A new school year means resuming rehearsals, performances, and other music program activities, including the pursuit of all-state and other “honors” ensembles by ambitious students. My students have found this list of preparation tips to be helpful, and I hope SBO+ readers will find it useful for their students, as well.
- Keep your instrument in top condition.
An instrument that is not working properly is not enjoyable to play and impossible to play at the highest level. If your instrument has a problem, have your teacher check it immediately. It might need only thorough cleaning or a small adjustment, though a trip to the repair shop may be necessary. When your instrument is working correctly, make sure to clean and lubricate it regularly. Mechanical problems often originate with lack of proper maintenance and happen at the worst possible times. - Practice daily.
Students that succeed in honors auditions have a disciplined approach to practice, often averaging 10 to 15 hours per week or more. Organizing practice time according to a weekly schedule can be helpful, allowing adjustment for days with less available time by practicing more on the days with more time available, though complete “days off” should be rare. Even 20-30 minutes on a busy day is better than nothing.
- Begin each day with fundamentals.
Each day’s practice should include fundamental exercises appropriate for your instrument, ideally using a comprehensive routine that systematically addresses important areas. The purpose is not only warm-up and maintenance but also extending fundamental playing skills. I have found the more time I spend on fundamentals, the less time I need to prepare repertoire for performance or auditions. Spend at least 20% of your practice time on fundamentals when preparing for a major audition or performance, and as much as 50% if you have nothing “big” coming up. This might seem repetitive, but the payoff is tremendous!
- Play with the best possible sound.
Ambitious students often stress playing “higher, faster, and louder.” While extending technical capabilities is important, none of these things matter if one plays with an uncharacteristic tone.
I often illustrate this concept by playing “Flight of the Bumblebee” on the trombone. The first time I play it with a good sound, and students are usually impressed. But then I play it a second time with a poor sound. I’m playing just as quickly, double-tonguing just as much, and moving the slide just as accurately, but no one is impressed. Nobody cares how great your technical skills are if you sound bad. Always play with the best sound you can produce.
- Master scales and arpeggios.
Scales and arpeggios are an important part of every all-state audition, and successful students memorize them early so that the patterns become automatic. While speed is important, slow practice promotes great tone and intonation. As you improve, keep increasing speed unless tone quality or pitch suffer, in which case you should return to practicing slowly. The goal is to play fast, AND in tune, AND beautifully.
Most band students are more familiar with flat keys than sharp ones, and vice versa for string players. If you are having trouble with certain keys, practice those scales and arpeggios twice as much as the ones with which you are more familiar. You want to be equally comfortable—or at least sound like you are equally comfortable—in every key.
Some states require a prescribed range for each scale and arpeggio, while in others students are rewarded for extra octaves. If yours is a prescribed range state, then make sure you can play that range. If your state rewards extra octaves, play only as many as you can play well every time. A missed note in an extreme register can detract more from your score than hitting it would have added!
- Know the musical terms you see.
Musical instructions are frequently written in Italian, German, or French, and you are expected to understand and observe these instructions in performance. Amazingly, I have judged auditions where 70% of the students ignored one or more instructions, resulting in…interesting interpretations. Follow the instructions, regardless of the language in which they are written. Smartphones have made looking up these definitions easier than ever, though memorizing common terms is beneficial.
- Use a metronome.
Smartphones have also simplified metronome practice, with numerous available apps. Use the metronome not only to foster correct rhythm and timing, but also to enable systematic practice at slower and faster tempos, as follows:
First, practice at 50% of the indicated tempo. This lets you work out fingerings, articulations, and tone quality without the pressures created by playing faster and can even improve slower etudes by promoting better phrasing.
Second, practice at 75% of the indicated tempo. This provides a halfway point between the slower “learning” tempo and the tempo for which you are striving.
Third, practice at the indicated tempo. Continue using the metronome to ensure you are counting and keeping time accurately.
