WVU Symphony Orchestra
Mitchell Arnold, Director of Orchestral Activities
2012-2013 Orchestra Audition Information
Welcome to the WVU Symphony Orchestra Audition page!
Audition Schedule
Auditions will be held the first week of classes during scheduled orchestra rehearsal times: Tuesday 8/21 4-7pm, Wednesday 8/22 7-10pm, Thursday 8/23 4-7:00pm, as well as Monday 8/20, evening.
Audition Sign-ups
Sign-up sheets will be posted sometime during the week of 13 August, if not earlier. They will be posted on the bulletin board behind the ‘north’ doors of 200B. Write your name and instrument on the appropriate sign-up sheet. Please note: you are not signing up for a specific audition time. By Monday evening 8/20, your audition day and time will be assigned by the Director of Orchestral Activities and posted. If there is a problem with your assigned audition time, please contact Dr. Arnold. Adjustments will be made.
Auditions
Auditions will be in Dr. Arnold’s office, room 228A. You should arrive at least 15 minutes before your scheduled time and enter when your predecessor leaves. Pick up an audition form outside 228A, fill it out, and bring it in to your audition. Auditions will consist of your short solo piece as well as orchestral excerpts listed. Auditions will last five-seven minutes
Audition Music
By following one of the links below you will find the title and portion of the required solo work followed by the required orchestral excerpt(s). You are responsible for obtaining the music for your required solo on your own. You should print out the excerpt(s) and bring your own copy to the audition. IMPORTANT: It is your responsibility to prepare your music at or close to correct tempos. Listening to recordings is highly recommended and expected. Your familiarity with the excerpt’s proper range of tempos and manner of execution is an important part of your audition.
For Strings Players
Audition excerpts will be chosen from the Shostakovich Symphony 5 parts (Movements I, II, and IV) provided in .pdf format. You must prepare the entire given part as this will be the major work on our first concert. You will be told which specific audition excerpt(s) to play at the time of your audition. (Any fingerings in the .pdf parts are not required but may be used at your discretion in the audition. They are left over from previous performances and will not be in the performance parts we will use. Section leaders will provide fingerings as needed. Bowings in the parts are valid.)
Required solo pieces are given below:
String Audition solos:
Violin: J. S. Bach – Sonata No. 1 (unaccomp.) Finale (Presto), to first double bar
Viola: J. S. Bach – Suite No.1, Allemande, to first double bar
Cello: J. S. Bach – Suite No. 1, Prelude, to first double bar
Bass J. S. Bach – Prelude in C (from Six Little Preludes)
IMPORTANT: Violin section assignments. Please click the here for violin section assignments for the first rehearsal/concert. Prepare the appropriate Shostakovich Symphony 5 part. Note that some section changes could be made after the auditions. Actual seatings within each section will be determined after auditions.
Please click on the appropriate link below.
Woodwind
Brass
Violin I
Violin II
Viola
Cello
Bass
If you have any questions please contact Dr. Arnold at Mitchell.Arnold@mail.wvu.edu