Audition Tips (For Young People!)

It's Region and District band audition season here in Texas, and that has me thinking about how to have my students approach playing their best and overcoming nerves when the big day arrives. At this point in the year, the music should already be prepared, so the following list is mostly focused on what to do immediately before, during, and after the audition.

1. PRACTICE! This should go without saying. You will feel a lot more comfortable and prepared when the pressure is on if you did your best in learning the music ahead of time. Know your music so well that you could reproduce it from muscle memory even when you begin to feel a little nervous. Practice with a metronome, practice with a tuner/drone, AND practice starting somewhere in the middle of a piece. (The judges may not ask you to start at the beginning!)

2. Warm-up in the way you normally do. Suddenly feeling the need to drill all your scales and etudes because it's the big day will not make you more prepared. Focus on the warm-up you are comfortable with - your longtones, lip slurs, and a healthy amount of scales - and be producing your sound in a natural, relaxed way.

3. Know that you have more time than you think you do. As an adjudicator, many times, hoping that I’ll hear the next candidate take a few deep breaths, focus, and then start playing, the person starts playing as soon as they are in the hot seat. When the pressure is on, you feel like time is moving by quickly, and what seems like an eternity may only be 10 seconds. You certainly have the time to take a few deep breaths, focus on what you’re about to play, and find a starting note.

4. If you have an instrument that builds up condensation, empty your water BEFORE it's your turn to play. Whether its in the warm-up room, in the on-deck chair, or wherever you are before you're in the hot seat, the water needs to be out of the horn ahead of time. Check the water keys, the main tuning slides, and even the valve slides. Do the "steering wheel" if you need to. There is no reason to let the gurgle of water take the spotlight away from all the work you put into making your music sound awesome.

5. Focus on your breathing. In the moment, you may feel yourself begin to get nervous or even shaky. Remember to take deep, slow, relaxed breaths - both before you play, and while you are playing. The combination of remembering to take in a healthy amount of oxygen and also being hydrated will work wonders for keeping your nervous system under control. Which leads into…

6. Bring a water bottle, and drink lemon water (not just regular water). To combat a dry mouth due to nervousness, regular water isn’t enough. Regular water will make your salivary glands think that they are hydrated, and you will stop producing saliva. The lemon in the water will make your salivary glands think they need to make your mouth clean, and you will produce more saliva to flush out the lemon. Gross. But also kind of cool?

Dry mouth not an issue for you? Regular water is fine. Hydration is still important.

7. Use your starting note to find not only the first note, but your best tone. If this is an audition where you are allowed to find the first note of the scale/etude/solo before you begin playing, make sure that the note is not only the correct one, but also the most beautiful sound you can produce. Practice beginning your pieces this way before the audition.

8. Hear the tempo in your head before you begin. This ties into No. 3, in that you should know that you will have the time to do this. Tap the tempo to yourself silently (either with only one toe, or better yet, only in your head!) for at least two measures. Make sure you can produce both the beat and the subdivision. Then stick to that tempo no matter what (unless there is a Ritardando or Accelerando written).

9. Remember that it’s just one day. Sometimes, despite your best efforts, the audition doesn’t go the way you think it will, or the way you want it to. This is ok. One audition will not define your worth as a player, as a musician, or as a person. And if you are reading this post because you are my student and I asked you to, I think you are all awesome and I will still think you are awesome even if you don’t make Region/District/All-State.

10. Have fun! When the heat is on, it’s easy to forget why we chose our instrument and are in band in the first place. Preparing for an honor band audition is an exciting opportunity to learn more challenging music than you would normally be asked to play in band, and taking the time to learn the music will always make you a better musician, no matter your score/ranking. Enjoy the chance to perform and make music for new people, and have fun!

#Music #Band #Auditions #Frenchhorn