Audition program

[schubertiad]

I am looking to study in the Shanghai conservatory next year, and am deciding on audition pieces. The requirements (I think...) are as follows:
1) One piece of Bach
2) One Chopin study
3) One sonata (1st or 3rd movement)
4) One other study
5) Own choice piece

My plans so far are:
1) Bach f minor P+F (book 2) (just started)
2) the 'wrong notes' etude (op.25 no.5) (also just started)
3) not sure here. i'm leaning towards a schubert sonata, maybe D.664 (not started)
4) also not sure. perhaps late scriabin (op.65 no.2) or liszt paganini no.4 (neither started)
own choice piece is chopin-liszt 'my joys'. (learnt).

The auditions aren't until march or april next year, so i will have plenty of time, but i do want to be confident and happy with my repertoire. Any thoughts? suggestions?

[pianistimo]

you realize you are playing western music in an eastern country.  but, no matter - the stakes are high in china because they work very hard.  it's just they have no recollection of the historical facts to back up the works.  it's all going to be internet research.  unless you scrap going to the library.  i could be wrong.  translations of everything in the library.

i think you have a great program.  take along some books from barnes and noble.  you're going to need them.

[schubertiad]

I'm not quite sure i understand you. What books will i need? what research will i need to do?
Perhaps i should clarify my situation. I am currently living in Shanghai, studying Mandarin full time. By next january i will have finished my studies, and will be fine (language wise) to study at the conservatory. The only area of doubt is the piano playing...

[pianistimo]

some say they play western music with an eastern accent.  perhaps the place to learn eastern music is in china.  i mean - you have access to all these ancient instruments and people who know how to play them. isn't that more valuable?  anyways - why does one go far away from the source?  whatever knowledge you glean that is hard to find elsewhere will sell for a better price.

china was very closed for many years - as you know - and books were banned.  elitism put down.  and anything having to do with culture that did not fit the chinese mold.  good luck with the library.

also, good luck with impartial jury members if you are english or american.  good luck on everything.  good luck is the chinese way.  in fact, good luck period.  lucky day .  all that.  and make sure that you do it the right way.  the wrong way might have a terrible ending.  i will say -(fortune foretold )  i see you have a future with a teacher who will be very dogmatic.  in fact, i foretell that you might even get a serious lecture occasionally.  a smack on the forehead.  have to lick a few knees to graduate.  but, hey- we still have to do that over here- excepting that is freshman year and not graduation year.

*i came back to this message humbled by my own ignorance.  (and the fact that just learning mandarine chinese must be a feat in itself).  truly, i have never been to china and i thought about how each generation makes it's own progress. what was chinese thought 20 years ago is probably very different today.  now the younger generation teaching and collecting library materials.  the openness of china to the west should be an encouraged thing.  and, for what it's worth - i am very curious how the school is.  what methods are used and how piano is approached.  perhaps you can fill us in.

i read that there is now a train ride that you can take to tibet.  although, i'm not sure if tibetians have resorted to rocket grenades or anything to keep the place relatively calm and peaceful as it used to be.  trainloads of people coming into town probably disturbed the peace.  but i would like to see a real bowl dance in person.  it intruieges me.  i am serious.  and i would like to hear music and somehow record it like bartok did.  to me that would be great to have a music grant and get to travel here and there and record authentic music that great-grandparents may still remember.  youknwo - have them sing a tune -or play one. 

[csy]

But you are Chinese, right?
And whom are you going to stay with in Shanghai Conservatory of Music?
I hear many good things about the current Head of the Keyboard Department.

[schubertiad]

I'm English, but have lived in Shanghai for almost 2 years, so am pretty well adjusted. I know the competition here is extremely tough, but I'm also sure that 90% of students will be giving roughly the same programme. (My Chinese friend who graduated from the conservatory last year said that 30 people played Chopin op.10 no. I'm hoping that my slightly atypical programme might give me a better chance. Is this possible?