BassClefTristan Posted March 17, 2016 Share Posted March 17, 2016 Hi! My name is Tristan, and I play the baritone/euphonium and the tuba. I have decided to audition for the Bluecoats or Carolina Crown for the 2017 season and it will be my rookie year. I will be 18. I'm just wondering; which instrument Will I prosper the most on? Playing wise, I am much more experienced playing the tuba; actually, this summer, I'll be in a month long summer program where I will pretty much do nothing but play the tuba. (in a concert setting) However, I have never held a contra in my life. I have marched a year on trombone in high school marching band though, and those fundamentals are better than my sousaphone fundamentals if that helps. I have access to a concert tuba, a sousaphone, and a marching baritone. If I choose baritone, the answeris obvious as to what I'll play in what audition. If I play tuba, though, what do I do? Do I take the concert tuba and do my playing audition on that and do my marching audition on one of the corps' contras? Or do I take my sousaphone? Thank you for reading, I'd REALLY like some help with this! - Tristan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
noahsigs Posted March 17, 2016 Share Posted March 17, 2016 In a very similar boat with you. Mostly a tuba player, but have access to a nice marching Euph I can practice on... I'm so confused haha Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C.Holland Posted March 17, 2016 Share Posted March 17, 2016 Audition on what you play best. Bring that horn with you. for visual time they'll provide you a horn or march you without one. We had guys I marched with audition on cello and ended up marching a bari. They want to hear musicality, tempo, and technique. They'll teach you how to hold a marching horn if they want you. That's easy. Things they really care about: Attitude (will you give 100% all the time, take criticism well, and constantly work to get better than the day before) Musicality, Time, and fundamentals (internal pulse, and all the stuff that makes music listenable, do you have good articulations and tone) Can you afford it? Lets not beat around the bush. You need to be there for camps, you need to play every smart music assignment on time, and you need to pay tour fees on time. Can you do all the visual aspects, and again, take criticism, learn quickly, and adapt to their style. And lastly... they'll ask WHY you want to march there. Know that answer. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BRASSO Posted March 17, 2016 Share Posted March 17, 2016 (edited) Also... if you want to march tuba in Crown or Bluecoats, it would be most beneficial to your chances of making a spot if you are in good physical shape... especially if its the Contra you'll be potentially playing in Corps. DCI scores place a lot of emphasis on the Visual ( movement ) side of things these days now, so my suggestion would be to be sure and regularly work out, and be in tip top shape when its time for you to audition. Good luck to in your quest, by the way. Edited March 17, 2016 by BRASSO 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C.Holland Posted March 17, 2016 Share Posted March 17, 2016 Some corps will also place you depending on their need. I had a student of mine that is a tuba player go to Blue Stars, who marched tuba for me, but there they placed him on euph. so it depends on the need as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeD Posted March 18, 2016 Share Posted March 18, 2016 Audition on what you play best. Bring that horn with you. for visual time they'll provide you a horn or march you without one. We had guys I marched with audition on cello and ended up marching a bari. They want to hear musicality, tempo, and technique. They'll teach you how to hold a marching horn if they want you. That's easy. Things they really care about: Attitude (will you give 100% all the time, take criticism well, and constantly work to get better than the day before) Musicality, Time, and fundamentals (internal pulse, and all the stuff that makes music listenable, do you have good articulations and tone) Can you afford it? Lets not beat around the bush. You need to be there for camps, you need to play every smart music assignment on time, and you need to pay tour fees on time. Can you do all the visual aspects, and again, take criticism, learn quickly, and adapt to their style. And lastly... they'll ask WHY you want to march there. Know that answer. Why couldn't the person have marched cello? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BRASSO Posted March 18, 2016 Share Posted March 18, 2016 (edited) Why couldn't the person have marched cello? I had been wondering what Woody Allen is playing instrumentally these days now in NYC. Edited March 18, 2016 by BRASSO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C.Holland Posted March 18, 2016 Share Posted March 18, 2016 well, in the late 90s, we didn't have the "everything that makes noise" rule allowed for the pit yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
perc2100 Posted March 18, 2016 Share Posted March 18, 2016 Hi! My name is Tristan, and I play the baritone/euphonium and the tuba. I have decided to audition for the Bluecoats or Carolina Crown for the 2017 season and it will be my rookie year. I will be 18. I'm just wondering; which instrument Will I prosper the most on? Playing wise, I am much more experienced playing the tuba; actually, this summer, I'll be in a month long summer program where I will pretty much do nothing but play the tuba. (in a concert setting) However, I have never held a contra in my life. I have marched a year on trombone in high school marching band though, and those fundamentals are better than my sousaphone fundamentals if that helps. I have access to a concert tuba, a sousaphone, and a marching baritone. If I choose baritone, the answeris obvious as to what I'll play in what audition. If I play tuba, though, what do I do? Do I take the concert tuba and do my playing audition on that and do my marching audition on one of the corps' contras? Or do I take my sousaphone? Thank you for reading, I'd REALLY like some help with this! - Tristan To kind of agree with others in a sense, audition what you WANT to do. If you have a preference for one or the other, feel more confident with one or the other, etc. audition on that one. You'll likely to better/achieve more if you're confident & prefer the instrument, vs you just kind of "settle" on one. When you audition tell the brass staff you can play either one and maybe they'll plug you in where they need you (or where they feel you'll be more successful). Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShutUpAndPlayYerGuitar Posted March 18, 2016 Share Posted March 18, 2016 - Play what you sound good on/what you want to play. I made the mistake of trying out for a top corps on baritone for mostly logistical reasons, when I really just wanted to play contra (which I was new at, but sounded better on). - Most/every corps allows you to bring a concert horn for auditions. They'll swap out contras between members/auditions during ensemble time. For actual auditions, you can play whatever. They want you to be comfortable. - For the record: Crown and Bluecoats both march Yamaha (relatively well-designed horns that factor in ergonomics, so they're not super heavy). If you know of a band program that uses this model (and not those crappy convertibles like a lot of programs use), don't be afraid to reach out if you want to at least take a look at those. That being said: Not a big deal if you can't find one, but it's worth looking into if you're curious. - Already mentioned, but it bears repeating: it helps a ton if you're in relatively decent physical shape. You don't have to be in MMA fighting shape, just fit enough to do cardio for long enough stretches of time, as well as having decent flexibility for movement. I always recommend people auditioning to try yoga and/or dance classes and/or pilates. So much of that stuff directly applies to drum corps. If you can move comfortably, you'll have a huge advantage. (If people laugh at you for doing yoga/dance/pilates, they're dumb. Also: chicks dig guys who do this stuff.) The visual staff people in several of the top corps have just as much say in who makes it/who doesn't as the brass staff. In many cases, if it's between a person who is physically fit but an average musician vs. a great musician who can't deal with the physical demands, the staff will almost always go with the former. - If you don't make the cut, go to another corps (DCI/DCA/Soundsport) and get experience. A bunch of World Class corps will have openings well into the spring, even the summer. You'll be a better performer and will know exactly what to expect if you choose to re-audition again, or you'll return to your first corps as a vet with a large circle of friends you can count on. TL;DR - Play the instrument you want to play. Start getting fit if you're not already. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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