Guide & Frequently Asked Questions - YST AUDITION 2021 - NUS
←
→
Page content transcription
If your browser does not render page correctly, please read the page content below
YST AUDITION 2021 Guide & Frequently Asked Questions
KEY DATES
When to apply and audition.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Application and Submission of Materials 2021 Audition Schedule
ONLINE APPLICATION Bassoon 25 January 2021
1 OCT – 30 DEC 2020 Woodwinds Oboe 26 January 2021
Clarinet 29 January 2021
SUBMISSION OF RECORDED VIDEO AUDITION (FOR INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS Flute 30 January 2021
ONLY) Cello 27 January 2021
By 30 DEC 2020 (for ALL MAJORS except COMPOSITION)
Violin 8 February 2021
Strings Viola 9 February 2021
SUBMISSION OF COMPOSITION PORTFOLIO (FOR COMPOSITION APPLICANTS
Double Bass 3 March 2021
ONLY)
Harp 24 February 2021
By 15 FEB 2021
Horn 16 February 2021
Brass & Trumpet 17 February 2021
ANNOUNCEMENT OF RESULTS
Percussion Trombone 18 February 2021
MAR – MAY 2021
Tuba 19 February 2021
FIRST-YEAR ORIENTATION Percussion 22 February 2021
JUL – AUG 2021 Voice 26 – 27 February 2021
Piano 5 – 6 March 2021
AUDITIONS Voice, Piano, Composition, Composition 8 March 2021
JAN – MAR 2021 AAS, MS/MCP Audio Arts & 10 March 2021
Sciences
NOTE:
Music & Society 24 March 2021
All candidates will be required to take an Online Theory Test on 1 March 2020. Music Collaboration
International applicants who are not eligible for waiver of English requirements are
& Production
required to take an Online English Test on 2 March 2020.
COMMUNICATIONS
How to apply and be informed of the audition.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
How to Apply
CONFIRMATION OF ONLINE REGISTRATION
ONLINE APPLICATION
After you have completed all the sections in the online application form, you will see
Apply online at https://www.ystmusic.nus.edu.sg/admissions-how-to-apply/
a “SUCCESSFUL” confirmation page after submitting your application. You may
review the application submitted via the main dashboard upon login to the portal.
NOTE:
CONFIRMATION OF AUDITION DATE AND TIME
• The application form consists of 8 sections that will ask for your personal, All candidates will be notified of their application status via email. All candidates,
programme, audition and academic information, and teachers’ whether shortlisted or not, will be notified of the result by mid-January 2021.
recommendations. It will end with a section for you to upload files. Fields
REQUEST FOR CHANGES TO AUDITION REPERTOIRE
marked * are mandatory.
Candidates may request to change their audition repertoire by writing to YST
• Before you begin to apply, you must ensure that you have the full repertoire that
Admissions Office (email: musadmissions@nus.edu.sg). Changes to the repertoire
you are offering to perform for the audition and that you have your personal
must be approved prior to the audition.
contact information and address.
• After you have submitted your online application successfully, you may proceed
NOTIFICATION OF SHORTLIST TO AUDITION
to obtain and organise your supporting documents to be uploaded on the
Our main mode of communication with candidates is via email so it is important that
application portal before the final deadline of 30 December 2020. Applications
you check your email regularly for information, including audition schedule and
received that have missing supporting documents after the final deadline may
application status. Applicants who are unsuccessful may email YST Admissions
be rejected as incomplete applications.
Office to appeal by 30 January 2021. Appeals will be reviewed with the final decision
at the discretion of the faculty.
FAQs
1.1 Who is eligible to apply for the Bachelor of Music (Hons) Degree programme? 1.2 I have not completed my high school examinations. Am I eligible to apply
before the audition or will I have to wait till I receive my high school results and
Prospective candidates must have completed (or be completing) senior high school certificate?
studies (of any discipline and subject combination) to attain the following academic
qualifications as required by NUS. Music diploma students from the Nanyang If you are currently in your final year of high school studies, you may first submit an
Academy of Fine Arts and LaSalle College of the Arts are also welcome to apply. application online. An offer of admission will be subject to your successful
completion of high school studies by 1 July before matriculating in the University.
Students currently in the final year of high school are suitable to apply if they are
expecting to finish their course and obtain the necessary qualifications by 1 July. 1.3 Is there an application fee?
Students who are home-schooled must also attain one of the accepted high school
qualifications to be eligible to apply. There is no application or other fee involved during the application phase.
