition repertoire will include excerpts from the 2013 seminar repertoire: Mozart's Overture to the Marriage of Figaro and Symphony No. 31 "Paris," Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto in E, Elgar's Introduction and Allegro, Prokofiev's Piano Concerto No. 4, and Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 6 "Pathetique"
Application to the New York String Orchestra Seminar is a two-step process:
- Application and recorded audition submitted—deadline is Wednesday, October 9, 2013
- Live audition scheduled for mid-October through early November
Twenty-four violinists, ten violists, eight cellists, five bassists, two flutists, two oboists, two clarinetists, two bassoonists, two horn players, two trumpet players, and one timpanist will be invited to the 2013 New York String Orchestra Seminar.
There is no fee to apply or attend. Every accepted student receives free tuition, housing, meals, and local transportation (total value more than $3,500). Participants pay only their travel costs to and from New York City.
Important Application and Deadline Information
Applications and audition audio files must be received by October 9, 2013.
Qualifications
- You will be between at least 15 and not older than 22 years of age at the time of the seminar (December 2013).
- You are a technically proficient musician with experience playing in an ensemble or orchestra.
- You have not participated more than once before in the New York String Orchestra Seminar.
Terms of Auditions
- To be considered for admission, you must pass BOTH a recorded and a live audition. Live auditions have different repertoire requirements than the recorded auditions.
- You must pass the recorded audition before you will be scheduled for a live audition. (Previous participants and designated alternates are exempt from the
recorded audition. If you are unsure whether this applies to you, call
the office at 212.229.5873.)
- Those who pass the recorded audition will be contacted to confirm a schedule for a live audition. You must pass a live audition to be considered for participation (no exceptions).
Recorded Audition Repertoire
Each recording must be between ten and 15 minutes long, submitted as an mp3 attachment to your on-line application.
Audition time is limited: depending on the length of the works you select you may opt to play movements rather than entire works.
Remember, the live audition repertoire is different than the recorded audition repertoire.
We strongly recommend that you begin preparing your live audition as
soon as you have submitted your application and recorded audition.
Last Year's Recording Repertoire is described below. The 2013 recorded audition repertoire will be published in July, 2013.
For violin, viola, and cello players*
- Mendelssohn: Midsummer Night's Dream -first page of the scherzo
- A work by Bach
- A contrasting work
For Bass Players*
- Mendelssohn: Symphony No. 4, 1st movement: mm 41—downbeat of 90
- A work by Bach
- A contrasting work
For Flute Players*
- Mendelssohn: Midsummer Night's Dream, scherzo (solo at the end)
- A work by Bach
- A contrasting work
For Oboe Players*
- Brahms: Violin Concerto -2nd movement solo
- Rosini: La Scala di Seta, allegro
- A work by Bach
- A contrasting solo work
For Clarinet Players*
- Mendelssohn: Midsummer Night's Dream, scherzo (Clarinet I, first page)
- A work by Bach
- A contrasting solo work
For Bassoon Players*
- Mozart:The Marriage of Figaro, overture, m. 139-171
- A movement from a concerto or sonata
- A movement from a contrasting concerto or sonata
For Horn Players*
- Choose either Mozart Horn Concerto No. 2 or Mozart Horn Concerto No. 4. From your chosen concerto, play both the exposition of the 1st movement 1 and the exposition of the 2nd movement.
For Trumpet Players*
- four-to-five representative orchestral excerpts
*A movement of a work is acceptable in cases where the selected work of choice is lengthy.
For Timpanists
Note: Timpanist are not auditioned live. Therefore, you must take particular care with your recorded audition, which must be unedited. Please play the following excerpts in the order listed without stopping your recording between pieces:
- Mozart: Symphony No.39, 1st movement introduction (minimize bars of rest)
- Mozart: Symphony No.41, 4th movement, bar 388 to the end (count the bars of rest)
- Beethoven: Symphony No.3: 3rd movement, entire last section after the trio through the end; and 4th movement, final Allegro (coda) through the end
- Beethoven: Symphony No.5: 3rd movement into the 4th movement, letter C to 22 bars of movement 4
- Beethoven: Symphony No. 7:
- 1st Mvt—Vivace through 2nd bar of C
- 4th Mvt—3 before K to the end
- Bartok: Concerto for Orchestra: 4th movement
- Martin: Concerto for 7 Winds, Timpani, Percussion, and Strings: 3rd movement solo through 7 bars of 2/2 time change
Live Audition Repertoire Requirements
Only applicants who audition in person can be considered for participation in the seminar. We strongly encourage early application, as the available audition time slots are often filled before the final deadline. Please indicate on your application your preferred date and location according to the schedule below. We will contact you via email with your confirmed audition time.
The live auditions have a different set of repertoire requirements than the recorded audition. Often the deciding factor in who is invited to participate in the program is how carefully the excerpts are prepared for the live audition. We strongly recommend that you begin reviewing them as early as possible rather than waiting to receive your scheduled audition time.
Last year's cities and dates are listed below. 2013 Live audition dates and Cities will be announced in July 2013 but can be expected to be similar.
- Friday, October 19, 2012: Chicago (strings, winds, and brass)
- Saturday, October 20, 2012: Cleveland (strings only)
- Sunday, October 21, 2012: Cleveland (winds, brass)
- Monday, October 22, 2012: Los Angeles (strings, winds, brass)
- Monday, October 22, 2012: Houston (strings only)
- Friday, October 26, 2012: New York (winds only)
- Saturday, October 27, 2012: New York (brass and strings)
- Sunday, October 28, 2012: New York (strings only)
- Monday, October 29, 2012: Rochester (strings, winds, brass)
- Thursday, November 1, 2012: Bloomington (strings, winds, brass)
- Saturday, November 3, 2012: New York (strings only)
The New York String Orchestra Seminar is supported in part by
