Percussion

Prescreening:

• Snare Drum – Delecluse Etude No. 1 from 12 Etudes pour caisse claire. Play from beginning to downbeat of measure 46.
• Two Mallets – Any movement from J.S. Bach’s Sonatas and Partitas for solo violin or Suites for solo cello, no repeats.
• Timpani – Goodman Modern Method for Timpani – Etude #57.

Live Auditions:

• Snare solo or etude
• Demonstrate a long snare drum roll: crescendo from pp to ff, then diminuendo back down to pp over 20 seconds
• Two Mallets solo or etude
• Four Mallets solo or etude
• Timpani solo or etude

The snare drum selection should clearly demonstrate your level of technical ability. The mallet selections should be chosen for musical content and technical difficulty. Applicants may also be asked to demonstrate scales and arpeggios. Rudiments and orchestral rolls at different dynamics may be asked as well. Applicants should be prepared to sight-read on any instrument.

Please bring an extra copy of your solos and any non-standard etudes to your audition.

NEC encourages applicants to submit diverse repertoire, including works composed by women, people from historically underrepresented racial/ethnic groups, and/or musicians from one’s own cultural background.

Recorded Auditions:

Please refer to the below guidelines when preparing and recording your audition.

• Recorded auditions must consist of 15 minutes of video recorded in one continuous take. 
• Selections must be chosen according to the final audition requirements as listed below.
• You are encouraged to play a mixture of solos/etudes and orchestral excerpts. You must include the snare roll, but otherwise may exercise your best judgment in making selections.
• We would like to hear a range of repertoire with technical and stylistic differences.
• Please upload scans of your solos and any non-standard etudes with your recordings.
• Please pay close attention to the sound quality of your recording so that the jury can accurately assess your playing.