Brandon's Audition Warm Up

Last week I wrote about my regular "stay in shape" routine but mentioned that when I get down to the wire for auditions I have a shortened warm up and technical routine so that I am ready to go with as much time as possible left over to prepare the excerpt list. Starting a month or so (4 weeks min.) before the audition I switch over to this routine exclusively and it is so short I am also able do it the morning of the audition allowing me to really solidify in advance what I will be doing before I have to perform behind the big scary screen. Without further ado I give you "Brandon's Audition Warm Up":

1) Long Tones!!!! Yes ladies and gentlemen I said it again. I really believe in them. They warm up my sound, body, and mind, and give me reassurance that I am in tune and sounding full, pure and beautiful. I do the same long tones I do every day and detailed in my last post. DONT FORGET THE TUNER!

2) Scales!!!! Here is where I deviate first. I go directly into Taffanel and Gaubert's (T&G) "Daily Exercises" and do no. 1 and 2 varying the articulations each day at either quarter note equals 120 or half note equals 60. I do all of the Major exorcises in the piano dynamic and the minor ones at Forte. On the morning of the audition I do them either slurred or tongued (no crazy articulations to try and keep me sane). I find this gets my blood pumping and further helps my sound to settle. Always have the tuner on your stand and as you finish each scale hold the note to make sure you're on the green.

3) "Excerpt Technique", Bach, "Tim's Specials"!!!! I've broken this portion down into three different sub categories. "Excerpt Technique" is the one that I do every day leading up to and including the day of the the audition in question.  

        "Excerpt Technique" refers to the technical passages in the excerpts that I have a particularly difficult time with (such as the last arpeggio in Peter and the Wolf or the 3rd measure of Firebird). I take the bits and pieces that I have a hard time with and do them 5 times each at a slower tempo all in a row. This forces me to play these passages every single day and solidify them into my technique. Don't be afraid to go way under tempo for this portion. Slow practice in this case is about muscle memory.

Bach refers to the "66 Studies" book that Richard Sherman swore by while I was at Michigan State. I refer to it as my Bible and have it on hand ALWAYS. They make me feel great to play and keep me from resenting the anal amount of attention to detail that excerpts require. I sometimes play them at the end of my warm up but often times use them to warm myself up after a short break before I dive back into the task at hand.

"Tim's Specials" refers to Anderson Op. 30 no. 1, 2, and 3. He made every single new student work on these with him and they really help me to ground myself and my sound (specifically across hard to do leaps) and have become so engrained in my body that I don't have to think too hard about the notes while I am playing them. Much like the Bach I keep it close at hand in case I need a mental break from the monotony of "excerpt hell".

Guess what? ...that's it!! You read correct the above takes anywhere from 15 - 45 min depending on how much you do and really gets me going in the morning. It is my perfect routine to keep me in shape while also allowing me to do it the morning of an audition without getting fatigued. Try it out and let me know what you think!

Until next week...Happy Practicing!!