Music Arts Supplement
Submit the Music Arts Supplement through the applicant status portal during your application process. Materials will be reviewed to assess eligibility for both the music major and scholarships, and must meet audition requirements (see below) for your primary instrument or voice. Optional submissions, such as secondary instruments, original compositions, or traditional repertoire on non-Western instruments, are welcomed but cannot replace primary instrument/voice requirements.
Upon submitting your CWRU application, you’ll receive applicant portal login credentials to complete the questionnaire, upload audition videos, and track your application status. Contact the Office of Undergraduate Admission if you don't receive portal access within a few days.
The Department of Music will review your Music Arts Supplement to determine eligibility for the Music (BA) or Music Education (BS) major and scholarship opportunities, including the Performing Arts Scholarship and Arts Achievement Award. Admitted students who pass the Music Arts Supplement may choose to declare a Music (BA) major, regardless of their intended major.
Before You Begin and Helpful Tips
Review each step in our Undergraduate Application Procedures, allowing sufficient time to meet all deadlines.
When choosing repertoire to meet audition requirements, explore diverse works by underrepresented composers and select pieces that resonate with your unique artistic voice and perspective. This is your opportunity to perform works that reflect your culture, gender, or other aspects of your personal identity.
We also offer Tips for Preparing Your Audition to help you feel confident and prepared. These tips cover everything from repertoire selection to recording quality, ensuring your audition submission best represents your abilities.
Tips for Preparing Your Audition
Audition Requirements by Primary Instrument or Voice
Piano
- Prepare 3 works representing different periods (Baroque, Classical, Romantic, 20th or 21st century)
- One from a Classical Sonata or other representative solo work
- All prepared pieces music be memorized
Examples of piano audition repertoire:
- An original work by J.S. Bach containing a fugue
- Two contrasting movements from a Classical Sonata by Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, etc.
- One Chopin etude; or a similar virtuosic work or movement
- A Romantic or 20th century work
Organ
- Prepare 3 works from contrasting historical periods (pre-Classical, preferably a work by Johann Sebastian Bach, Romantic, and Contemporary) and styles (balancing virtuosic works with at least one expressive piece).
Violin and Viola
- 1 (3-octave) major scale
- 1 (3-octave) melodic minor scale
- Two contrasting movements from a solo Bach suite, sonata, partita or an equivalent solo work
- One movement of a standard concerto or other representative solo work
- Optional: Another piece selected by applicant
Cello
- 1 (2-octave) major scale
- 1 (2-octave) melodic minor scale
- Two contrasting movements (or pieces) from the concerto, sonata, or similar repertoire
- One or two movements from any of the Bach Cello Suites; or any comparable piece or movement
- Optional: Another piece selected by applicant
Double Bass
- 1 (2-octave) major scale
- 1 (2-octave) melodic minor scale
- Two contrasting movements (or pieces) from the concerto, sonata, or similar repertoire
- Optional: Another piece selected by applicant
Woodwinds and Brass
- 1 (2-octave) major scale
- 1 (2-octave) chromatic scale
- Prepare 3 contrasting pieces or movements of pieces (one may be an etude) demonstrating technique, musical sensitivity, range, tonal quality, articulations, and general musicianship
- Optional: Another piece selected by applicant
Percussion
Demonstration of all three instruments required:
- Snare Drum: Solo or etude (i.e. Cirone, Delecluse, Peters, Pratt, Wilcoxon, etc.)
- Mallets: Both a 2 and 4 mallet solo either on the marimba, vibraphone or xylophone
- Timpani: Solo or etude (i.e. Carroll, Delecluse, Freise, Goodman, etc.)
- Drum set optional: Demonstrate 2 selections (one must be a ballad) in different jazz styles, moods, and tempos
Note: Music Education aoplicants auditioning on campus must provide their own mallets and sticks.
Drum Set
- Prepare 2 selections in different jazz styles, moods, and tempos (which may include blues and rhythm changes) with your own improvisation
- A medium tempo selection or a ballad demonstrating the ability to perform with brushes
- Optional: Another piece selected by applicant (pop, rock, Bebop, jazz, funk, etc.)
