BECOME A MEMBER OF OUR ORCHESTRA!
The Gulf Coast Symphony, Southwest Florida’s premier community orchestra, is composed of volunteer musicians who enjoy the opportunity to continue their musical development through participation in a full-size symphony orchestra.
Your level of commitment can vary, depending on your schedule and your instrument! We typically perform 12 concerts each season. Regular rehearsals are held weekly from October to June on Tuesday evenings from 7:00 to 9:30 p.m. Additional rehearsals are scheduled the week of a concert.
Musicians in the Southwest Florida area are encouraged to audition for membership in the group. Auditions are held during the year on an as-needed, as-available basis. The audition is not about perfection, but rather about assessing if the Gulf Coast Symphony is right for you!
CONTACT US for more details and to schedule an audition.
AUDITION REQUIREMENTS
For each instrument, we would like to hear two solo selections of your choosing: one slow and one fast. Just a portion of longer solos is fine. If your solo selection contains both tempos, one piece is adequate. We want to hear you at your best, so play something with which you are entirely comfortable.
You may be asked to sight read a short selection from our upcoming repertoire. You will also be asked to prepare several short orchestral excerpts which will be provided by the Symphony. Please contact us for these excerpts, as they change on an annual basis.
In addition, you will be asked to play scales and arpeggios appropriate to your instrument—below are some suggestions for each instrument; you may also be coached to play either your solos or your scales in a variety of ways, e.g., legato, marcato, stacatto.
Violin: Major/minor scales up to 4 sharps and 3 flats, two octaves, followed by a two octave arpeggio for the major keys; for placement in the first violin section, three octave scales should be performed
Viola: Major/minor scales up to 4 sharps and 3 flats, two octaves, followed by a two octave arpeggio for the major keys
Cello: Major/minor scales up to 4 sharps and 3 flats, two octaves, followed by a two octave arpeggio for the major keys
Bass: Major/minor scales up to 3 sharps and 3 flats, one octave, followed by a one octave arpeggio for the major keys
Flute: 3 octaves: CM; 2 octaves: C#, D, Eb, E, F, F#, G, Ab, A, Bb, B
Oboe: 2 octaves: Bb, B, C, C#, D, Eb, E, F; 1 octave: F#, G, Ab, A
Clarinet: 3 octaves: E, F, F#, G; 2 octaves: Ab, A, Bb, B, C, C#, D, Eb
Bassoon: 3 octaves: Bb; 2 octaves: B, C, C#, D, Eb, E, F, F#, G, Ab, A
Horn: 2 octaves: F, F#, G, Ab, A, Bb; 1 octave: B, C, C#, D, Eb, E
Trumpet: 2 octaves: F#, G, Ab, A, Bb, B, C; 1 octave: C#, D, Eb, E, F
Trombone/Tuba: 2 octaves: E, F, F#, G, Ab, A, Bb; 1 octave: B, C, C#, D, Eb
Percussion: Solo material and any rudiments to be determined
Responses
