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Do you think that these pieces are good for college auditions?

Brahms Intermezzo in A major opus 118 no. 2

Bach prelude and fugue in c minor from WTC 1

Beethoven sonata in f minor opus 2 no. 1

If you have better ideas then please share! I don't know my "level" but it took me about 6 months to learn chopin's nocturne in f minor opus 55 no. 1, and that was practicing it maybe 15 minutes a day. I have until January and this is for BYU's music school, which is really competitive. The requirements are a major bach piece (no inventions), a complete sonata by schubert, mozart, beethoven or haydn, and a piece by a 19th or 20th century composer rated MD or harder by A guide to the Pianist's Repertoire by Maurice Hinson.

Thank you

This audition repertoire is pretty much very standard repertoire. Unfortunately, if you choose this repertoire, it is akin of saying that you are boring and lack imagination in your programming. Audition panel normally appreciates a more thought out and unusual program.

For Bach, try not to do the the C Minor one since it is way overplayed, try to choose lesser played ones but still excellent e.g. C# Major Book 2. If you have the time try one of the toccatas or concerto transcriptions.

For classical sonata, it is always good to pick a Schubert if it is allowed. It is much more refreshing to hear a Schubert then another overplayed Beethoven, Mozart, or Haydn. You can try shorter ones such as the E Minor or the small A Minor sonatas.

For your last piece, I strongly encourage you to play a concert etude or a fast display piece to showcase your technique and to provide a satisfying conclusion for your repertoire. Etudes by Chopin, Liszt, Scriabin, Rachmaninov, etc are effective. Fast 20th century pieces such as Poulenc's Toccata or a fast Rachmaninov's Prelude will work as well.

It's a very "safe," middle-of-the-road audition list. It does fit the criteria that BYU requests of the audition candidate, to which I doubt they could take exception, particularly if the pieces are played well. Whether BYU examiners would appreciate a more imaginative list, I can't say, but I would certainly take issue with the observation that your choice means that "you are boring."

Most importantly, choose pieces that you like to play and that you can play well. As long as your choices fall within the criteria listed, they should be fine.

Regards,

Really what matters is if these pieces showcase your particular abilities. Are these pieces not only technically sound but are you also able to portray the feelings/mood of each piece well? That is what counts. I also would not say they are "boring"...these are great works all of them. So really it just depends on what you can do with them that will make you stand out (or not) in an audition. Granted, you don't want to pick a piece that "everyone" plays, but while these are part of standard repertoire, there is so much out there that I don't think others auditioning will be playing them. Even if they do, you still add your own unique interpretation to the mix.

Music well-played is never boring. In fact, it is often refreshing to hear an oft-played work played very well. (We hear so many bad Pathetique sonatas that it can be a wonderful surprise to hear a student get the rhythms in the introduction right and not fight the LH and tempo of the Allegro.)

That being said, my biggest problem with the program is that it's not quite "competitive" enough. The Beethoven and Brahms are ok, provided you play the last movement of the Beethoven well, but the c minor prelude and fugue is considered one of the "easier" ones.

I would opt for a different Prelude and Fugue. I like the earlier suggestion of C# Major, and Bb Major, g minor, Ab major, d minor, and E Major would also make good choices. (All from book I.)

I like the Beethoven and Brahms choices very much. While they are both often played, both allow you to show a command of the style for each composer and period. The Beethoven contains all the extremes, the accents, the syncopations, the phrasing choices, and emotional storm we come to expect from him. The Brahms has a rich texture, beauty of tone, and delicate handling of counterpoint so important in his music. You cover the keys of f minor (4 flats) and A Major (3 sharps) which shows you have a good command of a variety of keys, and both pieces cover all the technical bases - chords, scales, arpeggios, counterpoint, voicing, counting, articulation, tone, etc...

To show a little more technique you might consider playing both Op. 118 #1 and #2 as a short set. If you want something a little more challenging look at Op 118 #6, one of my favourites and it played well shows off more technique and is also more challenging to interpret.

