Hayes School of Music Graduate Studies

Orchestral Conducting

Preliminary Requirements:

By February 1, please send the following:

• formal letter of interest
• unofficial college transcripts
• curriculum vitae
• three current letters of recommendation directly from the authors
• Video link(s) of both a rehearsal (at least 15 minutes in length) and a performance (at least 5 minutes in length). Please indicate the repertoire conducted.
• programs conducted from the past three years, if available

For your on campus interview and audition, please be prepared to:

• conduct the Appalachian Symphony Orchestra; repertoire: Hindemith - Symphonic Metamorphosis, IV. Marsch
• take a private lesson on your major instrument
• take a diagnostic test covering terminology, transposition, clefs, and music theory
• have a meeting and conducting lesson with Dr. Dee 
• interview with the faculty, administration and Graduate Coordinator of the Hayes School of Music

Scheduling Your Audition

• Please contact Dr. Alexandra Dee at deeao@appstate.edu by February 1 to schedule your audition. Dr. Dee will be able to address your inquiries about the orchestral conducting program. Auditions must be completed by March 1 to be eligible for an assistantship. 

Download the audition form, fill out the information on page one, and bring the complete form to your audition.

Preliminary Requirements:

By February 1, please send the following:

• formal letter of interest
• unofficial college transcripts
• curriculum vitae
• three current letters of recommendation directly from the authors
• DVD or video link of a rehearsal and performance
• DVD or video link of a marching band performance with drill originally written
• programs conducted from the past three years, if available
• festival/contest sheets from performances conducted, if available
• an analysis of: HOLST – Suite in Eb – Movement I - Chaconne

For your on campus interview and audition, please be prepared to:

• conduct the HOLST – Suite in Eb – Movement I (Chaconne) with the Appalachian Wind Ensemble
• take a private lesson on your major instrument
• take a conducting lesson with Dr. Ross
• have a meeting with Dr. Ross and Dr. Gardner to discuss your philosophy of athletic bands
• interview with the faculty, administration and Graduate Coordinator of the Hayes School of Music

Download the Wind Audition and Assistantship Information Packet.

Scheduling Your Audition

• Please contact Dr. John Ross at rossjs@appstate.edu to schedule your audition. Dr. Ross will be able to address your inquiries about the wind conducting program.
• Download the audition form, fill out the information on page one, and bring the complete form to your audition.

An applicant for the Master of Music degree in Bowed String Performance is expected to know all major and minor scales and arpeggios in three octaves (two octaves for bassists). The applicant will perform two contrasting movements of unaccompanied J. S. Bach, the first movement of a standard concerto (including a possible cadenza), and a third composition of the applicant's choice, e.g. a virtuoso piece or music that represents another stylistic period or culturally diverse community. At least one selection should be memorized. The audition performance should demonstrate contrasting musical styles, mastery of technical challenges, and musical communication.

The deadline for auditions for priority consideration for a fall semester graduate assistantship is March 1. Auditions may be scheduled after this date, if spaces (and assistantship funds) are still available.

For harp audition requirements and to schedule an audition, please contact Dr. Eric Koontz at koontzee@appstate.edu, Coordinator of the String Area.  

Scheduling Your Audition

• Prospective students may schedule their audition by contacting the faculty of their area directly
  • Dr. Nancy Bargerstock, Professor of Violin at bargrstockne@appstate.edu
  • Dr. Eric Koontz, Professor of Viola at koontzee@appstate.edu
  • Dr. Ellie Wee, Assistant Professor of Cello at weeeh@appstate.edu
  • Dr. Adam Booker, Associate Professor of Double Bass at bookeras1@appstate.edu
• Download the audition form, fill out the information on page one, and bring the complete form to your audition.

All graduate applicants should prepare the following:

• All major and minor scales and arpeggios, covering two or more octaves as possible.
• 10-15 minutes of contrasting selections from the candidate’s current repertoire* of solos, etudes and/or excerpts.** Demonstration from a variety of music periods is suggested (Baroque, Classical, Romantic, Twentieth Century, etc.).
• Candidates will be asked to demonstrate sight-reading abilities.

