Orchestral Audition Nepotism
Hello All,
I would like to preface this by saying that the audition candidates are completely not at fault for any of this as they have the same intention as everyone else, which is to win an orchestra job. Instead, the issue falls on the audition committee that promotes and executes this behavior.
I’ve been in the audition circuit for a bit now and have encountered some “eyebrow raising” stuff at some auditions. Firstly, there was an audition for a major orchestra a little over a month ago that is (in our instrument’s community) notorious for having an extremely controversial audition outcome for their past 3 auditions. (For those who know, you know which orchestra I am talking about) At this audition, I was told all finalists were students of the principal player of the orchestra (who was on the committee) at the university the principal player taught at. This was somewhat expected to have happened at this audition because this same sort of incident happened at the previous two auditions for this instrument at this orchestra. However, this similar scenario happened again in another recent audition occurring last week for a different orchestra. At this audition, I was informed that at least 75% (possibly more) of the advancing candidates from the prelim round were confirmed students of the assistant principal player (who was on the audition committee) at the university that the assistant principal player taught at. They would then proceed to sweep all spots in the final round (the audition was for the principal position so the assistant principal was the highest member of the section). Understandably, there may be some advantage that can be expected for the students as their teacher understands how the orchestra plays, but does it really make sense for the entire final round of the audition to consist of only players from the same school taught by the highest ranked member of the section? Is it possible that all the candidates from this one certain school are just far more qualified for the job than the rest that NO ONE from any other school was qualified to be in the finals? Will this just continue to be a trend in orchestral auditions that we will have to just accept moving forward? Anyone have any thoughts?
A panel will choose based on preference, and someone who studies with a section member or has subs with the orchestra will always be favored. This isn't nepotism. While playing in a way that appeases their teacher might lead to success in one audition, it could hurt their chances in other auditions. In short, you can’t help the fact that teachers tend to favor the way their students play over others. I wouldn't raise a red flag unless you know an audition is unscreened. Pure objectivity is not a real thing in orchestral auditions. It's never “the best player” that wins (there's no such thing); a panel is always choosing based on their personal musical preferences.
If you want to improve your chances of advancing at an audition, research the orchestra's preferences, take a lesson with the principal, or ask one of their students to listen to your tapes. Prepare for the job you're applying for instead of trying to “be the best.”
There is real blatant inequality in our field, and policing false nepotism detracts from the real systemic racism and sexism that continues to define American orchestras.