Music
Audition on Piano
To gain admission to the B.Mus. in Music Performance (Piano), a student must pass an entrance audition before a faculty jury of three, to be appointed by the chairperson. The audition will occur near the end of the second semester of college and must demonstrate the student’s ability to perform well challenging repertoire representing several historical periods and styles. A student wishing to perform an entrance audition must notify the chairperson in writing at least three weeks prior to the audition. Only after passing the entrance audition may the student declare as a major the B.Mus. in Music Performance (Piano). A prospective candidate for the B.Mus. in Music Performance (Piano) may declare a major in Music prior to the semesters stated above but will be listed as a candidate for the B.A. Music until he or she passes the audition. A student who does not pass the entrance audition in the second semester may have a second opportunity in the third semester.
Repertoire Requirements
During the four years of study toward the degree Bachelor of Music in Music Performance (Piano), repertoire should be drawn from all of the main historical periods shown below and should be as musically and technically challenging as these works. Repertoire for the entrance audition for the same degree should be from at least three of these historical periods and should be as challenging as the works listed below. This list is not intended to be exhaustive, but merely to provide examples.
Baroque
- J. S. Bach. Well-Tempered Clavier; Suites; Partitas; Toccatas; Concerti
- Scarlatti. Sonatas
Classical
- Haydn. Sonatas, including Hob. VXI:48 in C, 49 in Eb, 50 in C, 51 in D, 52 in Eb, Fantasy in C, Hob. XVII:4; variations including those in f, Hob. XVII:6
- Mozart. Sonatas, except K. 545 in C; Variations; Concerti
- Beethoven. Sonatas, except Op. 49; Variations; Concerti
- Schubert. Sonatas; Impromptus
Romantic
- Mendelssohn. The more difficult Songs without Words; Variations serieuses; Rondo capriccioso; Concerti;
- Chopin. Etudes; Ballades; Scherzi; Polonaises; Waltzes; Sonatas; Nocturnes; Mazurkas; Preludes; Fantasy in f; Barcarolle; Berceuse; Concerti
- Schumann. Papillons; Carnaval; Fantasiestucke, Op. 12; Faschingschwank aus Wien; Fantasy in C; Kreisleriana; Novelettes; ABEGG Variations; Sonatas; Concerto in A Minor
- Liszt. Hungarian Rhapsodies; Annees de pelerinage; Concert Etudes; Transcendental Etudes; Paganini Etudes; Harmonies poetiques et religieuses, opera paraphrases; Sonata in b, Concerti
- Brahms. Intermezzi; Ballades; Variations; Sonatas; Concerti
- Rachmaninoff. Preludes; Etudes-tableaux; Variations; Sonatas; Concerti
- Scriabin. Preludes; Etudes; Sonatas
Comparably challenging repertoire by Gottschalk, Grieg, Faure, Tchaikovsky, Medtner, MacDowell, Albeniz, Granados, and others
20th and 21st Centuries
- Debussy. Preludes; Etudes; Images; Estampes; L'Isle joyeuse; Pour le piano; Suite bergamasque
- Ravel. Gaspard de la nuit; Miroirs; Le Tombeau de Couperin; Jeux d'eau; Sonatina; Valses nobles et sentimentales; Concerti
- Griffes. Roman Sketches
- Webern. Variations
- Bartok. Suite, Op. 14; Out of Doors; Mikrokosmos, Book VI; Allegro barbaro; Sonata; Concerti
- Prokofiev. Sonatas; Sarcasms; Toccata; Concerti
- Shostakovich. Preludes and Fugues; Concerti
- Copland. Sonata; Fantasy; Variations; Passacaglia; Concerto
- Hindemith. Sonatas
- Messiaen. Vingt Regards sur l'enfant-Jesus
Comparably challenging works by Schonberg, Berg, Stravinsky, Kabalevsky, Milhaud, Poulenc, Villa-Lobos, de Falla, Ginastera, Ives, Crumb, E. Carter, Gubaidulina, Bolcom, Ligeti, and many others