Thanks for your advice! I am definitely switching the prelude and fugue to Bach's Toccata in e minor, which I like much more. I'm not sure about the others yet. The only Schubert sonatas that I like enough to perform (and that I feel like I can do) are A major and e minor, but I'm already doing the toccata in e minor, so the e minor sonata probably wouldn't be a great idea. But then is the A major played too much?

Whoa! That's quite a leap from the C minor Prelude & Fugue to the E minor Toccata. (The fugue is a real killer if played up to tempo.) Do you have the Beethoven and the Schubert in your rep or are you looking to learn either of them from scratch? Also you said it took you 6 months to learn the Chopin practing it only 15 minutes a day. Was that all you were working on? Do you only practice 15 minutes a day? And finally, do you have a teacher who is helping you prepare for your audition?

ok the beethoven I have almost the first movement learned(not memorized). I have to learn everything from scratch. With the chopin piece, I was working on other things at the same time. It was during the school year, and I take advanced classes, so there wasn't a lot of time to practice. But I have the summer to practice a lot. I do have a teacher, but i am going to switch to a teacher that teaches more advanced students when the school year starts. She is good, but I think I'm ready for something more advanced.

I'm not a huge fan of Bach. He's great but I am pretty sure that all I could practice for awhile and not get really sick of are minor key pieces. If you have any good ideas of easier, lesser played ones please share! And sonatas too.

Thanks!

Well, for the Bach I would definitely do a Prelude & Fugue from the WTC before tackling a Toccata. If you wanted one in a minor key,I would second Kreisler's suggestion of the g minor or you might consider the F minor from Book II.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wO6OuL7rmZE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pO-g8ALp9N4

Since you've started working on the Beethoven, I would stick with it. (Schubert sonatas, even the "easier" ones, are still difficult to pull off. I've played a few Beethoven sonatas and recently learned a very early Schubert and boy did it seem to take me forever to get that Schubert to "sing".)

The Brahms Op. 118, No.2 is a gorgeous piece. No. 6 is considerably more difficult.

The g minor prelude and fugue is pretty short and kinda nice, so i think that I may do that.

Do you think that it would be best to go for a slower or faster piece for the 19th-20th century piece? (If I chose the Beethoven and the g minor prelude and fugue) Do you think that the Beethoven shows enough fast technique to play a slower piece and still have the contrast?

Thanks

Absolutely. The last movement is marked "Prestissimo". Can't do better than as fast as possible.

sweet! Do you think that I would be better off playing the Brahms or a lesser known piece?

Audrey :

Do you not have a teacher who can guide you through this selection process and help you choose a well-balanced programme? Going back to your original post where you say that entrance into BYU music school is very competitive, I find it hard to think that a piece that you consider "pretty short and kinda [sic!] nice" is a valid criterion for choosing a selection for a competitive audition. Moreover, you seem to be willing to opt for selections that have been suggested by those who know nothing about your learning/playing ability.

Of course it's good to get suggestions and opinions from others - many of us love giving opinions based on our preferences - but I think opinions and suggestions would be more valuable from someone who knows your playing and your potential between now and next January. This is, after all, for a competitive audition, not just a local recital.

Regards,

Yeah I guess you're right. I do have a teacher...but she's pretty much leaving it up to me to choose and only says things like "it sounds like you like that a lot more than the other one" or "you can learn that one in time" so i'm not really sure that she can help me a lot with that. And as I said, I'm switching teachers soon. And I tried the g minor Prelude and fugue and I can play it. And I like it ok. I think the problem is that I really don't know what constitutes a competitive program. What would make a competitive program?

Thanks for your help everyone. I am now officially taking lessons with a teacher who will help me choose great audition pieces.

Thanks!

Audrey01

That's great to hear. Keep us updated and good luck with your auditions.

Thank you!