*Please bring a list of current and past repertoire and a resume/CV to the audition
**Suggested examples of audition repertoire are listed under each instrument. Unlisted literature is welcomed and considered. Please contact the studio professor with your audition repertoire before your audition.

Scheduling Your Audition

• Please contact the brass faculty member for your instrument to schedule an audition.
• Download the audition form, fill out the information on page one, and bring the complete form to your audition.

Trumpet

• Concerti: Haydn, Hummel, Arutiunian, Tomasi, Chaynes
• Sonati: Antheil, Hindemith, Stevens
• Single movement works: Brandt, Enescu, Bozza
• Unaccompanied works: Persichetti, Arnold, Larsen
• Etudes: Bitsch, Charlier, Chaynes
• Excerpts: Bach, Mahler, Mussorsky, Ravel, Respighi, Stravinsky
• Jazz: standards, ballads, etc.  

Please contact Dr. James Stokes, Professor of Trumpet and Co-Director of the Performance Degree Program, with any your questions and audition repertoire before your audition: stokesjm@appstate.edu

Horn

• Multi-Movement Works: Jacob, Gliere, W. Mozart (2/4),Ewazen, Hindemith, Raum, Turner
• Single movement works: Bitsch, Bozza, Poulenc, Neuling
• Unaccompanied works: Amram, Berge, Messiaen
• Etudes: Gallay, Kopprasch, Reynolds
• Excerpts: Beethoven, Brahms, Shostakovich, Strauss

Please contact Dr. Dakota Corbliss, Assistant Professor of Horn, with any questions and audition repertoire before your audition: corblissdc@appstate.edu

Tenor Trombone

• Solo Repertoire: Grondahl/Concerto, David/Concertino, Barfield/Red Sky, Martin/Ballade, Casterede/Sonatine
• Unaccompanied Works: Crespo/Improvisation No. 1, Arnold/Fantasy
• Etudes: Bordogni/Rochut, Bitsch, Blazhevich, Tyrell
• Excerpts: Mozart/Tuba Mirum, Wagner/Ride of the Valkyries, Ravel/Bolero, Berlioz/Hungarian March

Please contact Dr. Joseph Brown, Assistant Professor of Trombone, with any questions and audition repertoire before your audition: brownja9@appstate.edu

Bass Trombone

• Solo Repertoire: Spillman/Concerto, Ewazen/Concerto, Vaughan Willams/Tuba Concerto, Bozza/New Orleans
• Unaccompanied Works: J.S. Bach/Cello Suites
• Etudes: Bordogni/Rochut, Blazhevich, Grigoriev, Tyrell
• Excerpts: Haydn/Creation, Wagner/Das Rheingold, Schumann/Symphony #3, Berlioz/Hungarian March

Please contact Dr. Joseph Brown, Assistant Professor of Trombone, with any questions and audition repertoire before your audition: brownja9@appstate.edu

Euphonium

• Solo Repertoire: Jacobs/Fantasia, Horovitz/Concerto, Gillingham/Blue Lake Fantasy, Sparke/Pantomime, Ewazen/Sonata
• Etudes: Bordogni/Rochut, Arban, Voxman, Charlier
• Excerpts: Standard orchestral and/or military band excerpts

Please contact Dr. Bethany Wiese, Associate Professor of Tuba & Euphonium, with any questions and audition repertoire before your audition: wieseba@appstate.edu

Tuba

• Solo Repertoire: Vaughan Williams/Concerto, Penderecki/Capriccio, Hindemith/Sonata, Schumann/Adagio & Allegro, Plau/Concerto
• Etudes: Bordogni/Rochut, Gallay, Arban, Snedecor
• Excerpts: Standard orchestral and/or military band excerpts

Please contact Dr. Bethany Wiese, Associate Professor of Tuba & Euphonium, with any questions and audition repertoire before your audition: wieseba@appstate.edu

All students entering into the collaborative program will be required to meet the following audition criteria:

• Accompany two contrasting Art Songs from the French, German, Italian and English/American standard repertoire
• Accompany one operatic aria in any language
• Two movements (Fast & Slow) of any sonata for one instrument and piano
• One short work for solo piano that exhibits skill level
• Sight read a vocal piece

Scheduling Your Audition

• Please contact Dr. Catherine Garner (garnerch@appstate.edu) to schedule an audition date and time.
• Download the audition form, fill out the information on page one, and bring the complete form to your audition.

