All prospective music majors and minors must audition to be considered for admission to the music program.

Regarding the audition please note the following requirements:

• The student should prepare literature representative of different styles and periods of composition to demonstrate your ability and talent. These works should demonstrate your musicianship and technical proficiency to their best advantage. Instrumentalists should select two audition pieces from the following periods of music: Baroque, Classical, Romantic, and/or Twentieth Century. Vocalists should select three audition pieces as described below in the audition requirements.
  
• Instrumental Audition Requirements:
  
  • Bassoon, Oboe, and Saxophone:
    • Chromatic scale covering the practical range of the instrument, in triplets, slurred.
    • All major scales, 2 octaves.
    • Two contrasting solos or movements from a Sonata or Concerto
    • A demonstration of your preparation of an Etude.
  • Brass:
    • Chromatic scale covering the practical range of the instrument, in triplets, slurred.
    • All major scales, 2 octaves where appropriate within the practical range of the instrument.
    • Two contrasting solos or movements from a Sonata or Concerto.
    • A demonstration of your preparation of an Etude.
  • Clarinet:
    • All major scales up to 4 sharps and 4 flats and melodic minor scales up to 2 sharps and 2 flats, two octaves except E, F, and G, which should be 3 octaves.
    • Chromatic scale from low E to high E.
    • Two contrasting solos or concerto or sonata movements (e.g. Concertos by Mozart, Stamitz, Weber), or one solo and one study from either Rose 32 or 40 Studies.
  • Flute:
    • A three octave chromatic scale in triplets slurred.
    • All Major scales, 2 octaves. Cmajor 3 octaves.
    • Two contrasting movements of a piece demonstrating fast playing, slow playing, and articulation abilities. These works should be in different historical styles: for example; A slow movement from a Bach Sonata and a fast movement of a Mozart Concerto. A piece from the solo flute repertoire is also acceptable such as the Claude Debussy "Syrinx."
    • A demonstration of your preparation of an Etude. For example: one of the Cavally, Melodious or Progressive Studies, or any on of the Anderson Etudes.
  • Percussion:
    • Snare Drum:
      • Demonstration of an orchestral roll, flams, and drags.
      • An etude. Suggested books:
        Portraits in Rhythm - Cirone
        50 Contemporary Snare Drum Etudes - Lepak
    • Marimba:
      • All major scales (2 octaves)
      • An etude or sonata movement. Suggested books:
        Masterpieces for Marimba - McMillan
        Modern School for the Xylophone - Goldenberg
    • Timpani:
      • A prepared solo. Suggested composers:
        Vic Firth - The Solo Timpanist
        Alexander Lepak - 32 Solos for Timpani
        Mitchell Peters (Primal Mood, Rondino)
        Garwood Whaley (Statement for Timpani)
    • Jazz (Drum Set):
      • A demonstration of the following styles:
        Medium-tempo swing (with sticks and brushes)
        Up-tempo swing
        Bossa nova
        Samba
        Funk
        Ballad with brushes
  • Guitar:
    • Classical guitarists wishing to apply at Westfield State College may present for audition one selection from each of the following groups of studies, or if necessary equivalent studies by Sor, Carcassi, Giuliani, or Villa-Lobos:
      • Julio Sagreras, Book I, no. 65; Book II, no. 7
      • Leo Brouwer, Etudes Simplices, no. 1, 2, 5, 6, 8 and 9
      • Diatonic major and minor scales by Andrés Segovia: (one major and one minor)
        C major, E-flat major, C-sharp minor, F major and F minor.
      • Contrasting material of equal level of importance may be presented with the approval of the Guitar Department, however in all cases the Segovia Scales are required.
    • Jazz guitar applicants should prepare three pieces from the standard jazz repetoire to perform. Students should play the melody, play the chords, and improvise over the chord changes. Students should be working on sight reading simple melodies, chord symbols, and voiced chords as well. Students should also be working on playing two octave scales and arpeggios in time.
  • Violin, Viola, and Cello:
    • A movement from a concerto and a movement from a sonata. These movements must be in contrasting styles.
    • For violin or viola an étude selected from the studies of:
      • Kreutzer, Fiorillo, or Don’t (violin)
      • Kreutzer, Fiorillo, or Mazas (viola)
    • Technique: For violin, viola, and cello:
      • A 3-octave major scale and arpeggio in any key
      • A 3-octave minor scale and arpeggio in any key
  • Bass:
    • All major scales (Double Bass: 1 Octave, Bass Guitar 2 Octaves)
    • Chromatic scale from low E (2 Octaves)
    • A demonstration of a prepared Etude. Suggested books:
      • Simandl
      • Hrabe
      • Storch
      • Lee
• Vocal Audition Requirements:
  