Guitar
Classical
- Prepare 2 pieces of contrasting styles (the repertoire chosen must include a slow selection as well as a section that demonstrates the applicant's technical ability)
- 2 major and minor scales and arpeggios selected by applicant
- Optional: Another piece selected by applicant from any style or an original song/composition
Jazz or Popular Music
- Prepare 2 pieces of contrasting styles (pop, rock, folk, Bebop, jazz, funk, urban, hip-hop, gospel, country, Latin) demonstrating your technical ability and artistic expression (explore your personalized interpretation of the melody, an improvised solo, and chord voicing/comping)
- Demonstrate knowledge of major and minor pentatonic scales
- Optional: Another piece selected by applicant from existing popular music repertoire or an original song/composition
Note: Original compositions are acceptable. If accompanied by other musicians, video audition files must be clearly focused on the applicant and the audio must be live (no digital enhancement or dubbing of the live audio is permitted). Applicants may also upload studio recordings or links to recorded performances as supplemental materials (not as a substitute for required audition materials).
Harp
- Prepare 2 solo works of contrasting style, preferably memorized
- A selection from Level III Warm-Up from “On Playing the Harp,” by Yolanda Kondonassis (published by Carl Fischer)
- One standard orchestral excerpt selected by applicant
Historical Performance Practice
Baroque Flute, Baroque Oboe, Baroque Violin, Baroque Cello/Viola da Gamba, Harpsichord, Fortepiano, Lute, Recorder
- Provide 3 works from an appropriate range of periods for the instrument or voice (two or three contrasting movements of a suite or sonata, a recitative and aria, etc.).
- Applicants may perform the pieces as a solo or in a small ensemble–if performing in an ensemble, applicants should be featured, identified and clearly visible throughout the audition video.
Note: Candidates will be evaluated by the Historical Perf Prac faculty for suitability based on their command of various national idioms, ornamentation styles, and other aspects of historical performance, as well as the overall level of artistry, and academic potential.
Voice
Classical Styles
- Prepare 3 vocal solo selections. These songs should represent contrasting styles chosen from genres such as 17th and 18th-century songs, early Italian art songs, 19th and 20th-century art songs, and folk songs.
- All selections may be sung in English, although applicants are encouraged to perform at least one selection in a foreign language.
- Applicants are strongly encouraged to memorize their audition repertoire.
- Video audition files must be clearly focused on the applicant and the audio must be live. No digital enhancement (i.e. reverb, echo, pitch correction, etc.) or dubbing of the audio is permitted.
- Vocalists must perform with keyboard accompaniment. Live accompaniment is preferred, but recordings made with live accompaniment will be accepted.
Note: Because the vocal instrument for applicants auditioning at the pre-college level is usually in the early stages of growth and development, the particular selections presented in this audition are primarily evaluated based on how well they demonstrate the following: vocal freedom, pleasantness, and naturalness of tone quality, production technique, and expressive musicianship. Applicants are encouraged to select repertoire that is comfortably within their technical abilities. Previous musical experiences, such as choral singing, are highly beneficial, and prior study on an instrument, especially piano, is desirable.
Popular Styles
- Prepare 3 vocal solo selections. These songs should represent contrasting styles chosen from genres such as contemporary pop/rock, jazz, and musical theater.
- Applicants are strongly encouraged to memorize their audition repertoire.
- Video audition files must be clearly focused on the applicant and the audio must be live. No digital enhancement (i.e. reverb, echo, pitch correction, etc.) or dubbing of the audio is permitted.
- Vocalists must perform with accompaniment, as appropriate, and applicants may accompany themselves on another instrument (i.e. guitar or keyboard).
- Optional: Applicants may also upload studio recordings or links to recorded performances as supplemental materials (not as a substitute for required audition materials)
Note: Selections presented in the audition should show evidence of healthy vocal production techniques and expressive musicianship. Applicants are encouraged to select repertoire that is comfortably within their technical abilities. Previous musical experiences in group or solo settings are highly beneficial, and prior study or coaching is desirable.