학사과정

A. Pre-Screening Requirements

For applicants to the Bachelor of Music (BM) in Performance, Performance with Teacher Certification, Music Education, and the Bachelor of Musical Arts (BMA) in Performance, please upload five unedited video recordings of the following:

1. Spoken Introduction: Please introduce yourself, tell us where you are from, and what repertoire you will be performing for your pre-screening video. Next, tell us what degree program you are interested in (music education, performance, etc.), and why you are interested in the percussion program at U-M.
   (Total length: 2–3 minutes)
2. Snare Drum Solo or Etude (concert or rudimental—no orchestral excerpts)
3. Two-Mallet Solo or Etude (no orchestral excerpts)
4. Four-Mallet Solo or Etude
5. Timpani Solo or Etude: No solos from Elliot Carter's Eight Pieces for Four Timpani. Please include video of yourself tuning the timpani prior to beginning to play.

Both musical ability/achievement and academic merit will be evaluated as part of the pre-screening process. A select number of highly-qualified candidates will then be invited to audition in Ann Arbor. 

 

B. Audition 

Please prepare the following selections:

Concert Snare Drum Solo or Etude
Delecluse, Cirone, Goldenberg, Peters, or equivalent

Rudimental Snare Drum Solo or Etude
Pratt, Wilcoxon, Tompkins, Markovitch, or equivalent

Two-Mallet Keyboard Solo, Transcription, or Etude
J.S. Bach: Sonatas & Partitas for Solo Violin, Suite for Solo Cello, Hatch: Furioso & Valse, Abe: Prism, G.H. Green/Breuer: Xylophone Rags, Goldenberg Etudes, or equivalent

Four-Mallet Keyboard Solo, Transcription, or Etude
Smadbeck: Rhythm Song, Abe: Frogs, Dream of the Cherry Blossoms, Michi, Stout: Two Mexican Dances, Sammut: Rotations, Libertango, or equivalent

Timpani Solo or Etude
Firth, Hochrainer, Peters, Carroll, Delecluse or equivalent
No solos from Elliot Carter's 8 pieces for solo timpani. Timpani tuning and sight-reading will also be evaluated

Orchestral excerpts may be included in your live audition, but are not required. Memorization of repertoire is neither required nor discouraged.

석사과정

Percussion (MM/SM)

A. Pre-Screening Requirements

Upload unedited recordings of the following items:

1. SPOKEN INTRODUCTION
   Please introduce yourself, tell us where you are from originally, where you are currently studying and what your current degree program is. Please tell us why you are interested in the percussion program at the University of Michigan, what your career goals are (post-masters) and why you think Michigan would be the best institution to serve those goals. (3 minute max)
2. MALLET KEYBOARDS
   Two mallets: one movement from J. S. Bach Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin or Suites for Solo Cello – no repeats.
   Four mallets: an advanced level marimba solo of your choice. (Vinao: Kahn Variations, Schwantner: Velocities, Thomas: Merlin, Lansky: Three Moves, Tanaka: Two Movements for Marimba, Miyake: Chain, or equivalent)
   Excerpts:
   Xylophone: Gershwin - Porgy and Bess (opening passage)
   Glockenspiel: Mozart - Magic Flute
3. SNARE DRUM
   Concert Buzz Roll: (pp-ff-pp approx. 45 seconds)
   Rudimental: 32 bars of a rudimental snare drum solo/etude of your choice (Tompkins, Wilcoxon, Pratt, Markovitch, etc. or equivalent)
   Concert: A concert-style snare drum solo/etude of your choice (Delecluse, Cirone, Peters, etc. or equivalent)
   Excerpts:
   Prokofiev: Lt. Kije - Birth of Kije (Rehearsals 1–2)
   One additional contrasting excerpt of your choice
4. TIMPANI
   (please include video of you tuning the drums before you play each selection)
   Solo work: an advanced-level timpani solo/etude of your choice which demonstrates basic stroke/tone production and rolls at various dynamics (Lepak, Hochrainer, Goodman, Rabbio, etc. or equivalent)
   Excerpts:
   Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 4 – Movement I (2 before T to 3 before U)
   One additional excerpt of your choice
5. CHOOSE ONE OR MORE OF THE FOLLOWING:
   Multi-Percussion: a full-length recording of a solo work of your choice (Lang: Anvil Chorus, Unchained Melody, Xenakis:Rebonds A or B, Kitazume: Side by Side, Hollinden: Cold Pressed, Kopetski: Canned Heat, or equivalent.)
   Drumset: a sample of your time playing/ soloing in at least 3 contrasting styles. This may be done with a play-along recording, a live band, or unaccompanied solo. Examples may include: medium swing, uptempo swing, rock, funk, samba, bossa nova, songo, mambo, 12/8 Afro-Cuban, ballad-brushes, odd-time signatures, etc.
   Global Music: a demonstration of your understanding of basic tones, sense of groove/feel and clear communication of style. May include, but not limited to: Afro-Cuban hand drums and percussion; Samba (all styles); pan-African hand drums and percussion; steel pan; middle-eastern frame drums/percussion; Asian festival drumming; other, etc.
   Tonal Improvisation: demonstrate your abilities in this area through a solo work or an example with a supporting group. May include, but not limited to: Straight-Ahead Jazz/Bebop, Latin jazz, or jazz-fusion on Vibes/Marimba, Steel Pan, etc.

