2020-2021 AUDITIONS

Auditions for the 2020-2021 season of The Woodlands Youth Jazz will take place at the John Cooper School in late spring 2020. The audition date will be announced in mid-March. Auditions will be roughly 15 minutes and consist of three components – scales, demonstration of personal style and improvisation over a jazz standard. Below are specific instructions for each component of the audition. Students participating in The Woodlands Youth Jazz for the 2019-2020 season will not be required to re-audition. Use our SignUpGenius to find and select your audition time or use the button below. Please contact auditions@thewoodlandsjazz.org with any questions.

Scales

• Perform a chromatic scale from the lowest note in your range to the highest. (Not required for drummers, guitarists or pianists)

• Major scales in two octaves (listed in concert pitch):

  Alto, Tenor and Baritone Sax: Ab Major, Db Major
  Trumpet, Trombone, Guitar and Bass: B Major, Db Major
  Piano: E Major, Db Major
  Drums (play on piano): Eb Major, A Major

Demonstration of Personal Style

This can be a selection of your choice which demonstrates personal style. Think of this piece as something that will show us your musical interests and abilities. It can be a jazz or classical etude, a jazz standard or something you’ve composed. This piece can include improvisation if desired.

Improvisation Over a Jazz Standard

A traditional jazz piece. This can be any piece from the standard jazz repertoire. We ask that you perform the melody of the piece followed by 2-4 choruses of improvised solo. For access to lead sheets, visit the Fake Book Library online. For convenient, easy to use backing tracks, refer to the Learn Jazz Standards channel on YouTube. In your audition you will play with iReal Pro backing tracks.

Program Overview

Please visit The Woodlands Youth Jazz page for an overview of the program, including rehearsal dates, concert schedule and program cost.