Does anyone know what is even allowed by orchestras such as Houston Symphony, who in this case, has allowed the deadline to pass for application for a principal position without posting any excerpts and obviously no music yet? Deadline was January 7, first round audition is February 23.
This is completely unprofessional and I wonder if it’s outside what’s allowed by the AFM? All of their other instruments have at least a few months of lead time to practice excerpts and all allow for the applicant to make an informed decision with a reasonable time to book travel, clear schedules etc.
Keyboard can and in my opinion should include piano celesta harpsichord ***** and many styles. No way an applicant can prepare well or even make an informed decision.
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You’d have to read their CBA to find out if they’re breaking their own rules about distributing audition repertoire to candidates. There’s nothing mandated by the federation, all the rules can vary from orchestra to orchestra.
But I generally agree that the way Principal Keyboard positions are being handled by ICSOM orchestras is a super negative trend. Many groups have eliminated the position completely. I’ve heard truly insane stories about how these “auditions” have gone down in other groups. It’s not great.
For the auditions I’ve taken, I’d say it’s roughly 50/50 whether the repertoire list is posted by the application deadline. Not at all unusual, at least in my experience.