Auditions

[theyellowhobbit]

I got lost on my way to the Techiya audition. I was riding my bike there (it's about a 10 minute bike ride to MIT) and I went the wrong way on Mass Ave, ended up going way west of where I needed to be, eventually finding my way back, and then biked down as fast as I could. My audition was supposed to be at 5, I got there closer to 5:20.

Luckily, they were running behind. So they didn't seem to mind my lateness. And MIT really is a maze.

I think I did well. I don't know if I did. With the warm up I showed them how non-existent my upper register is, but that my lower register does exist, a lot, and it is shiny. Then I sang the beginning of "Elias" by Dispatch. Not a challenging piece, but perfectly in my range, (and I've performed it a billion times, albeit all in high school and with a guitar and other people) so I think I sounded good. (Considering you could sing "Happy Birthday" I think I was okay with singing "Elias." It's impressive when a group of people can sing Happy Birthday on key, but I don't think it's so impressive for an individual to sing it...)

So I find out about callbacks tonight, and then callbacks are tomorrow night, if I get called back.

I'm only a little bit nervous, and I'm not sure whether or not I'm nervous about not getting in or nervous about getting in (considering the time commitment...)

Also, I really like riding my bike around MIT. They have plenty of places where you can go really fast. And it's mostly flat. Wheeeeeee!

*Update* I got asked to come for a callback! Yay callback! The callback is tomorrow night. And it's in the same place, so this time I shouldn't get lost.

Comments

[timmypowg.livejournal.com]

Congratulations!

I'm obviously not allowed to say anything about your audition or anyone else's, but the point of the solo isn't to see how hard a song you can sing but whether you can stay on key (which individuals very often can't do on Happy Birthday), whether you have a range of expression, and so on. For that, really, any song will do. This contrasts with the song we taught you, because any problems there could be due to the person not being good at reading, or because the person gets confused when other people sing, or for a bunch of other reasons I'm sure you can come up with. If you get into the group, you'll get to audition people yourself in the spring! Good luck!

By the way, our Sunday rehearsals are usually around there, too. Sometimes we're in 4-156 instead of 4-160, but it's all the same. (:

[sen-ichi-rei.livejournal.com]

Thanks!

I think if an individual were to sing Happy Birthday by themselves, and they could stay on key in general, they could probably stay on key for Happy Birthday. When you're in a group, the problem is often that there are many different keys all being sung at the same time.

Also, wouldn't people getting confused when other people sing be a problem in an acapella group (or any singing group for that matter)?

[timmypowg.livejournal.com]

Next time you're at someone's birthday, listen for the octave jump in the melody. See how many people actually sing the octave. It's harrowing.

But yes, it would be a problem, but it would be a different problem, and possibly a much easier problem to deal with. If you get confused when other people are singing, you could just sing your own part over and over and over. If you can't hit intervals, you could have really big problems...

[youth-thinker.livejournal.com]

Congrats!!


You know what this means, right? It means I get to bug you for audition tips!!

[midnight-sidhe.livejournal.com]

Congratulations! And good luck for tonight.

[sen-ichi-rei.livejournal.com]

You bugging me for audition tips? I mean you can try. I doubt I have anything useful. Let's see what I've learned:

- Try out for a group where they've heard you sing before and have specifically asked you to try out. This means you can probably get in.
- Sing a song you're good at singing, even if it's easy.

[youth-thinker.livejournal.com]

To the first: Hrm... this makes things complicated.
The second: There are too many!!

And that's it?

[sen-ichi-rei.livejournal.com]

In this case that was it. Note that this is the first time I've ever gotten a callback for an acapella group.