Auditions: 

 

January 28 @ Thaden school in bentonville, AR

January 29 @ Walton arts center in fayetteville, AR

Audition Instructions:

Please be sure to read the instructions fully and come prepared for your audition. If you haven't filled out the audition form, that is the first step to auditioning. We will reach out to you and schedule your audition based on the information provided in your audition form. You can access the form using the button below. 

Audition Form

We are currently seeking students who play: 

-trumpet

-saxophone (alto, tenor, bari)

-trombone

-guitar

-piano

-bass

-drums

If you do not play one of these instruments, but would still like to audition, please reach out to Robert Ginsburg (robert@digjazz.com).


Audition Materials for all Instruments except drums:

Scales:

  • Play one major scale of your choice. Scales must be at least 2 octaves and played at a minimum of 85bpm in 8th notes.
  • Play one blues scale of your choice. Scales must be at least 2 octaves and played at a minimum of 85bpm in 8th notes.

Prepared Piece:

  • Play and improvise on two jazz standards (for example, "Blue Bossa" and "Take the A Train"). You must play the head (melody) followed by at least ONE solo chorus. Many jazz play-along tracks can be found on YouTube. For example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AeDvTebiIhc.
  • If you are a rhythm section player (guitar, piano, bass) you must play the head, play at least ONE solo chorus and play at least ONE comping/walking bassline chorus.

**NOTE: You may substitute your All-Region Jazz audition material "Etude #1 - Swing" for one of the jazz standards.**

 

Sight-Reading: 

Be prepared to sight-read a typical big band chart. You will be given the part from the arrangement that matches your instrument.

 

Additional Material: 

·       You may come with additional material prepared that demonstrates experience in jazz performance. These may be live or recorded. However, please know that there may not be time for you to present additional material live. Recorded material must be emailed to Jacob Christiansen, Operations Manager, at jacob@digjazz.com. Please include your name and instrument in the email.

 

Audition Materials for Drums:

Demonstration of Style:

You will be asked to perform unaccompanied  the following styles: 

Medium swing (120 bpm) - play 16 bars of time

Fast swing (200 bpm) - play 16 bars of time followed by 8 bars of solo

Bossa Nova (108 bpm) - play 16 bars of time

Funk/Fusion Groove - play 16 bars of your favorite beat

 

Additional Material: 

 You may come with additional material prepared that demonstrates experience in jazz performance. These may be live or recorded. However, please know that there may not be time for you to present additional material live. Recorded material must be emailed to Jacob Christiansen, Operations Manager, at jacob@digjazz.com. Please include your name and instrument in the email.