Audition Guidelines for the Summer 2020 Heifetz Institute

Please Read Carefully!    

Audition videos must clearly display the hands and face of the applicant at all times during the performance, and be taken from one single-camera perspective.

No video or audio edits of the performance are permitted, and edited performances will not be accepted. Standard editing of applause and truncating and/or excerpting a single movement from a longer pieces is acceptable.

Each audition submission must be uploaded separately and clearly labeled with the name of the applicant performer and of the piece.

Piano accompaniment: We do not require prospective students to audition with a collaborative pianist. That being said, the goal for your audition should be to achieve the most compelling and artistic performance possible.  Most students find that performing an audition with a pianist brings them closer to that goal.

Videos may be posted on YouTube, or directly to the Heifetz Institute’s Acceptd platform. Please make sure that all links are working and do not require password to access.

If you wish to upload a video from a live concert that was professionally recorded and does not meet the above conditions, or if you have any other questions, please contact us at admissions@heifetzinstitute.org.

Good luck!

Violin

Please upload three separate videos, clearly labeled, fulfilling the following requirements:

1. A short piece clearly demonstrating technical accomplishment.
2. A movement from one of the six Bach solo sonatas and partitas.
3. A substantial movement of a concerto or sonata from the standard repertoire, demonstrating both artistry and virtuosity.

Viola

Please upload three separate videos, clearly labeled, and chosen from the following:

1. A short piece clearly demonstrating technical accomplishment.
2. A movement from one of the six cello suites by J.S. Bach (transcriptions permitted).
3. Choose a substantial movement from a sonata from the standard repertoire OR a representative substantial portion of a concerto. Examples include (but are not limited to):

• First movement with cadenza of the D major concerti by Carl Stamitz  or Franz Anton Hoffmeister
• First or second movement of the William Walton viola concerto.
• First or second and third movements of the Bela Bartok viola concerto.
• Any movement of Paul Hindemith’s Der Schwanendreher

Cello

Please upload three separate videos, clearly labeled, fulfilling the following requirements:

1. 1. A short piece clearly demonstrating technical accomplishment.
   2. A movement from one of the six cello suites by J.S. Bach.
   3. A substantial movement of a concerto or sonata from the standard repertoire, demonstrating both artistry and virtuosity.

Double Bass – Application deadline: March 1st!

Back in 2020!

The Heifetz Institute will welcome double bass students to our summer campus, with an intensive two-week program from July 23 – Aug. 9, 2020, led by Samuel Suggs, the first solo bassist in 36 years to join the Concert Artists Guild roster and professor at James Madison University.  Students will receive two private lessons per week, a weekly studio-performance class, and be assigned to chamber ensembles with pre-assigned repertoire, and participate in all other Heifetz Institute activities, including Performance and Communication Training classes.  Click here for tuition and scholarship information for the new double bass workshop.

Double Bass Audition Requirements

Please upload separate videos for each movement, clearly labeled, fulfilling the following requirement.

1. A movement from one of the six cello suites by J.S. Bach (optional repeats)
2. A movement of a standard concerto or sonata, demonstrating both artistry and virtuosity (accompaniment preferred)
3. Please upload the following as a single video file labeled “Excerpts”

• Verdi: Rigoletto, Act I, No. 3: Pickup to mm. 14-56 (with mute)
• Bach: Orchestral Suite no. 2: Badinerie (no repeats)
• Beethoven: Symphony no. 9, Movement IV: mm. 8-90
• Mozart: Symphony no. 39, Movement IV: Pickups to mm. 105-137

(stringexcerpts.com is a recommended online source)

Piano

The Institute will accept 1-3 piano students to participate in the Ashkenasi/Kirshbaum Chamber Music Seminar as part of a chamber ensemble. However, all members of the pre-formed group must submit separate, individual applications.  Each member will need to indicate the name of the ensemble to which they belong.

Piano Audition Requirements

1.  A Bach prelude and fugue or another original work by Bach (not a transcription)
2.  A sonata or variations by Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, or Schubert.
3.  A short piece from the Romantic to modern era clearly demonstrating technical accomplishment.

For All Applicants

As for whether or not a piece is sufficiently “virtuosic” we’ll be happy to answer your specific questions at admissions@heifetzinstitute.org.  But first keep in mind that we want to be impressed, so think about the pieces that will make the greatest impression on our selection committee!

In ALL cases, please be sure your audition piece is clearly titled. 

Looking for advice on making a great application video?  Check out the excellent (and funny!) suggestions offered by this violin website.

If you have not attended the Heifetz Institute before, and are applying for need-based financial aid, you will be asked to provide the name and email of one reference. Once you finish and submit your application, our application host (GetAcceptd) will automatically send an email to your reference with instructions on how to submit their letter of recommendation. Note: If you are an alumnus/alumna of the Heifetz Institute, you are not required to submit any references.

The application deadline for the 2020 Heifetz Institute is 12:00 midnight EST Sunday, February 2, 2020.  Applications received after that date will be considered only on a case-by-case basis.  

Thanks and good luck!

For audition details about the Ashkenasi/Kirshbaum Chamber Music Seminar, please click here.