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Saskatchewan Jazz Honour Band - Audition Requirements

Audition Requirement #1

Saxophone, Trombone, Trumpet players: play a chromatic scale slurred over your playing range, ascending and descending in eighth notes with an audible metronome in the background. Pick a tempo that demonstrates your technique clearly and cleanly.

Pianists: play a three-octave chromatic scale with two hands ascending and descending.

Bassists: play a 2-octave chromatic scale beginning on low/open E. 

Guitarists: play a 3-octave chromatic scale beginning on low/open E. 

Audition Requirement #2

Perform a prepared jazz study or selection of your choice. (This may even be one of your parts that your high school jazz band is performing this year.) It should at least 16, but no more than 48 bars in length. Try to select a piece or passage which showcases your abilities!

Audition Requirement #3


Sax, trumpet, trombone, piano, vibes - Use the track to the right (under resources), record yourself playing along with Two Brothers, using headphones so that all that is picked up on the recording is you.

All the sheet music is to the right. 

Bass & Guitar - Use On Green Dolphin Street instead of Two Brothers... 

Bassists are to play the 2-chorus bass line/etude found HERE using the bass play along track.

HERE is a video demonstration of the 2-chorus bass line.

Guitarists are to comp along with the guitar play along track, playing voicings in whole/half note voicings for the first chorus to demonstrate voicings and then demonstrating "Freddie Green style" downstroke rhythmic comping through the second chorus (which begins in bar 33). The chord changes for guitar can be found HERE. 

Drums

Dr. Jonathan McCaslin (Four on the Floor) has created some wonderful video resources for you to study and play. The complete YouTube playlist can be found here:

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXrHzNeAC6A3iKXEspi9-RbOmPFZnoECC

Play approximately 30 seconds worth of any/all of the following as to further demonstrate your ability to play a variety of styles:

  • The Shuffle
  • Basic Mambo
  • Basic Bossa Nova
  • Basic Samba

Optional Item #4 - Improvisation 

Remember: Complete this section if you wish to be considered as a soloist. Otherwise not required.

Improvise/jam along/solo to the following blues in Bb practice tracks. You may choose to solo using your concert Bb blues scale or “make the changes” by creating ideas that reflect the chords in more detail.

Sax, trumpet, trombone players - improvise for two choruses (that’s solo twice through the 12 bar blues) using play-along track (right column - Blue Monk - Sax, Trp, Trb).

    *Note however the play-along tracks for soloing use the chord changes found by clicking the Bb Blues PDF for your instrument in the next column to the right

    Pianists, Guitarists, and Vibraphonists:

    In addition to the above, you are to “comp” or play for a chorus or two, demonstrating voicings that use 2-note guide tone voicings (3rds & 7ths) and/or 3-note rootless voicings which to provide rhythmic accompaniment for a soloist.  Guitarists should comp by playing four down strokes per bar in the style of Freddie Green. Use the play-along track and chord PDF in the column on the right.

    Bassists:

    In addition to what is asked of sax, trumpet, trombone players, you are asked to do above, you are asked to record a second version which demonstrates two choruses of walking bass lines over this blues progression that show your ability to create a bass line from chord symbols. Use the play-along track and chord PDF in the column on the right.

    Drummers:

    Using the play-along track for a 12-bar blues, you are to play three choruses of swing time, demonstrating a variety of time keeping patterns for each chorus, indicating the top of the form. Use the play-along track in the right column, there is NO PDF for this piece.


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