We encourage all applicants, if at all possible, to audition in-person.
- Live audition dates are scheduled during the weekends in February. Review list of audition dates by instrument here.
- Recorded video auditions are available by request and must be submitted by February 1 to your Blue Demon Domain (for undergraduates) or your application portal (for graduates/post-masters), in the “edit portfolio" section. To enable the recorded audition submission, contact musicadmissions@depaul.edu.
PRE-SCREEN REQUIREMENTS (Due by December 1)
Pre-screening videos must be unaltered and in one take. Audio will not be accepted. The pre-audition screening requirement for prospective undergraduate Jazz Saxophone students consists of the following elements:
I. REPERTOIRE – Prepare the compositions listed below. Applicants may use a live rhythm section or play-along accompaniment. Each piece should be recorded in a single take and uploaded as a single track.
•BLUES - Play the melody and improvise 3-4 choruses on Billie’s Bounce (Charlie Parker, key of F).
•JAZZ STANDARD (Medium tempo)– Play the melody and improvise 2 choruses on one of the following compositions: Take the A Train (key of C), Autumn Leaves (key of G minor), Anthropology (key of Bb), Recorda Me (key of A minor)
II. SCALES – Prepare the following scales. Keys listed are on your instrument (not concert pitch).
•Chromatic scale - entire range of the saxophone (low Bb to high F), ascending and descending
•Major scales - 2 octaves, ascending and descending. Keys of F, Db, E
LIVE AUDITION REQUIREMENTS
After pre-audition screening is completed, students invited for in-person auditions prepare an audition consisting of the following elements:
**NOTE: Applicants must bring a play-along CD or music playing device (e.g. smartphone, tablet or laptop) with play-along tracks for the audition. An 1/8” stereo audio cable will be provided to plug into our audio system, but you will need to provide any adaptor to convert the output of your device to the provided audio cable.**
I. REPERTOIRE - Prepare the following from each category below.
•BLUES - Play the melody and improvise for 4 choruses on one of the following blues tunes with a play-along recording: Au Privave (key of F), Now’s The Time (key of F), Bloomdido (key of Bb), Tenor Madness (key of Bb), Cheryl (key of C), Sandu (key of Eb)
•JAZZ STANDARD – You must perform a different composition than included on your video pre-screen audition. Play the melody and improvise 2 choruses on one of the following tunes with a play-along recording: Take The A Train (key of C), Autumn Leaves (key of G minor), Anthropology (key of Bb), Scrapple From The Apple (key of F), On Green Dolphin Street (key of Eb)
•CLASSICAL - Play one short etude or portion of a movement from standard classical saxophone repertoire, such as Selected Studies (Voxman), 48 Famous Studies (Ferling), portion of sonata 1st movement by Heiden, Creston, etc.
II. SCALES - be prepared to play the following:
•Chromatic scale - entire range of the saxophone (low Bb to high F), ascending and descending
•Major scales – all 12 twelve keys, played ascending and descending (two octaves where possible)
III. SIGHT READING - be prepared to sight read the following:
• portions of a big band chart or jazz etude, with the use of a metronome.
• melody and improvisation on a jazz standard from a Jamey Aebersold play-along series CD
Recorded Interview Questions (only applicable to those who select a recorded submission to audition)
Please upload a video that is no longer than 2-3 minutes and responds to the below questions:
What is your musical background?
Why are you applying to DePaul?