Auditionees should play three solo guitar works of contrasting styles, preferably from memory, and from different historical style periods. These pieces collectively should demonstrate the applicant’s highest levels of technical and musical achievement. Additionally, some sight reading may be required. Contact Dr. Adam Kossler with any questions concerning the appropriateness of music for the audition*.

*Please bring a list of current and past repertoire and a resume/CV to your audition

Scheduling Your Audition

• To schedule an audition, please contact Dr. Adam Kossler at  kossleraj@appstate.edu
• Download the audition form, fill out the information on page one, and bring the complete form to your audition.

All application materials must be submitted by February 1, 2025 in order to receive priority consideration for assistantships. Please visit the composition concentration page for information regarding the Tui St. George Tucker Award in Composition, a full assistantship with generous stipend.

How to apply:

1.) Submit an application to the University through the Graduate School. 

2.) Submit the supplemental MM Music Composition application and audition form.

3.) Submit the following documents to Dr. Nicholas Cline (clineng1@appstate.edu):

• curriculum vitae, including education, works list, and selected performances

• three to four completed works that best represent your compositional voice, abilities, and interests. Scores should be submitted in PDF format and recordings, if available, should be in MP3 format for audio works and MP4 format for audiovisual works (recordings of MIDI instruments are acceptable).

How to submit these documents:

1) Please submit your documents via file-sharing service such as Google Drive, Dropbox, etc.

2) If you do not have these accounts, please contact clineng1@appstate.edu to arrange an alternative method.

After submitting the above applications and documents, we will contact you regarding an interview with the composition faculty.

An undergraduate degree in theory/composition is not required. Many of our incoming graduate students have either earned a BA or BM in theory/composition or studied composition at the undergraduate level for several semesters.

Organists auditioning for the Master of Music degree in Performance may select and perform any three compositions of contrasting styles. Alternatively, you may provide more than three contrasting pieces for the faculty to select from at the audition. In addition, we would like to hear you play any two hymns of your choice, as if for a service.

Scheduling Your Audition

• Prospective students may schedule their audition by contacting Dr. Joby Bell at belljr@appstate.edu.
• Download the audition form, fill out the information on page one, and bring the completed form to your audition.

The Master of Music in percussion performance is designed to give students the opportunity to further their study of the area(s) of percussion that they are most passionate about. It prepares the student for a career as a performing percussionist in their area(s) of expertise, to teach at a more advanced level, or to go on to a Doctor in Musical Arts program.  The percussion curriculum is shaped to the students’ needs based on what they are interested in and the expertise of the percussion faculty.  Over the years, Master of Music students in percussion have focused on orchestral performance, contemporary classical chamber and solo music, world music (including steel drum and tabla performance), and jazz performance (drum set and vibraphone).  If you have any questions, please contact Dr. Brady Spitz with any inquiries.

The MM candidate in percussion is required to audition in the following areas:

• Snare Drum:
  • A concert solo or etude - Delecluse, Aleo, Macarez, or equivalent
  • A rudimental solo or etude (optional) - Tompkins, Pratt, etc
  • Two orchestral excerpts
• Keyboard
  • One significant work for four-mallets - solo marimba or vibraphone are acceptable (Bach, Mackey, Druckman, Vinao, Manoury, etc)
  • Two orchestral excerpts for xylophone/glockenspiel
• Timpani
  • One solo or etude - Carter, Hochrainer, Delecluse, or equivalent
  • Must demonstrate ability to tune multiple drums from a single reference pitch
• Accessory percussion:
  • 2-3 orchestral excerpts demonstrating a variety of styles and techniques for crash cymbals, tambourine, triangle, bass drum, or castanets.
• Optional areas:
  • Solo Percussion: a significant piece of repertoire (Xenakis, Cage, Rzewski, Lang, etc)
    • Can be performed live or sent as a recording ahead of time
  • Drum Set: demonstrate ability to improvise in a variety of styles and tempos, including (but not limited to) swing, bossa nova, Afro-Cuban styles, rock/funk, etc.
    • Prepared solos and performances with play-along tracks are also welcome
  • World Percussion: a prepared solo or improvisation in a non-Western style (steel drums, Afro-Cuban, frame drums, tabla, gyil, etc)
  • Jazz on vibraphone: a prepared solo demonstrating ability to improvise in a variety of musical contexts.