International students are requested to consult the YST Admissions Office if they
Besides fulfilling NUS academic requirements, you are also required to offer an come across agents charging them an application fee.
audition that meets our requirements. Please refer to the respective major
requirements under Programmes. 1.4 I am a Singaporean male and will be enlisted for National Service after
completion of high school. When should I apply to YST?
External gradings such as the ABRSM or Trinity certificates have no bearing on
admission and will not be accepted as equivalent academic qualifications. Singaporean and Singaporean PR males are not exempted from National Service
after completion of high school. However, you may want to plan forward and apply
either in your first or second year in the army as we can hold your place at YST for up
to a maximum of one year.1.5 Does having previous music qualifications such as certificates, diplomas etc. 1.7 Will I be given credits if I have a diploma in music?
provide any advantage for applicants?
Applicants who have a diploma in music (obtained locally or abroad through full-time
Music qualifications (music diplomas or degrees) obtained through full-time studies studies) must first meet the admission requirements to NUS. Obtaining a diploma
at a music conservatory, arts school, middle schools attached to a conservatory or from e.g. the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts or LaSalle College of the Arts does not
colleges with a developed arts programme e.g. Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts, automatically shorten a student’s candidature period for the BMus programme at
LaSalle College of the Arts are not prerequisites but may be an advantage for YST, which is a 4-year duration. Transfer of credits may be considered by the
admission. academic office on a case-by-case basis.
Music certificates and diplomas obtained through external examinations (e.g. 1.8 If I wish to transfer to YST from another BMus programme, will I enter at the
ABRSM certificates) are not considered for admission and will not be used as a tool same level that I am at my current school?
to assess the candidate’s performance standard.
It is possible to do so, but you will need to compete for a place through an audition
1.6 Is it necessary for international applicants to submit SAT, IELTS (English process. In addition, your placement will be decided by the audition panel and the
Language Testing System), or TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) academic office who will consider a couple of factors. Firstly, not only must you be
scores? shortlisted for consideration of an offer of admission, but you will also need to be
playing at a level beyond the first-year students. Secondly, the academic office will
TOEFL, IELTS and SAT are not required for admission to YST, although English decide which credits are transferable and you will need to have done very well for
language ability will be assessed as part of the audition. your academic studies in order to justify the transfer.
All transfer students must be in-residence for a minimum of two years in order to
receive a degree from NUS.1.9 If I cannot accept your offer of admission and/or scholarship, will you hold my 1.11 What is the relationship between YST and NUS? Do I need to apply to NUS if I
acceptance and scholarship so that I can begin classes the following year? have applied to YST?
At YST, we are not able to allow an applicant to defer acceptance from one year to YST is one of 13 undergraduate schools in NUS and students join the campus
the next. Admission to YST is competitive and there are limited vacancies for each community of over 31,000 undergraduates, 11,000 graduate students. If you apply to
major. Priority will be given to the applicants most qualified in each particular year. If YST’s BMus programme through the YST Admissions Portal, you do not need to
you are unable to accept an offer for a particular year, you will need to submit a new submit a separate application to NUS. Graduates of YST will be conferred an NUS
application and re-audition if you wish to be considered for admission the following degree.
year.
1.12 Can I apply to YST if I also wish to enrol in another programme in NUS?
1.10 Can I choose my studio teacher?
YST offers NUS students access to major study from their first year. Applicants
Where there is a choice of studio teachers, you may indicate your choice of studio must first apply to YST, indicate their interest only for gaining access to a major
teacher during online application. For students offered admission to YST, studio study and audition for the major with the same audition requirements and
assignments will be announced in your offer letter or weeks leading to freshmen conditions. While YST does not offer a double degree programme, students who
orientation in July. gain access to a major study, may be considered for enrolment as 2nd major after
one year of study, on provision that they perform well in the study area and that their
home faculty allows and is supportive.AUDITION
Preparations and how to attend ‘live’ and ‘virtual’ auditions.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Preparations for Audition Pieces Other Preparations
SELECTING AUDITION REPERTOIRE PIANO ACCOMPANIMENT
The audition is an opportunity for the audition panel to have an accurate impression Where possible, applicants should perform or record with piano accompaniment as
of your expertise in the major study area. It is therefore important for you to select it would demonstrate further understanding of the score from the performer’s
repertoire that is suitable for your current ability level and age, than attempting works perspective. Voice applicants should note that piano accompaniment is compulsory.
that may be too difficult for you. The selection of pieces should also encompass a Candidates attending the ‘live’ audition in Singapore may contact the YST
variety of music styles to demonstrate your strengths in performance. When in Admissions Office for a list of piano accompanists and their fees.
doubt, you may want to seek advice from your instrumental teacher for the best
repertoire to offer for the audition. After you have decided on the audition repertoire, SHORT READING PIECE
you should prepare all the pieces that you have listed in your application. Violin and A short reading piece will be emailed to all shortlisted candidates a day before their
piano applicants must note that repertoire whether recorded on video or performing ‘live’ or ‘virtual’ audition. Candidates are responsible for checking their emails for the
‘live’ must be fully memorized. score and are recommended to print it out to study before the audition.
