Requirements
Students must attend an independent (private), parochial, or public school in Maryland and meet the class membership and grade designations in order to be eligible to participate in the All State auditions.
Each director is responsible for seeing that each student has prepared the audition music and scales as described and at the tempi given.
2010-2011 Junior Band
In order to participate in the Maryland All State Junior Band, a student must attend an independent (private), parochial, or public school in Maryland, must be in grades 7, 8, or 9, and must be in a band class.
2010-2011 Senior Band and Orchestra Winds & Percussion
In order to participate in the Maryland All State Senior Band, a student must attend an independent (private), parochial, or public school in Maryland, must be in grades 10, 11, or 12, and must be in a band class. In senior high schools in which an alternative scheduling program is operating, the student may participate in the year in which he or she earns a full credit. Any questions should be directed to the Executive Director by the teacher at the numbers provided in the front of this publication. Students and parents are not to call.
All State Junior and Senior Band Auditions
WINDS:
There will be two judges in each room. Scores of the two judges in each room will be averaged. Clarinets, flutes, trumpets, and saxophones may be sent to a finals room after the first audition. If a student is to go to the finals room, the preliminary room judges will issue the student a Finals Room Pass. Those students will then go the registration desk to sign-up for the finals room.
Scales:
Each student will be asked to perform the chromatic scale, beginning on a note of the students choosing, and one major scale for their instrument, selected from the following keys: C, F, G, D, A, E, B-Flat, E-Flat, A-Flat.
The scales must be performed from memory.
Scales will be selected by the adjudicator according to the level of the selection being performed.
The scales are to be played evenly and smoothly in a 16th note pattern at a metronome speed of quarter = 72.
All scales are to be played ascending and descending a minimum of one octave, except Flute and Soprano Clarinet who shall perform the scales a minimum of two octaves.
Required Music:
Required music: See required music list. Only an excerpt will be performed. The entire piece will not be required.
The excerpts of the required pieces will be posted in the warm-up room and at the entrance to each audition room.
No student may audition on more than one instrument (except for flute/piccolo, oboe/English horn and Eb Clarinet/Bb Clarinet). Flute players wishing to be considered for piccolo parts, oboe players wishing to be considered for English horn parts and clarinetists wishing to be considered for Eb Clarinet parts should bring those instruments with them to the audition and will be asked to demonstrate their proficiency on those instruments.
In the event that a student arrives at the audition with the incorrect audition music prepared, the student will be given the correct music and up to an hour to prepare the correct music before the audition.
Sight Reading:
Sight reading will be required.
PERCUSSION
The percussionists will be required to perform on snare drum and crash cymbals, on keyboard percussion and tambourine, and on timpani and bass drum.
Each pair of instruments will be heard in a different room and will have two adjudicators.
Scores of all six judges will be averaged together.
Percussion instruments provided at the audition are a minimum 4-octave marimba, a xylophone, 4 timpani, snare drum, tambourine, cymbals, and bass drum. A bass drum mallet will be provided.
Students may elect to bring their own snare drum, tambourine, and/or cymbals.
All percussionists are expected to provide their own snare drum sticks, keyboard mallets, timpani mallets, and a pitch source for tuning the timpani.
Snare
Perform a long concert (closed) roll from pp to ff and back to pp in approximately 30 seconds.
Perform the following rudiments: closed five-stroke roll, closed seven-stroke roll, single-stroke roll.
Perform a long open roll, flam, flam tap, flam accent, and ruff/drag.
All rudiments except closed rolls should be played at a mezzo-forte dynamic, beginning at a slow tempo, accelerando to a fast tempo, and rallentando back to a slow tempo. Beginning and ending tempi are left to the discretion of the performer.
Keyboard Percussion
Perform a 2-octave chromatic scale beginning on a note of the students choosing.
Perform 2-octave major scales selected from the following keys: C, F, G, D, A, E, B- Flat, E-Flat, A-Flat.
Perform 2-octave major arpeggios (ascending and descending) in the keys listed above in eighth note triplets at 72 beats per minute. Do not repeat the top note.
Play prepared music
Sight read.
Timpani
Tune three drums to intervals prescribed by the auditioner. A pitch source may be used.
Demonstrate the ability to change any or all drum pitches without the aid of a pitch source to any pitch the judge may choose.
Play a long roll from crescendo to diminuendo in approximately 20 seconds.
Play prepared music.
Sight read.
During the judging process, the bass drum will be heard in the timpani room, the cymbals will be heard in the snare room, and the tambourine will be heard in the keyboard percussion room. Each instrument pair will be in a different room, and will have two adjudicators.
An unmuffled (or undampened) bass drum, a pair of crash cymbals, and a headed tambourine will be provided at the audition site. The student will be asked to perform four consecutive measures of a quarter note/quarter rest pattern in 4/4 on the bass drum and on the cymbals, and a rhythm using 16th notes on the tambourine.
Although there is more than one acceptable technique that can be used for their performance, students sometimes use improper techniques, which result in a less than optimal musical effect; the adjudicators will only lower scores for the use of improper techniques. Examples of proper techniques would include:
Bass Drum
Since the bass drum will be unmuffled, the student should dampen the drum on the rests (only). A commonly used technique to control both heads is to use the fingertips of the left hand to dampen the vibrating head, and the inside of the right knee joint to dampen the batter head. Depending on the equipment used, the student may rest the right leg on the bass drum stand or on a chair, if desired. The drum is struck with no dampening on the quarter notes, and dampening is applied simultaneously to both heads at the beginning of the rests. The drum should be struck about 1/3 of the way down its diameter, and the tone should be pulled or lifted from the drum.
Crash Cymbals
Though sometimes subjective, in an audition situation the student should assume that the rests are significant, and since there is no indication to let them vibrate, the cymbals should be dampened on the rests. The student should strive for a resonant sound when the cymbals are struck with an appropriate follow-through, and there should be an absence of an air pocket. The angle between the cymbals will normally be wider for the forte crashes and more narrow for the piano crashes. The student should strive for consistency of sound within each dynamic marking.
Tambourine
When playing soft and fast on a tambourine, the student would normally place the tambourine horizontally with the head down just above the knee with the upper portion of the leg parallel to the ground (by raising the leg or resting it on a chair). The close rim of the tambourine would be supported by the bottoms of the arms just in back of the wrists, and the rhythm would be played on the far rim, using fingers of both hands, usually between the two joints.
To download the band music requirements, click here.
