Jazz Auditions

Auditions for Fall 2022

All auditions take place in Room 121 of the Davidson Music Center. Students interested in performing jazz at the college level are welcome to audition for the groups below. Auditions will be with Arthur White, Director of Jazz Studies: awhite66@calpoly.edu, 805-756-5792

• Cal Poly Jazz Ensemble
• Cal Poly Jazz Band
• Cal Poly Vocal Jazz
• Combos

• Sign up for an audition time through SignUpGenius.
• If you cannot make one of the audition times above, email Arthur White for an alternate time.
• Please be ready 10 minutes prior to your scheduled audition with a completed personnel form and class schedule.
• Results will be announced via email.
  • Successful auditionees will be placed into either Jazz Ensemble, Vocal Jazz Ensemble, Jazz Band or a combo.
• Students interested in performing in combos must play in a big band or vocal jazz ensemble, if selected, in order to perform with a combo.

Keeping your schedule available for all ensembles, and having some reasonable scheduling flexibility, will increase your chances of being able to participate in one of them. 

REHEARSAL TIMES

• Cal Poly Jazz Ensemble (MU 170-01) - MW 11:10 a.m. to noon
• Cal Poly Jazz Band (MU 170-02) - M 3:10 to 4:30 p.m.
• Cal Poly Vocal Jazz (MU 171-04) - by arrangement
• Combos by arrangement

REQUIREMENTS

Everyone will be asked to do the following:

• Prepared etude (PDFs below)
  • Drumset (Swing, 120BPM, play the whole page)
  • Saxophones
  • Bass
  • Guitar
  • Trombone
  • Trombone (bass)
  • Trumpet
  • Trumpet, lead
  • Piano
  • Vibes
  • Violin
  • Score
• Sight-reading (shared to the Zoom screen)
• Improvisation (on a blues in F, Bb, or Eb) - not required for drummers. Please provide your own backing track.

In addition, the musicians below will be asked to do the following:

• Bassists: 
  • Walk a bass line to a blues tune and/or an easy II-V-I tune.
• Pianists, Guitarists, and Vibes Players: 
  • Play chords in jazz comping fashion to a blues tune and/or an easy II-V-I tune.
• Vocalists: 
  • Prepare one 16-measure ballad and one 32-measure medium up swing piece. Improvisation (blues in F, Bb, or Eb) is required. Please provide your own accompaniment. 
• Drummers: 
  • Demonstrations of styles/tempos (to include medium swing, fast swing, bossa nova, samba, funk, ballad)
  • Sight Reading

PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE

The primary concert schedule is posted on the Music Department website.