Choir Auditions for Fall 2022
Welcome back! We are excited to make music together. Here is the information you need for planning your fall choral experience.
Audition Information
- New student auditions are offered in 10-minute segments on: Wednesday, Sept. 7, 1:15-4:45 pm; Thursday, Sept. 8, 1:15-4:15 p.m.; and Friday, Sept. 9 1:15-4:15 p.m. Please sign up for a live in-person audition HERE.
- Returning student auditions are offered in 10-minute segments on Zoom on: Tuesday, Sept. 6, 9:30am-4pm, Thursday, Sept. 8 9:30am-12pm, and Friday, Sept. 9, 9:30am-12pm. The sign-up for returning student zoom auditions is HERE. (we will send out the zoom link in late August.)
- Please note: all times are listed central time.
If you are auditioning for Cantala, Concert Choir, or LU Vocal Spectrum, or if you're pursuing a voice-primary major (such as choral music education or vocal performance), you will need to complete the full choral audition (see below). A major factor in your successful audition for these ensembles will be how accurately and musically you prepare an assigned musical excerpt to perform. We will send the score out in late August. We want to see how comfortable you are teaching yourself a short amount of choral repertoire.
If you are interested in Viking Chorale, we will use your audition time to check your happiest vocal range. There is no formal audition testing, no sight-reading, no prepared excerpts. If you are a returning student who wishes to continue singing in Viking Chorale, please email Dr. Sieck directly - no need for an additional sign-up.
Please note: Concert Choir and Cantala have a mandatory retreat at Bjorklunden from Friday, September 16 at 5:45 p.m. to Sunday, September 18 at 5:00 p.m. Please do not audition for these ensembles if you cannot attend the retreat.
Here’s what the full audition looks like:
1. We’ll let you into the room when we’re ready. It’s best to arrive a few minutes early and take a few deep breaths. You’re going to do great!
2. We’ll start with conversation. We’re excited to speak with you.
3. We’ll move to vocalizing you throughout your range.
4. We’ll then try to find your voice’s healthiest range (where it likes to hang out, so to speak). You’ll sing “My Country Tis of Thee” in a range of keys. If you’re not familiar with that song, please click HERE to get a copy of the song.
5. We’ll move next to some ear-training games. We’ll play some intervals on the piano and ask you to sing them back. We’ll play a chord on the piano and ask you to sing the lowest, highest, or middle notes.
6. Finally, we’ll move to some sight-reading exercises. We’ll suggest a line from a document on the music stand, and ask you to clap through the rhythms. We’ll suggest a line from the document on the music stand and ask you to sight-sing the melody (we’ll give you the starting pitch and ask you to sing it unaccompanied).
7. Please look through and prepare this piece of music. We will ask you to sing through it to learn how you prepare music on your own.
And that's it! This isn't a competition, and we're not here to ascertain if you have "it". We're here to celebrate what you know, figure out what you don't yet know so we know what to teach, and help you find the right choir for this year. Enjoy the process, sing with pride, and help us get to know you!
Required Concert Attire
Singers in Concert Choir, Viking Chorale, and LU Vocal Spectrum
Please wear tasteful, modest clothes that are black. Some examples: a dress with shoulders, a hemline well below the knees, and a relatively high neckline; black pants, white button-down shirt, black suit coat; black tuxedo with white tux shirt, black cummerbund, and bow-tie; black slacks, black blouse/sweater.
All students should be wearing closed-toed black dress shoes, not flip flops. Black socks or nylons go with black shoes.
Cantala
• black, Aspen dress (see info below)
• black nylons
• appropriate black undergarments for formal wear
• black, close-toed dress shoes (comfortable, heel not too high, and no sandals or casual shoes)
Singers participating in Cantala will need to purchase the “Aspen” dress from Stage Accents.
Just in case you have any difficulty with the above link, their web address is: www.stageaccents.com. Click on “Women’s Formal.” Part way down the page is the picture of the Aspen dress. Click on the dress/description to go to the page with the dress description. Their direct telephone number is 1-800-631-1611.
Following is the information you will need:
Dress: Black Aspen Dress, order #8605B
Lawrence University Customer Number: S54901
Stage Accents will accept check or money order but credit card is preferred. Please be very careful when determining the size to order since there will be a restocking fee for returns.
PLEASE NOTE: Hem length is 1/2" off the floor with your dress shoes on. The hem must to be completely finished (with all extra fabric cut off, etc). The bottom of the dress should look exactly the same as it did before the alterations, except shorter, and the top shouldn't look any different at all!