  1. Three memorized solo selections in a total of three languages.
     • 1 English
     • 1 each in TWO additional languages
  2. Sightreading
     8 - 16 bars of mainly stepwise motion without modulation. Remain in your starting key, sing all scale degrees accurately.
     Perform rhythms correctly, establish and maintain a beat and meter. Any system is acceptable, solfeggio, numbers, single syllable, etc. Self conducting and toe tapping rhythmic activities are encouraged.
     Literature below is a suggested starting point. Selections are by no means limited to the material below.
     Examples:
     
     • English - American folk songs or sacred songs or selections from beginners anthologies such as Pathways of Song (ed. Christy), First Book of Solos(ed. Boytim)
     • Italian - Selections from 26 Italian songs and arias or other Italian collections 16th- 19th Centuries, single composer collections such as Donaudy, Tosti, Vivaldi, Scarlatti
     • German - Brief, simpler selections of Schubert, Schumann, Brahms, Mendelssohn lieder
     • French - Brief, accessible mélodie of Chausson, Chaminade, Faure, Hahn
     • Spanish - Folk song settings of Spanish songs, de Falla, Rodrigo, Nin
     Please note: Selections from Music theatre and popular music are not acceptable for entrance into the music program as a voice concentration in either education or performance tracks.
• Jazz Instrumentalists:
  1. All major scales
  2. Chromatic scale encompassing practical range of the instrument
  3. Two jazz standards of contrasting styles (Blues, Latin, Swing, Ballad, or Jazz Waltz) structured in the following form:
     • 1^st chorus - Melody
     • 2^nd chorus - Accompaniment (rhythm section instruments only)
     • 3^rd chorus - Improvised or Prepared or Solo (option)
     • 4^th chorus - Melody
• Piano Audition Requirements:
  
  1. Play two pieces of contrasting styles from memory. Examples of appropriate repertoire could include:
     • Baroque: Any of the Bach Preludes and Fugues, Bach Sinfonias, Scarlatti Sonatas, selected dances from the Handel Suites, etc.
     • Classical: A movement from a Haydn, Mozart, or Beethoven Sonata.
     • Romantic: Any etude, or solo composition, e.g., Ballades, Nocturnes, Scherzi, etc., from a major Romantic composer--Chopin, Liszt, Brahms, etc.
     • Contemporary: A representative composer, e.g., Barber Excursions, Prokofiev Visions Fugutives, Debussy Preludes, etc.
  2. Play any two scales, either major or harmonic minor in four octaves, in sixteenth notes, four notes to the beat at 80.
  3. Sight read a piece chosen by the audition committee.
  
  The piano department at Westfield State College offers an exciting array of opportunities for both classical and jazz pianists. Students graduating from the piano department at WSC are now teaching in area middle schools in Massachusetts, continue graduate studies at major universities and conservatories across the country, as well as participate in summer music institutes such as the Interlochen Center of the Arts in Interlochen, Michigan.
  
  Jazz pianists begin their studies with two levels of classical training their freshman year, and then devote their last three years to instruction in jazz. Classical pianists, who take four years of applied private instruction in classical piano, have opportunity to play in both the solo and collaborative setting. Studio recitals, departmental recitals, and for piano performance majors, a junior and senior recital, are just a few of the performing opportunities both public and private, for pianists at Westfield State College.

Other aspects of the audition will include:

• Sight-reading and Sight-singing;
• Scales (for pianists and instrumentalists);
• A short written test on Music History and Music Theory, which will include listening/identification;
• A demonstration of piano proficiency for students who have developed this skill.

Audition dates for the current Academic Year:

Currently there are no audition dates scheduled.

Please understand that successful completion of an audition does not guarantee admission to Westfield State College. All students must meet our admission requirements.

If you have further questions, please contact the Music Department directly at 413-572-5356. We look forward to meeting you and hearing your audition.