Fourth, practice at 125% of the indicated tempo. This might feel frantic, but still attempt it, even if your playing is never as clean here as you would like.
Finally, return to the indicated tempo. Having worked out details at slower tempos and then attempted the necessary technique at faster ones, playing at tempo will feel relatively relaxed. Alternate playing with and without the metronome for this step.
- Mark your breaths.
Planning and marking breaths is a helpful practice that is neglected by many wind players. In the scales and arpeggios, practice breathing at the same places every time. In the prepared pieces, clearly mark the places where you will breathe, plus some parenthetical markings for “emergency breaths.” Let the music determine where these breaths are placed, not your perceived need for air. Breathing in the same places every time ensures a more consistent musical result, and even lessens the effects of nervousness, because during the audition you will continue breathing deeply in those places, rather than taking the erratic and shallow breaths that accompany nervousness. While this advice is aimed at wind players, all musicians can benefit from consistently breathing with the phrases. - Record yourself.
Another benefit of smartphones is the ease of recording practice sessions. The microphone picks up details that go unnoticed while playing, so record yourself periodically and then mark corrections during playback. Sharing practice recordings with trusted colleagues or teachers can yield helpful feedback.
- Practice it until you can’t get it wrong!
I can easily tell when a student has not practiced, but I can also tell when a student has practiced until he or she “got it right once.” This student will play generally “okay,” but will also make predictable mistakes, and then report having frequently made those same mistakes when practicing. The student obviously practiced that material repeatedly, but only got it right the last time, and thus practiced playing incorrectly much more often than correctly!
Don’t practice troublesome passages until you get them one time—repeat them until you nail them five or even ten times successively. This creates a habit of playing correctly instead of repeating the same mistakes in every practice session…or the audition!
- Sight read daily and systematically.
Some students find sight reading to be frightening because it is so unknown, but you can improve your skills by sight reading daily, and by systematically approaching each exercise. There are books and even apps that provide sight reading materials, but the main thing is that you read a variety of challenging and unfamiliar music. Approach each reading exercise by first examining the key signature, then the time signature and tempo, then by looking for odd rhythms, dynamics, articulations, or other figures. Finally, start looking through from the beginning until the allotted preparation time is over. Strive to play both accurately and musically, even when sight reading.
- Get private lessons.
Even the best ensemble director has too many obligations to effectively coach every student for all-state auditions. Arrange for lessons with a private teacher that knows your instrument and the audition process. This person will suggest techniques and strategies to increase both your chances of success in this audition and your overall development as a musician.
- Dress for the occasion.
One unfortunate change in audition culture is the increasing informality of dress. When I was in high school, young men often wore a coat and tie for auditions, and young women wore a blouse and skirt or even a dress. While that extreme might not be necessary, the way you dress communicates how seriously you consider a given endeavor. A student that walks into the room smartly dressed fosters positive expectations before the first note is played. Conversely, a student with a slovenly appearance promotes negative expectations. Even in blind auditions, dressing nicely can promote an attitude that leads to a more confident presentation.
- Be confident.
If you have prepared diligently, you have every reason to be sure about yourself and your playing, and your presentation should communicate confidence and poise. If you are like me and have “butterflies in your stomach” whenever you play a high-stakes audition or performance, you might find it helpful to “fake it.” Put on an air of confidence, even when you don’t feel that way. You really can “play confidently” without “feeling confident,” though you might find that by feigning self-confidence you begin to feel that way, as well. This helps you to… - Have fun!!!
Auditions are nerve-racking experiences, and the process is not always fun. It can be easy to forget that we took up music for the enjoyment that it provides to ourselves and others. Include something fun in your practice each day, and as you prepare the “hard stuff,” keep the goal of the audition in mind. Performing great music at a high level with serious colleagues is exciting and fun. The hard work required to get there is worth it!
Dr. Micah Everett is Professor of Low Brass at the University of Mississippi, Principal Trombonist of the North Mississippi Symphony Orchestra, and Tubist in the Mississippi Brass Quintet.