Instrumental Music Scholarship Audition Guidelines | Fine Arts & Communication Scholarships | Butler Community College
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Fine Arts & Communication Scholarships

Instrumental Music Scholarship Audition Guidelines

Thank you for your interest in the Instrumental Music Department. Auditions for Instrumental Music Scholarships may be completed in person or online!  The Butler Fine Arts and Communication Division continues to monitor and modify our practices and procedures based on the most current Covid-19 health protocols.

Our preference is to see you audition and get to meet you in person.  However, we understand that not all prospective students are available on the same day.  If you cannot attend one of our in-person auditions for any reason, please submit a virtual audition following the instructions below.

The Instrumental Music Department offers a wide variety of opportunities to perform. Our in-state tuition and books scholarships are in high demand and we encourage all interested students to submit audition materials as soon as possible.  Students do not need to be music majors to receive in-state tuition and books scholarships. 

TO PREPARE FOR AN IN-PERSON AUDITION

All students must register for their audition by filling out the online registration form on the Fine Arts and Communication Scholarships page.

A letter of recommendation from a high school music instructor or private teacher (phone calls accepted) is due at the time of your audition. 

Students should also fill out the Instrumental Music Student Information Form and bring it to their audition.

Prospective students will need to prepare the following material:

  • Brass and Woodwinds 
    • Play a chromatic scale across the range of your instrument (ascending and descending)
    • Solo, etude, or excerpts from ensemble music (at least one lyrical and one technical excerpt of student’s choice).  Approximately three minutes of music.
  • Percussionists and Drumline
    • For Drumline, please be prepared to play this percussion audition excerpt.
    • Prepare excerpts (of the student’s choice) on any two instruments – Snare Drum, Mallets, Timpani
  • Strings
    • Violin: one three-octave scale of your choice and two minutes of a solo
    • Viola, cello, and bass: the two-octave scale of your choice and two minutes of a solo
  • Jazz Ensembles 
    • Jazz etude or transcribed jazz solo (student’s choice)
    • Optional improvisation on B flat Blues

Students who register for an in-person audition will be sent a schedule approximately one week prior to their chosen audition date.  Please plan to keep the day open for the audition and interview process.  If you have questions about your audition or what to prepare, send an email to bmartinez11@butlercc.edu

TO PREPARE FOR YOUR VIRTUAL AUDITION: 

TO PREPARE FOR YOUR VIRTUAL AUDITION: 

1) All students must register for their audition by filling out the online registration form on the Fine Arts and Communication Scholarships page.

2) A letter of recommendation from a high school music instructor or private teacher (phone calls accepted) is due with your audition submission. 

3) Students should also fill out the Instrumental Music Student Information Form and send it with their audition submission.

4) Please complete your audition in one video instead of multiple videos spliced together.  Your video should include the following: 

  • First: State your name, high school, and career/college major/goals
  • Brass and Woodwinds 
    • Play a chromatic scale across the range of your instrument (ascending and descending)
    • Solo, etude, or excerpts from ensemble music (at least one lyrical and one technical excerpt of student’s choice).  Approximately three minutes of music.
  • Percussionists and Drumline
    • For Drumline, please be prepared to play this percussion audition excerpt.
    • Prepare excerpts (of the student’s choice) on any two instruments – Snare Drum, Mallets, Timpani
  • Strings
    • Violin: one three-octave scale of your choice and two minutes of a solo
    • Viola, cello, and bass: the two-octave scale of your choice and two minutes of a solo
  • Jazz Ensembles 
    • Jazz etude or transcribed jazz solo (student’s choice)
    • Optional improvisation on B flat Blues

SUBMITTING YOUR VIRTUAL AUDITION:

When your video is completed, please upload your audition to YouTube as an "unlisted" video, and email the link and any other audition materials (listed above) to bmartinez11@butlercc.edu. If needed, you may be contacted to schedule a Zoom video conference with the instrumental music faculty to ask and answer any questions.

For more information:

Brett Martinez
bmartinez11@butlercc.edu