Boston University

School of Music | College of Fine Arts - Boston University

Keyboard Audition Information

 

Prescreening

Applicants to the following programs and instruments need to submit a prescreening video recording or portfolio for review before they can be invited to a live audition or interview.

  • Applicants to cello, double bass, flute, percussion, piano, trumpet, violin, or voice regardless of degree or program
  • Graduate Composition majors
  • All applicants to the Doctor of Musical Arts in Performance
  • All applicants to the Artist Diploma

Prescreening recordings and portfolios are due by December 1. Applicants will be notified of prescreening results in early January.

 

Piano (BM)

Prescreen & Audition Repertoire

The repertoire for the prescreening and live audition is the same.

  • One work or movement of a work by J.S. Bach.
  • One movement of a sonata from the Classical period (Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, or similar).
  • One work or movement of a work from the Romantic period (Chopin, Schubert, Liszt, Brahms, or similar).
  • One work or movement of a work from the twentieth century (Debussy, Ravel, Copland, Bartók, or similar).

 

Memorization is recommended if possible. Concerto literature is not appropriate for the live audition.

Arrangements of popular music, jazz compositions, reductions, simplifications, and/or transcriptions of original compositions are not acceptable for auditions.

 

Organ (BM)

BM Repertoire

• A work by J.S. Bach (a chorale prelude, or a prelude and fugue excepting “little”)
• A work from before 1750
• A work from after 1800 (until the present)

Of these, one should be lyrical, another brilliant, and they should represent two different nationalities. A short sight-reading test will be given.

 

 

Updated on 09/24/2018