​Bard College Conservatory of Music

Vocal Arts Audition Information

Vocal Arts (MM)

Prescreening Information:

As part of your online application, you will be asked to submit a recording with the following repertoire.  Audio recordings are preferred but video is also accepted. 

Three selections:

• Genre requirements: Include at least one art song and one operatic aria
• Language requirements: Three languages; one must be English
• Style requirements: One selection must be written in a more modern idiom. (Many works written after 1950 would fall into this category, although works by Stravinsky or Schoenberg, for example, would also be suitable.)

Live Auditions and Repertoire

The auditions will take place in late February or early March in both New York City and on the Bard campus. Auditions are by invitation only.  Shortlisted applicants will receive an invitation to audition no later than December 15.

International students may send a video audition if they are not able to travel to the United States for the final auditions. Applicants should use the live audition repertoire requirements for their video. Special arrangements for submission of this video should be made with the director of admissions at conservatoryadmission@bard.edu . However, international applicants are strongly encouraged to audition in person if at all possible.

Five selections: 

• Genre requirements: Include three art songs and two arias (one may be from an oratorio)
• Language requirements: Four languages; one must be English, and one should be in the singer's native language (if the singer is not a native English speaker)
• Style requirements: The repertoire presented should be in a variety of time periods and styles, tempos, mood, and character. One piece must be written in a contemporary idiom (see prescreening guidelines for clarification)

Example Audition Repertoire

Example audition offering by singer whose native language is English.

Arias:

• Stravinsky - Ann Trulove's Aria, from The Rake's Progress
• Mozart - "Deh vieni, non tardar", from Le Nozze di Figaro

Art Songs:

• Schubert - Du liebst mich nicht
• Faure - Puisque l'aube grandit, from La bonne chanson
• Prokofiev - The Grey-Eyed King, from Five Poems of Anna Akhmatova, Op. 27

International Applicants

English Proficiency

Non-native speakers of English must demonstrate proficiency in English and should take the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL).* TOEFL scores should be sent to the Graduate Vocal Arts Program by the Educational Testing Service. The Bard College school code is 2037. A minimum score of 600 on the paper-based test (PBT) or 100 on the internet-based test (iBT) is recommended for admission. We also accept the IELTS in place of the TOEFL, with a band score of no less than seven.

Other evidence of English-language proficiency will be accepted only with the approval of the Graduate Admission Committee. An application is considered incomplete and cannot be acted upon until the TOEFL score is received. The deadline for TOEFL submissions is February 15. 

*Students who have spent the majority of their secondary education in an English-medium program may be eligible for a waiver of the language testing requirement.

Audition Requirements
International students may send a video audition if they are not able to travel to the United States for the final auditions. Applicants should use the live audition repertoire requirements for their video. Special arrangements for submission of this video should be made with the director of admissions at conservatoryadmission@bard.edu.

Graduate Vocal Arts FAQ: