Requirements for Orchestral Performance
Please find the prescreen and audition requirements for your instrument below. Unless otherwise noted, the required excerpts denote standard excerpts. Excerpts do not need to be recorded with accompaniment. Each excerpt may be recorded and uploaded as a separate video; there is no need to record the entire list in a single take.
The Orchestral Performance program is a focused program for graduate students pursuing a Master of Music degree who wish to prepare intensely for orchestral careers. Students in this program have required mock auditions each semester in place of required recitals and enroll in specialized Orchestral Repertoire classes. If you are only interested in the Classical Program, you can navigate to the Classical Division section of the Prescreening & Audition Information.
If you are interested in applying to both the Orchestral Performance program and the Classical program, please see the instructions for doing so on your instrument below.
Step 1: Prescreen
Orchestral Double Bass, Cello, Clarinet, Flute, Percussion, Violin, and Viola applicants must submit a prescreen video in order to be considered for an invitation to an audition.
- Include ALL required repertoire for the instrument you are applying to, as listed in the dropdown menu below.
- Upload your prescreen recordings directly to your application.
- Prescreen Deadline: December 3.
- Videos do not have to be a professional or studio recording, but the sound quality should be of high quality and should accurately reflect your musicianship.
- Each piece or movement should be uploaded as a separate video. However, each individual video must be unedited.
Step 2: Audition
Applicants who pass the prescreen round, and applicants whose instrument does not require a prescreen, will be invited to an audition.
- Prepare ALL of the required audition repertoire for your instrument, as listed in the dropdown menu below.
- Note that audition repertoire requirements may differ from prescreen requirements. However, applicants may choose to include selections from their prescreen submissions in the audition where requirements overlap.
- MSM offers in-person and recorded auditions, except for Orchestral Flute, which requires an in-person audition.
- The MSM OP Department strongly encourages applicants to include a work by an underrepresented creator when choosing repertoire for auditions.
Carefully review the specific repertoire requirements for your degree level in the dropdown menu below.
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Orchestral Double Bass
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Orchestral Bassoon
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Orchestral Cello
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Orchestral Clarinet
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Orchestral Flute
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Orchestral Harp
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Orchestral Horn
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Orchestral Oboe
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Orchestral Percussion
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Orchestral Trombone
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Orchestral Bass Trombone
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Orchestral Trumpet
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Orchestral Tuba
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Orchestral Violin
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Orchestral Viola
Please note that students who have completed an OP Program at MSM are not eligible for OP PPD.