Not all audition excerpts are technically demanding. The following pieces required of bassists at recent orchestra auditions are actually quite easy for players of average proficiency:
Ginastera: Variaciones concertantes
Prokofiev: Lieutenant Kijé
J.S. Bach: Violin Concerto
Beethoven: Symphony no. 7
Mussorgsky/Ravel: Pictures at an Exhibition
Tchaikovsky: Symphony no. 4
Brahms: Symphony no. 1
Beethoven: Symphony no. 9, Recitative and Allegro Assai
Verdi: Othello
Bartok: Music for Strings, Percussion, and Celeste,
By "easy", I mean that they can be brought up to performance level without spending many hours "in the wood shed". Musical concepts are what they're about: style, intonation, expression, rhythm, and basic musicianship. For many players, if auditions required only such examples, their odds of winning would greatly improve. (I could imagine hearing a collective sigh of relief among the mass of players on the audition circuit!)
But there are a few core symphonic works which come up on the job every few seasons which require a higher level of technical proficiency; at auditions, they help separate the more technically advanced from the rest of the pack.
Smart symphony players keep these more difficult passages "on their finger tips" so that when they cycle through in a season, they can be "polished" up to performance level without much extra work. The excerpts to which I refer are the most physically challenging to execute, requiring advanced fingerings and bowings, and sometimes, the strength and agility of a professional athlete.
The list of such pieces might look like this:
Beethoven: Symphony no. 3
Brahms: Symphony no. 2
Mendelssohn: Symphony no. 4
Mozart: Symphonies 35, 39, and 40
Schubert: Symphony in C, "The Great"
Strauss: Ein Heldenleben
Certain passages from these pieces are mastered only with weeks or even months of hard work. No doubt, a crafty fingering can help reduce the number of hours required, but even with a "magic" fingering, sometimes only serious physical conditioning will get the job done.
The key is breaking them down into their elements and putting them back together. It is a great way to train both hands and develop sufficient strength and coordination. Also, what might be termed a "creative mutation" is often helpful to develop quickness, strength, and get your brain in a comfort zone with the excerpt. By that, I mean taking the notes of a particular passage and "repackaging" them in different rhythms and bowings. You take something, breaking it down, turn it upside down, shake it around, send it to the moon if you will, then put it back in its original form.
Below, I give a few examples of how I work on passages which might be regarded as "Everests" among excerpts: the fourth movement of Mozart 35 and no. 9 from Ein Heldenleben. Indeed, conquering them requires patience, determination, and a kind of "one foot in front of the other" attitude. But they're also much more interesting to practice if you create little exercises out of them, rather than just repeating them over and over in the hope that they'll just miraculously come together. One must also understand that not much can be accomplished in one practice session, but rather, trust that you're on the path of achievement.
All of the excerpts should, of course, be practiced slowly as written, but there's only so much to be got from that. Rather, reconfigure a passage with different rhythms to stimulate your brain and develop technical ability. The bow hand will benefit similarly. With the dotted rhythms, it's important try to be quick and strong with the fingers, even slapping them down on the fingerboard. When you go back to even eighths, I guarantee you will feel much more fluid with the passage.
With the second Mozart 35 passage, I also show in brackets how I might dissect it into smaller pieces. Those segments can be practiced in tempo and then gradually paired with the other portions. You can experiment with creating different combinations and rhythms.
I purposely did not post my fingerings because I wanted to focus on my approach of physical training that I think is required, no matter the fingering. I will offer fingering recommendations upon request…
