----- Forwarded Message ----
From: Milton Kicklighter <[email protected]>
To: Horn List <[email protected]>
Sent: Sun, May 16, 2010 9:25:58 PM
Subject: Auditons The Old Fashion Way
Oh Guys, this has been fun reading!!!!
It appears the subject of how why and when will never be answered. But maybe a
little history about American audition procedure
will help. When I got my first job in the San Antonio Symphony about a
"million" years ago, I was invited to audition by the third horn...
actually the conductor...but at the recommendation of the third horn. I spent
about an hour and a half playing for the music director
the first horn and the third horn. The decision to hire me was made by one or
all of them. I was the ONLY person to audition for the job.
When I auditioned for the Buffalo Phil I played for the entire wind section....
the orchestra was on tour.... but not for the music director. The
horn section asked if I had time to play duets, and we spent about two hours
doing the symphonic quartet stuff... The job was for 4th horn.
There was a time not to many years ago when it was the personal manager and the
music director in most big orchestras that did the
auditioning, and the decision was made by the music director alone. There are
some that think that was the best method, and some... me included that did not
think that way. The bottom line there was that in almost all cases you were
not invited to audition unless you studied with a will know teacher or were
already playing in another orchestra. That was my case... playing in Shreveport
when auditioning for San Antonio and playing in San Antonio when invited to
audition for Buffalo.
Times have changed! Carpet one the floor... yes.... screen.... yes..... shoes
off.... yes sometimes... and even one audition I played I was not allowed to
move the chair at all. I have played many auditions over the years.... made a
few finals but got only the two jobs mentioned.. and I
have found the audition procedure to be at best very unnatural.
What is the answer??? I don't think there is one. I know some wonderful
players that just cannot play auditions and I know some!!! players that play
awesome auditions and just can't do the job.
As we say in the South winning or losing is sometimes like a "pig in a poke"
There is nothing like sitting on an audition committee and listing to one of
the members complain about the intonation of one of the players when that
player play-es out of tune.... or complaining about rhythm when they have NO
rhythm.
Bottom line.... AIN'T no bottom line!!
Milton
Milton Kicklighter
4th horn Buffalo Phil
retired.
Oh, I have always thought of myself as just a "fair to middlen" horn player.
About the best I can say about my career is: I never got fired :)
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