Another College Audition Rep List

[rondeaufantastique]

Hi all!

It's my first post here on the forum, although I've been a reader for a long time. I'm asking if my specific college audition list is good enough to be considered for schools such as Oberlin and Indiana University at Bloomington. I also would appreciate a little advice on the romantic and etude selections.

-Bach Prelude and Fugue No. 8 in D# Minor WTC Bk. II (this is already learned)
-Beethoven Sonata no 3 in C Major Op. 2 No. 3
-Brahms? Variations? Scherzo? Rhapsody Op. 79 No. 1? are these works acceptable, and if so, which ones?
-Etude: Chopin Op. 10 No. 8 or Op. 25 No. 6, or possibly a Rachmaninoff such as Op. 33 No. 3 or Op. 33 No. 7
-Poulenc Napoli Suite for Piano

Thanks everyone for the time and advice!

[jgendron]

Hey !
Are they really asking for a repertoire thaaaat long ?
Of course the Prelude and Fugue is good.
The Beethoven sonata is a good choice and really challenging.
Brahms.... Why not an intermezzo ?? It would be a wise choice for an audition to show your ability to be all in finesse.
Chopin : Definitely op.10 no.8. Op.25 no.6 is REALLY risky for an audition ... I don't want to judge so fast but would you seriously be able to bring your level of execution to a good point with this etude ?
Poulenc is also really nice and played not too often.

Good luck with everything. Make sure that your repertoire is not too long for an audition. Because trust me, it is sooo sad when we are stopped in the middle of a Chopin Ballade we worked on for months.

[rondeaufantastique]

Thank you very much for the reply! I was initially considering an intermezzo, but some schools specify that they want "a major romantic work, 6 or more minutes long". However, I think it is good advice about the etude. Op 25 6 does come strangely easily to me, but I am worried about the interpretation at the same time.

Many of the schools I am trying for don't require such a long list, as you mentioned. This list just caters to the upper tier of schools I'll be trying for. I also suspect I won't be asked to play all of each piece in the audition.

One last thing, the requirements are
1, prelude and fugue.
2, classical sonata
3, virtuoso etude
4, major romantic work
5, major 21st century work.

Thanks again for the advice! It's just what I've been looking for.

[jgendron]

You have to keep in mind that when they are asking for "Major work from the romantic period", it is more as a guideline. An intermezzo would be really effective, i'm sure, but the first Rhapsody is great too. It's a lot of work ! I'm sure you can get through it though, because it is so beautiful ! But I would preach for a various repertoire more than a really tough and mind-blowing one.

I'll take the chance to share this Kabalevsky's Rondo in A minor to you (just in case you are not sure about the Poulenc). It is rarely played, really fun to play and shows a LOT of technical skills and musicality, if performed correctly. Not too difficult to learn since it's a Rondo and that the main theme recalls a lot !  

Here it is :

Good luck.
p.s : excuse my english if it's sometimes weird, I'm French

[rondeaufantastique]

You don't have to apologize for English -  assure you my French would be much worse, and I honestly didn't even notice anything with your English!

In any case I think I will ask my teacher about the rhapsody because I really love this piece. I also thought the rondo was delightful, not in a literal sense. The reason I choose poulenc is because I already know it somewhat.

Thanks so much for all your help on the matter, I feel a lot less stress about it now. It's hard to make it a whole week between talks with
 your teacher without imploding a little bit!