CONTEXTUAL KNOWLEDGE OTHER TESTS
While the audition performance or composition portfolio is central in our Candidates shortlisted to the ‘live’ or ‘virtual’ auditions must be prepared for further
assessment of your application, candidates should also be prepared to demonstrate tests as part of the holistic assessment of candidates for a place in the programme.
contextual awareness to the repertoire they perform. Candidates may be engaged in These will include an English test and a separate music theory test in March 2021,
discussions on music theory and general musicianship as part of the interview after both of which will be conducted online.
the panel has listened to the ‘live’ or ‘virtual’ audition.Setting up to record the audition video and for ‘virtual’ audition
RECORDING POSITION AND CAMERA ANGLE
It is not necessary to submit a professionally produced recording, but the sound quality should be good. Candidates are advised to use good external microphones when
recording and in a space with acceptable acoustics. Where possible, candidates recording the video or attending the ‘virtual’ audition should book a rehearsal studio or
practice room with reliable acoustics and sound-proofing, adequate and proper lighting and properly-tuned grand piano.
Example 1: Piano audition Example 2: Violin audition
3m 3m
Camera should be placed about 3m away and directly facing the performerRECORDING AND SAVING VIDEO FILES For the recorded audition video, each piece must be uploaded as a separate file and clearly labelled with the composer’s name, title of work, and movement (if applicable). For consistency, each piece must be an unedited, high quality recording performed in one sitting with the same room conditions. Files may be saved in any of the following format: MP4, MPEG, MOV, MPG, WMV All recorded files should be saved into one folder and uploaded to a shareable online drive such as Google Drive, DropBox, OneDrive or other similar platforms. Copy the link to the folder in a word/text document, PDF it, and upload the file to the Application Portal.
FAQs
2.1 Can I choose to do a video audition without doing a ‘live’ or ‘virtual’ audition? 2.3 Can I choose pieces other than those listed in the requirements for my
audition?
Due to the ongoing global pandemic, YST’s new audition format for 2021 will allow
prospective candidates to audition safely and successfully wherever they apply We list the audition repertoire in order to communicate to the applicants the musical
from. The requirement for international applicants to submit a recorded video requirements we need to hear to determine the level of excellence of each applicant.
audition for the initial selection is such that all applicants may still be considered
even if they are unable to travel to Singapore to audition. However, all shortlisted If the audition material listed under your specific instrument gives you some
applicants who have been requested to perform a ‘virtual’ audition must attend the flexibility in choosing literature, you should prepare music of contrasting styles that
‘virtual’ audition or their applications will be considered incomplete and void. best exhibits your abilities in the areas of technique, sound, musicianship and style.
You may wish to consult your major teacher for advice.
2.2 Can I request for an alternative live audition date if I am unable to attend due to
conflicts in schedule (e.g. school exams, overseas exchanges, music festivals, 2.4 I have been shortlisted for the ‘live’ audition in Singapore. Can I rent a practice
performances, etc)? room in YST to practise prior to my audition day?
Audition dates have been arranged to deconflict national examinations in various Due to the ongoing global pandemic, YST is unable to rent out its premises for
cities and may not be changed. Candidates are advised to plan ahead to commit prospective applicants to practise for their audition. However, candidates will have
time to attend the ‘live’ or ‘virtual’ audition. 30 minutes to warm up in a practice room equipped with a grand piano just before
the audition.2.5 I am interested to apply for the Composition major. What kind of works should I prepare for my portfolio? The Composition faculty are looking for examples of notated music that use piano, voice and/or orchestral instruments. Familiar formats would be a symphonic band, orchestra, string quartet, voice with piano accompaniment, wind quintet, brass quintet, or a combination of orchestral instruments e.g. flute, cello, and piano. Music arrangements or popular genres will not be considered; popular genres refers to popular musical styles e.g. rock, pop, blues, jazz. These styles can be referenced in a composition – for instance, a string quartet might have a section that is influenced by jazz – but the composition itself isn’t a “pop song”. A good litmus test would be to ask the following question: would this piece be appropriate for the radio or for a concert hall? Usually music on the radio (except on the classical station) is popular music. Music performed in concert halls usually does not fit under the umbrella of popular genres. At the interview, applicants should be able to discuss their influences and musical interests in relation to the field of composition.
You can also read
