Author: claire70
Date: 2011-06-29 16:20
I'm hoping you good people can give me some advice! I have an audition coming up in 10 days - 'only' for an amateur orchestra, but as I've recently moved to a new part of the country, I really want to get in so that I have some regular playing here, otherwise it could take me months or years to find another orchestra nearby.
I have to play for about 5 minutes (!), and there is an accompanist if I want one. I have been preparing various options and soon need to make a final decision! My options are:
1) Britten Metamorphoses: Pan + Bacchus, plus Telemann A minor solo Fantasia, first 2 movements. (I purposely picked unaccompanied stuff as I have had bad experiences with auditions before when the accompanist couldn't play what I gave them.)
or
2) Lalliet Carnival of Venice Variations, up to the end of Variation 4 or 5 (partly because the whole thing is too long and partly because I can't play the end yet!)
or
3) Some combination of (1) and (2)
or
4) Don't decide anything in advance, and ask the panel what they want to hear on the day.
My feelings at the moment about all of these are:
Pan: I can play this well, and from memory, so I'm inclined to play it first to settle my nerves. On the other hand, it is not hugely difficult (and the conductor is an oboist, so he'll know.)
Bacchus: I can mostly play this well too, and mostly from memory, but that evil semiquaver section on the 2nd page is always a risk!
Telemann: This is fine on a good day and I can basically play it, but if I lose concentration I can trip over my fingers obviously. Plus it's a pig to breathe; I can normally manage it but if the weather turns hot on the day of the audition, I may struggle.
Lalliet: Because I'm being selective with the sections I'm doing, this is generally fine (although always the danger of mess-ups of course). I think that this has the advantage that it sounds flashy and impressive without actually being too difficult. The disadvantage is that I have to work with the accompanist they give me with no rehearsal! (But the accompaniment isn't that hard.) A good friend of mine, though, thinks it doesn't sound that impressive unless one knows the instrument, and is therefore wasted energy... I can't quite see what he means there but I respect his opinion so I can't decide if he has a point.
Views appreciated!!
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