Important Notes

• It is important to choose repertoire that best highlights your strengths and interests
• Sight reading may be asked on any concert percussion instrument
• Repertoire that requires a solo percussion setup, world percussion, or electronics should be communicated to Dr. Spitz ahead of time. This will ensure that instruments and technology are available to help support your audition.
• Candidates are welcome and encouraged to bring their own small percussion instruments to the audition (snare drum, tambourine, etc). For a complete list of equipment available at the audition, please contact Dr. Brady Spitz ahead of time.

Scheduling Your Audition

• To schedule an audition, please contact Dr. Brady Spitz at spitzbj@appstate.edu
• Download the audition form, fill out the information on page one, and bring the complete form to your audition.
• Auditions and applications completed by March 1 will be given priority consideration for an assistantship. Therefore, submitting audition videos or having an in-person audition well before March 1 is encouraged. Contact Dr. Brady Spitz at spitzbj@appstate.edu with any inquiries.

• The applicant will perform three pieces from contrasting style periods (e. g., Baroque, Classical, Romantic, Twentieth-Century). The selections must be memorized. If you have any questions regarding the appropriateness of your audition selections, please contact Dr. Reynerson.
• There will be sight-reading at the audition as well.
• Please bring your repertoire list to the audition, including solo and collaborative works. Indicate on the list which of these works you have publicly performed.
• To schedule an audition please contact Dr. Reynerson. (The audition does not necessarily need to be on the dates advertised for the undergraduate auditions.)

Scheduling Your Audition

• Prospective students may schedule their audition by contacting Dr. Rodney Reynerson at reynersonrt@appstate.edu.
• Download the audition form, fill out the information on page one, and bring the completed form to your audition.

Your application must be in progress with the Cratis D. Williams School of Graduate Studies before an audition is scheduled. Auditions will be held during the regularly scheduled in-person auditions for the Hayes School of Music. (January 22, January 29, February 12, 2022). Please check with Dr. Julia Pedigo at pedigoja@appstate.edu to schedule your audition. If any audition process adjustments is needed due to the pandemic, please contact Dr. Pedigo.

The audition shall include five to six selections, including 4 languages, consisting of the following:

• Eighteenth, Nineteenth, 20th Century, and 21st century art songs performed in the original languages,
• a 20th/21st Century work for voice and piano,
• an operatic aria in the original key and language, and
• an oratorio aria in the original key and language.

The following materials need to be submitted to the voice faculty during the audition:

• Audition form
• Resumé
• List of vocal repertoire studied, organized by language and genre

In the audition, the student shall demonstrate vocal technique, musicianship, and artistry with the potential for a performing career. Proficiency in the diction of French, German, Italian, and English shall be demonstrated in the literature performed during the audition. Sight reading will also be included in the audition (melodic, rhythmic, and diction in the following languages: Italian, German, French, and English).

If there are any questions about the audition or the audition process, please contact Dr. Julia Pedigo at pedigoja@appstate.edu.

All candidates will provide

• a repertoire list of previously studied literature
• a brief biographical statement that includes career goals at their audition.

Scheduling Your Audition

• Please contact the area faculty member for your instrument to schedule an audition.
• Download the audition form, fill out the information on page one, and bring the complete form to your audition.

Flute

Students auditioning for the MM in Music Performance may select repertoire that demonstrates mastery of fundamentals in phrasing, articulations, tonal control. Memorization is not required. Candidates should prepare about 15-20 minutes of music, comprised of the following (below). Candidates are encouraged to contact Dr. Nancy Schneeloch-Bingham at schneelochna@appstate.edu about repertoire selection. Substitutions will be considered.

