All-State Auditions will be here before you know it! And you'll want to practice and be prepared. What do you practice? How do you practice? And how do you conquer those pesky nerves? In this post, we're going to go through all that! We're here to help you ace those All-State (or any) auditions! Let's go!
Know When Your Audition Is
This seems like a silly one, but know when the audition is. This will help you know how much time you have to prepare. The more time, the better, so if you don't know when the auditions are, ask your band teacher or you can search online. Make sure you check your state, district, and grade group.
Know What You Will Need To Perform
Next, it's extremely important to know what you are performing. Once again, things will vary between states, districts, and grade groups. Be sure to ask your teacher what will be required to perform. They'll set you up with everything you need. More than likely, it'll be something like the following:
Major & minor scales (possibly memorized)
Chromatic scale (possibly Memorized)
A required specific exercise from a particular method book (these vary, so make sure you ask!)
Sight-Reading
Sometimes, a solo or orchestra excerpts
Be sure to ask your teacher, as some states require memorized scales, some are not and some have the excerpts and others just have certain exercises.
How To Practice
Now that you know what things you need to practice, it's important to know how to practice. Hopefully, you're seeing this with a good amount of time before the audition. The more time you have to practice and dedicate to your instrument, the better. If practicing for an audition, aim to put at least an hour of practice time every day.
Set Goals: Think of where you are right now. Set goals both big and small. What is the main end goal? ... Probably to play the exercises confidently, play the scales with ease, and nail the sight reading. It's also important to break the big goal into smaller goals so things don't feel so overwhelming and become more achievable. Within the next month, what do you want to achieve? Maybe learn 2 major scales. How about the following month? Learn the chromatic scale and get the 16th note run in measure 5 of the exercise, perhaps? The Musicians' Addition Practice Book is perfect for setting goals and keeping track of your practice and progress!
Divide Your Practice Time: You need to set aside time to work on at least every required piece. It's also wise to add in a few technique exercises that are not part of audition performances, like tone. If you only have an hour to practice, our suggested time is:
5 minutes on Technique and Sound - long tones, breathing exercises, tone techniques, etc.
15 minutes on scales - quick run down through all the scales you'll be required to play and then focus on 3 of the main scales; 1 major, 1 minor, the chromatic. Don't forget to include the arpeggios. Rotate your focus scales on the different days.
Check out our flute scales course - you'll feel like you're practicing, learning, and memorizing scales with a teacher!
20 minutes on Main Exercises - Run through all the exercises. Then focus on troubled areas. Slow it down, and gradually speed up to tempo. Don't forget to work on articulation and dynamics. Expand it out and put it together. Treat the exercises as if they were a song with expression, passion, and liveliness. If you happen to be nervous even practicing certain things, learn to calm yourself during the practice. If you practice while nervous, you'll learn it with nervousness. Take deep breaths. Say positive affirmations to yourself out loud, "I got this!" or learn to shift your feelings by changing the focus elsewhere (take a moment to look at something and focus on it. Do not put your instrument down and do something else.)
15 minutes on sight reading - this one, many students neglect because they either are scared or don't know how to practice sight reading. There are different ways to sight-read. You can grab an old music book and play something, purchase a new book and randomly play something, or you can you use apps such as Tomplay (You can also practice the scales with Tomplay!) and play along to something fun.
5 minutes on something fun or creative to wind down and relax. 😌
Prepare For The Audition
Some of the auditions are in person in front of a panel of judges, and others you send in a video or recording. Check to see which is required for you. If you battle with nerves, here are some things you can do to defeat (or at least learn to manage your nervousness):
Practice Calming Yourself: Many people go into practice feeling nervous thinking about the parts that are hard. Breathe deeply and work on calming yourself before you practice. If you practice feeling nervous, then you will be nervous.
Play For Others: Take time to play for friends, family, and other musicians to help shake some of those nerves.
Pre-Record Yourself: Whether you need to turn in a recording or not, recording yourself beforehand can help overcome the nerves (and you can take a listen back and review yourself!)
How To Practice And Prepare For All-State Auditions
Preparing and practicing for all-state auditions are a combo of knowing the required repertoire, focusing on troubled areas, knowing how to divide your practice and learning to control your emotional state are major keys to having a successful audition. Know you can do it, give it your all, and have fun!
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