UNSW Music Auditions

Some of you may fall into the traditional categories of performance and composition. Some of your may have a different musical practice. We are interested in musical practices of all kinds, so please submit the work that best represents the music that you make.

Please submit materials according to one of the following:

Performance

If Performance is your intended specialisation, you must provide two contrasting performances. They can be any two short pieces of your choice, as long as they contrast in some way (tempo, technical difficulty, expression, style and so on). Each piece must be between three and five minutes in length. 

Composition

If Composition is your intended specialisation, you must provide two scores of contrasting compositions (along with the two composition scores, we also require accompanying audio files [mp3 is best] – so please also upload audio files that are either MIDI-based recordings or recordings of live performances of your compositions.) We recommend you also submit two contrasting performances on your individual instrument or voice. If not accepted as a composition specialist, you may possibly be accepted as a performer.

All Other Musical Practices

Please submit two contrasting examples of your musical practice. Alongside video submissions we welcome audio files (mp3 or a similarly widely used format) and visual materials (PDFs).

All applicants should submit:

Short song to be sung unaccompanied

The short song can be any song of your choice. It is for the examiner to test your sense of pitch. A traditional song or folk song would be most preferable and must be a minimum of one minute in length.

500-word essay about yourself

The essay can be about something that you've enjoyed doing, studying or learning about aside from music. The essay is important because it illustrates what you think and how well you express yourself. It also gives you an opportunity to tell us about who you are beyond your musical qualifications and will help us further distinguish you from other applicants. So try to write your essay in a way that lets your voice come through.

CV/Resume 

We don't expect extensive experience; this is merely to give the examiner an idea of what, if any, extra-curricular activities you may be involved with within the sphere of music.

Reference

You will be asked to submit the name and email address of a referee. This will generate an automatic request to your Referee to submit one directly to your application.

If you have any queries about your audition, or questions about any aspect of the music degree, please contact the Convenor of Music, Associate Professor Michael Hooper: m.hooper@unsw.edu.au