• Concerto - Mozart G major or D major Concerti (exposition from mvt. I)
• A Paris Conservatory solo of your choice, e.g. works by Gaubert, Enesco, Taffanel, Ganne, Faure
• An unaccompanied contemporary work of your choice, e.g. works by Coleman, Hoover, Dick, Clarke, Hailstork
• 3 orchestra excerpts
• Beethoven: Leonore No. 3
• Brahms: Symphony #4, mvt. IV solo
• Mendelssohn: Midsummer Night’s Dream, scherzo

Oboe

Students auditioning for the MM in Music Performance may select repertoire that demonstrates mastery of fundamentals in phrasing, articulations, tonal control. Candidates should prepare about 15-20 minutes of music, and may use music listed below as a guideline. Candidates are encouraged to contact Dr. Alicia Chapman at chapmanam@appstate.edu about repertoire selection. Substitutions will be considered.

• a standard concerto movement, e.g. Mozart, Vaughan Williams, Vivaldi
• a sonata movement or conservatory piece of your choice, e.g. Poulenc, Hindemith, Saint-Saëns, Paladilhe, Verroust
• An unaccompanied work, e.g. Britten, Persichetti, Brandon, Dorati, Telemann
• 3 orchestra excerpts:
  • Brahms: Violin concerto, mvt. II solo
  • Mendelssohn: Symphony no. 3, mvt. II
  • Rimsky-Korsakov: Scheherezade, mvt. II

• Candidates should be prepared to play all major and minor scales over the full range of the instrument, and may be asked to sight read.

Clarinet

Students auditioning for the MM in Music Performance may select repertoire that demonstrates mastery of fundamentals in phrasing, articulations, tonal control. Memorization is not required. Candidates should prepare about 15-20 minutes of music. Below are suggested repertoire. Candidates are encouraged to contact Dr. Soo Goh at gohsk@appstate.edu about repertoire selection. Substitutions will be considered.

• Concerto - Mozart (exposition section)
• A complete work of your choice from standard repertoire such as sonatas by Poulenc, Brahms, Stanford, or Debussy Rhapsody, or others
• An unaccompanied contemporary work of your choice such as Stravinksy, Denisov, Tomasi (Sonatine), Shulamit Ran, or others.
• Standard orchestra excerpts
  • Mendelssohn Midsummer Night’s Dream: Scherzo: beginning to B
  • Beethoven 6: first movement: 2 before K to the end
  • Beethoven 6: second movement: D-E
  • Capriccio Espagnol: first movement: A–end
• Candidates should be prepared to sight-read and be able play all major and minor scales, arpeggios, and a full range chromatic scale.

Bassoon

Students auditioning for the MM in Bassoon Performance should select repertoire that demonstrates a mastery of the fundamentals of bassoon playing and general musicianship, as well as tonal maturity. Applicants should prepare about 20-30 minutes of music, selected according to the criteria below. Please contact Dr. Jon Beebe at beebejp@appstate.edu with any questions about repertoire selection. Applicants should be prepared to play:

1. All major and minor scales over the full range of the instrument
2. Three of the following;
   1. A movement from a standard concerto (e.g. Vivaldi, Mozart, Weber, Jacob)
   2. A movement from a standard sonata (e.g. Telemann, St-Saëns, Etler)
   3. A Concert Study by Milde
   4. An unaccompanied piece (e.g. Osborne, Arnold, Persichetti, Jacob, Brandon)
3. Three of the following orchestral excerpts:
   1. Mozart: Overture to The Marriage of Figaro
   2. Rimsky-Korsakov: Scheherazade, mvt. II.
   3. Tchaikovsky: Symphony no. 5, mvt. III
   4. Ravel: Bolero
4. Sight-reading

Saxophone

At least two major works of contrasting style, including at least one selection from the standard repertoire (such as a work by Creston, Glazounov, Heiden, Ibert, Maurice, etc.). Candidates are encouraged to contact Dr. Scott Kallestad at kallestadsd@appstate.edu about repertoire selection.

• Full range scales and arpeggios: chromatic scale, and all major and minors (harmonic, melodic).
• Sight Reading