What is the level I should be at to get into a music school like FSU, even Northwestern, for Alto?

[Funboyrule]

I'm looking for some kind of relative whereabouts as to how much I should be practicing, what I should be practicing, and what the level of playing I should be able to do in my auditions for FSU, or a better music school, early next year. I plan on playing the Glazounov Concerto along with the Heiden sonata for Alto and Piano. Responses are highly appreciated, thank you!

[magical pig]

As much as you can.

[Nefertiti]

As much as you can.

I agree. Afterwards, you will know if it was enough................

[EugeneR]

I'm also planning on auditioning for FSU and places similar, but playing the Glazunov and Scaramouche for non-performance major...

[gary]

As much as you can.

Without being flippant, that really is the answer. You can only get as good as you can get and you have to accept that, but you can't set the bar lower than that, either.

[Funboyrule]

Thanks for the advice, but, I guess I mean what type of player should I compare myself too, in regards to what I should play and be like when I go to audition? I feel like I'm over my head in what I want, to get into a really good music school. But if I can, by all means, I want in!

[Jazzaferri]

Compare yourself to all the other thousands of students wanting to get into music school.

If you are not spending at least 3 hrs a day in practice you might want to think of another career. If you are spending 10 - 12 hrs a day then you know ou are really serious

[drakesaxprof]

I'm looking for some kind of relative whereabouts as to how much I should be practicing, what I should be practicing, and what the level of playing I should be able to do in my auditions for FSU, or a better music school, early next year. I plan on playing the Glazounov Concerto along with the Heiden sonata for Alto and Piano. Responses are highly appreciated, thank you!

Glaz and Heiden are solid and very typical college audition pieces. It's less about the repertoire, though, and more about how you sound on each. Have you done a lot of serious listening to multiple recordings of each piece? Have you heard at least Rousseau, Sinta, and Sugawa on Heiden? What aspects about each recording appeal to you? Which are you incorporating into your interpretation? On Glaz, Gary Louie, Jean-Yves Fourmeau, Eugene Rousseau, Debra Richtmeyer, Nobuya Sugawa, and Jean-Marie Londeix all have stellar (and very different) recordings. At the very least, you need to have done serious listening to each of these -- and you'll find others. Your performance must be informed, and rooted in performance practice. Any college teacher will hear in within the first two bars whether or not you have taken the time to do your homework. So, do it!

[Jazzaferri]

At last the voice of wisdom

[Funboyrule]

I have been listening, very much. I've been practicing the glaz for probably about 4 weeks now, and in my opinion I am certainly not stellar at playing it. But should I put my own interpretation of it in the piece? And along those lines, I tend to have a very dark sound, which I like and enjoy, but the glaz certainly seems to have more of a calling to the french sound, which I notice a lot when listening to the recordings. Should I play it like I perceive it, much darker, or try and imitate? And lastly, what holds more weight to a college of such standards as FSU -Musical interpretation and phrasing, essentially lyrical aspects, or the more technical things like hitting notes and keeping in tempo (though it's hard to really define the tempo of the glaz piece.)

[alljoe]

As much as you can.

well pig i generally agree but it doesnt help a student set a goal. vague goals seldom get achieved. understanding the goal allows someone to achieve it and set a practice regimen with a reasonable probability of success. if its too high a goal for this year perhaps some money is saved waiting for next yr with a better chance of success.

[Allen Halstead]

I'm also planning on auditioning for FSU and places similar, but playing the Glazunov and Scaramouche for non-performance major...

I am an alumni of FSU (1981) .... I understand Pat Meighan is still the teacher there (I lost touch with him soon after graduation)... I know he studied with Rascher, loved his Buescher tru-tone and I believe he has been a member of the Rascher quartet and others. His style is mostly of the French classical ... Although I am sure he is open to all styles and sounds, you may want to lean in that direction ... found one clip on you tube....
So my advice ... Listen as much as you can and PLAY as much as you can ... emulate the masters ... you can't go wrong ...

[Funboyrule]

Thank you all so much for the advice.

[drakesaxprof]

I have been listening, very much. I've been practicing the glaz for probably about 4 weeks now, and in my opinion I am certainly not stellar at playing it. But should I put my own interpretation of it in the piece? And along those lines, I tend to have a very dark sound, which I like and enjoy, but the glaz certainly seems to have more of a calling to the french sound, which I notice a lot when listening to the recordings. Should I play it like I perceive it, much darker, or try and imitate? And lastly, what holds more weight to a college of such standards as FSU -Musical interpretation and phrasing, essentially lyrical aspects, or the more technical things like hitting notes and keeping in tempo (though it's hard to really define the tempo of the glaz piece.)

The piece was written for Rascher, so there's nothing inherently French about it, other than Glazunov's Parisian connections. Play it with your best sound. All of those elements of performance are equally important. Playing the right notes with good time is not a technical aspect -- it is a fundamental musical foundation. Without that, all of your interpretation/phrasing/lyricism is wasted energy. Once you have everything in place that the composer has asked for in the score, then you can begin to build a credible interpretation.

[macdaddysax26]

I can't speak for FSU, but having just studied with Dr. McAllister - who is now the professor at Northwestern - at ASU, I can tell you what he is looking for. He makes a distinction between the "haves" and the "have-nots" in high school saxophone students. The "haves" have taken lessons for a few years, know all the major and minor scales at least through thirds at a pretty good tempo (let's say 16ths at 96 as a good minimum), have played one of the standard etude books (Berbiguier, Ferling, Bozza, Lacour), have played at least a few pieces of standard rep (Heiden, Glaz, Hindemith, Scaramouche, Tableaux) - maybe one of them from memory, and perhaps one of the more advanced pieces (Desneclos, Ibert, Dahl, Denisov for the truly brave high schooler). The "haves" also know proper embouchure formation, and have spent time working on voicing, intonation, and vibrato. That is the student he is looking for, especially at Northwestern. Get as close to that as possible and you'll be in good shape.

Be advised, though, that NU typically does not offer merit-based scholarship to undergraduates, only need-based financial aid.