THE YOUNG ARTISTS PROGRAM

    

 

Voices of Music will be holding auditions for young artists for our Charity Concert on March 20, 2010 in San Francisco. Auditions on February 15 and 23, 2010.

Charity Concert
For many years we have offered concerts in conjunction with local churches and community groups. In these concerts we offer an opportunity for young and established professional musicians to perform together in a mutually supportive and community-based environment. In addition, the concert raises food donations for local soup kitchens.

This concert, in combination with our Advanced Professional Training Program provides an opportunity for young musicians to perform together with established professionals. As the concert is free, we play for a large and appreciative audience. The concert not only introduces these young artists to the community, but also forges an important connection between the performing arts and the different ways in which artists can participate in society.

Advanced Professional Training
We have offered and continue to offer our services for free or at cost to enable our young colleagues to make the transition from student to professional musician. In order to do this, we use a comprehensive, interdisciplinary approach which involves addressing each of the necessary professional requirements, including performance experience, résumé, advanced coaching, photography, audio and video recorded material.

Starting this process can be daunting, and often a person needs support to make this transition possible. We are in contact with many Bay Area music teachers and schools, and we receive wide interest from people who are currently studying music, or who have recently graduated. As part of the process we require an audition, but instead of a formal up-or-down review, we discuss with our artists what is required from a formal professional audition. This includes what many conductors and presenters specifically look for in a performer. After the audition process, we carefully go through each résumé and make notes on presentation and writing style. We then provide a detailed review that includes suggestions not only for how the résumé can be improved but also a detailed plan for future projects.

Qualified participants are invited to perform in our Charity Concert, which is part of our formal concert series. The concert is recorded both in audio as well as video formats, which can be used by the participants for auditions, to apply for scholarships and to use on the internet. In addition, a professional photographer provides photo sessions for each of the young artists for their publicity materials—a good publicity photo is essential for a young artist and often is prohibitively expensive. We have a final meeting with each participant to answer any questions.

The Audition: We are interested in hearing talented musicians playing on baroque instruments, or copies of baroque instruments. To request an audition, please send an email with a brief musical resume to cembalo@sbcglobal.net. The audition includes singing or playing two prepared works of contrasting style. Auditions are held in El Cerrito on Monday February 15th and Tuesday February 23rd. For two musicians there will be the possibility to play a concerto or sing an aria with string orchestra and for two musicians there will be the possibility to perform a solo piece or solo with harpsichord or lute on March 20, 2010.
In addition to receiving professional photographs as well as audio and video recordings, each performer in the concert will receive a fee for $200.

Voices of Music
Hanneke van Proosdij & David Tayler, directors 

333 Grant Ave. Suite 601

 San Francisco, CA 94108                                                                                                     www.voicesofmusic.org

This program is made possible by a grant from the Wallace Alexander Gerbode Foundation.