San Francisco Conservatory of Music

SFCM | San Francisco Conservatory of Music

Strings audition

AUDITION REQUIREMENTS: STRINGS

Live auditions at the Conservatory are required of the following applicants:

  • Anyone residing in California

Regional auditions are available for the following applicants:

  • Applicants residing outside of California

Final audition recordings are accepted from the following applicants:

  • Undergraduate applicants residing outside of California
  • Graduate applicants residing outside the United States
  • Final recordings must be submitted online, no later than December 1.

 

VIOLIN

Undergraduate (audition repertoire should be memorized)

  1. Bach solo violin sonatas and partitas (two contrasting movements)
  2. Movement of a standard concerto
  3. Two études
  4. One composition of the applicant’s choice (Mozart preferred if the standard concerto for category 2 is not a Mozart concerto)

If the audition requirements are not fulfilled, the applicant may be disqualified from further consideration.

Graduate (audition repertoire should be memorized)

  1. Two contrasting movements of a Bach solo suite, sonata, or partita
  2. One Paganini caprice or brilliant concert piece
  3. One complete Romantic or contemporary concerto
  4. One movement of a Mozart concerto

If the audition requirements are not fulfilled, the applicant may be disqualified from further consideration.

Concertmaster Track (Professional Studies Diploma only; audition repertoire should be memorized)

  1. Two contrasting movements of a Bach solo suite, sonata or partita
  2. One Paganini caprice or brilliant concert piece
  3. One complete Romantic or contemporary concerto
  4. One movement of a Mozart concerto
  5. Orchestral Excerpts: R. Strauss, Don Juan (1st page) and Mozart Symphony No. 39, Finale (4th mvt) through bar #78

 

VIOLA

Undergraduate

  1. Two contrasting movements from a Bach solo suite, sonata, or partita
  2. One movement from a standard concerto
  3. One work of the applicant’s choice

Graduate

  1. Two contrasting movements of a Bach solo suite, sonata, or partita
  2. One movement of a concerto (with cadenza) and one movement of a sonata. Either the concerto or the sonata should be from the 20th or 21st century.

 

CELLO

Undergraduate

  1. One movement from a standard concerto
  2. Two contrasting movements from a Bach suite
  3. One short work from the 20th-century repertoire

Graduate

  1. Two contrasting movements of a Bach cello suite
  2. One movement of a sonata and one movement of a concerto, one of which must be from the 20th or 21st century

 

DOUBLE BASS

Undergraduate

  1. Major and minor scales in two octaves or an étude of your choice
  2. One movement from a baroque or classical sonata, concerto, or one-movement piece
  3. One movement or a one-movement piece from the romantic or contemporary repertoire

Graduate

  1. One concerto or virtuoso piece
  2. Two contrasting movements from either a sonata or multi-movement work from the romantic or contemporary repertoire, or two contrasting movements of a Bach cello suite

 

HARP

Undergraduate

  1. One étude for harp
  2. Two compositions of intermediate difficulty from different periods

Graduate

  1. Ravel's Introduction et Allegro, Handel's Concerto in B-flat (entire work), or comparable works
  2. Two contrasting orchestral excerpts

Harp auditions are set up by appointment. You will be contacted by the Conservatory to schedule an audition.

 

Updated on 08/10/2018