Questions regarding pre-screening submissions should be sent to:

Professor Joseph Gramley (jgramley@umich.edu)

Professor Jonathan Ovalle (ovalle@umich.edu)

B. Audition Requirements

Please select music from the solo, concerto, and orchestral literature which demonstrates your highest musical and technical abilities in snare drum, mallet-keyboard instruments, and timpani. Examples of your playing on two and four mallet keyboard is required. Two orchestral excerpts each on snare drum, xylophone, glockenspiel and timpani is required. Sight-reading and timpani tuning will be evaluated. Applicants are required to demonstrate skills in all of the above instrumental areas. Memorization is neither required nor discouraged.

If you have a performance DVD of a solo or chamber music multiple percussion work, or if you have percussion skills in the areas of drum set, pan, and/or hand drumming, please bring a non-returnable copy of the DVD of your playing which demonstrates your highest musical and technical abilities in those areas.

학사과정

A. Portfolio Requirements

All composition applicants must upload up to seven scores of your musical compositions with recordings of each work. All musical styles are welcome, though the departmental curriculum is geared toward composing for classical instruments and ensembles.

All materials must be uploaded by December 1.

B. Interview & Audition Requirements

After a preliminary review of electronic portfolios, a selected number of applicants will be invited for on-campus interviews and auditions. All invited applicants will be scheduled to perform an audition on their principal instrument or voice, and to complete a piano placement examination. The piano placement examination will include sight-reading, harmonization and transposition, scales and arpeggios, and chord progressions.

Though we strongly recommend coming to campus for an in-person interview, applicants living over 300 miles away are eligible to submit a recorded principal audition and to conduct their interview via Skype.

The interview component will focus on your portfolio materials. Please bring copies of your scores to help facilitate the conversation.

Principal Instruments

Select the principal instrument from the list below to view the applicable pre-screening and audition requirements:

Bassoon | Cello | Clarinet | Double Bass | Euphonium | French Horn

Harp | Oboe | Organ | Percussion | Piano | Saxophone | Trombone

Trumpet | Tuba | Viola | Violin | Voice

석사과정

A. Portfolio Requirements

Submit up to seven scores of your musical compositions with recordings of each work. All musical styles are welcome, though it should be noted that the departmental curriculum is geared toward composing for classical instruments and ensembles.

All materials must be received no later than December 1. Hard copies will not be accepted. Portfolios will not be forwarded to the faculty for review until the application and all transcripts have been received and reviewed by the Office of Admissions.

B. Interview Requirements

After the faculty review each portfolio, a selected number of applicants will be invited for on-campus interviews. Though we strongly recommend attending an in-person interview, applicants living over 300 miles away are eligible to conduct their interviews via Skype.