Traditional Percussion Majors
Please bring all of the sticks and mallets that you require to perform your audition, as well as at least one extra (photo) copy of your music.
Required
Concert Snare Drum
- An etude from such methods as Anthony Cirone’s Portraits in Rhythm or Jacques Delecluse’s Douze Etudes pour Caisse-Claire (12 Etudes for Snare Drum). The piece should demonstrate your technical and musical ability and be played in its entirety.
- Rudiments – you will be asked to demonstrate rudiments from the PAS 40 standard rudiments sheet.
Keyboard (Marimba, Xylophone or Vibraphone, 2 and/or 4 mallets)
- Choose a piece (2 or 4 mallet, or one of each) that fully demonstrates your technical and musical ability. Your selection should be a published, full-length piece. Pieces from collections or methods are acceptable as long as they are of sufficient length and difficulty. Some composers to consider may include Smadbeck, Stout, Abe, Sammut, Bach, Green, Gomez, etc.
- Major scales, 2 octaves, and sight reading.
Timpani
- An etude from methods books such as Saul Goodman’s Modern Method for Timpani, Vic Firth’s The Solo Timpanist, or Raynor Carroll’s Exercises, Etudes, and Solos for the Timpani. Students should provide their own pitch source for tuning.
- Additional interval singing and/or tuning the drums.
Optional
Rudimental Snare Drum
- A solo from methods such as Freytag’s Rudimental Cookbook.
Drum Set
- A play-along from such methods as Tommy Igoe’s Groove Essentials, Steve Houghton’s Essential Styles, etc., demonstrating all musical styles that you are familiar with.
Questions? Contact Doug Rosener
Commercial Percussion Majors
You must supply your own sticks, mallets, and brushes. Play-along tracks need to be on a computer (no phones) with a headphone output. Auburn appreciates all styles of music, so choose music that you enjoy and reflects your musicianship and skill.
Required
Concert Snare Drum
- Rudiment demonstration: slow-fast-slow
- Single Stroke Roll
- Double Stroke Open Roll
- Paradiddles
- Paradiddle-diddles
Marimba/ Vibraphone
- All major scales in two octaves. You can play on either instrument.
Drum Set
- Demonstration and improvisation of each of the following three styles. Each style performance should last for 1 minute. Play an associated groove or feel, and improvise fills and/or solos based on that style.
- Rock (Rock, Funk, etc.)
- Jazz (swing)
- Latin (Samba, Bossa Nova, Mambo, Soca, etc.)
- Play-alongs – 2 contrasting styles
- Choose two tracks from well-established bands or artists to play along with. The tracks should have contrasting tempos and styles. These performances don’t have to be exact transcriptions. Each track should be no longer than 3 - 4 minutes.
- Sight reading
- Rhythmic sight reading on drum set.
Questions? Contact Doug Rosener