Requirements

NCFC is open to serious flute students, ages 12 - 18. At least 2 years playing experience and enrollment in private lessons is required. Applicants should have an active interest in flute study. Private teachers may be contacted for referral. An audition tape is required with the application for admission and ensemble placement (see Guidelines for Recording, below). Returning students need not submit an audition tape, although returning students who did not attend in the previous year are required to submit a tape.

In order to maximize your chances of admission, please read the following guidelines in their entirety prior to making your audition recording. Then re-read them.

Guidelines for Recording

A CD or cassette tape of the highest possible recording quality must accompany the application. Your audition tape is a very important part of your camp experience, as admissions and placement decisions are made almost entirely from the tape.

Each year we receive a number of audition recordings that we are forced to reject due to the poor quality of the recording itself. As it is to the student’s advantage to submit the best recording possible, we recommend the following:

1. Record exactly two selections that offer contrast in style, periods, and tempo. Be sure to choose music that best demonstrates your abilities, and prepare the material thoroughly before recording.
2. Piano accompaniment is not required, but is permitted if you feel it will yield a better performance. Omit long rests in unaccompanied recordings.
3. Be sure to label the tape or CD itself and the card inside the case with your name and the repertoire you have recorded.
4. Recordings will not be returned. Do not send your master copy.
5. Use the best equipment available to you. You do not need to spend a fortune to make a good recording, but you want the end result to clearly represent your playing.
6. Find a suitable location in which to record. A room that is acoustically neutral is best. A room that has too much echo or reverberation can obscure clarity. A room that is too "dead" can kill your sound.
7. Microphone placement is important. We recommend placing the mic 8 feet away from your flute at a height of 7 feet.
8. Check your recording level. Too high a level can distort, too low can make the recording difficult to hear.
9. Do not electronically enhance the recording. Natural room reverb is best for our purposes.
10. Do not edit the recording. It is fine to send us the best take out of 2 or 3 passes, but please send an honest representation of your playing.
11. And perhaps most importantly: Choose repertory that you can play well. We prefer clean playing over valiant but unfortunate attempts at music that is currently technically out-of-reach.
12. Ask your teacher to listen to and approve your recording, if they have not been involved in producing it. An extra set of well-trained ears is invaluable.
13. Have fun! This is an exciting part of your experience, and we look forward to hearing you play!

SUGGESTED REPERTOIRE (2 movements only, total)

• Any Baroque sonata or suite
• Any Mozart concerto, or other classical concerto
• Any work from the French or contemporary repertoire
• An etude (Andersen, Cavally, etc.)
• A work from a collection
• PLEASE DO NOT SEND A DVD OR VIDEO RECORDING

Repertoire choices should be made carefully, and with your teacher. It is best to record works that are comfortable for you rather than to record something that is too hard. If you are uncertain about the appropriateness of a selection, please contact us. Generally, anything in the classical flute repertoire is acceptable.