You'll be great. Trust us.

We're all ears. Before we became players, singers, conductors, and composers, listening was our first love. And it's still the skill that underlies everything we do at SFCM. Hearing who you are and how far you've come is the first step toward a beautiful musical partnership. We can't wait to hear you.

Audition Requirements: Piano

Acceptance into the Piano program at SFCM requires pre-screening.

Live auditions at the Conservatory are required of the following applicants:

• Applicants residing in California

Regional auditions are available for the following applicants:

• Applicants residing outside of California

Final audition recordings are accepted from the following applicants:

• Undergraduate applicants residing outside of California

Final recordings must be submitted online through the formal Application, found here, no later than December 1.

Pre-screening

Applicants must submit an unedited audio-visual recording with the following repertoire:

Undergraduate (recording must be at least 20 minutes in length)

• The first movement of a Classical period sonata
• A complete and substantial Romantic period work (such as a Ballade or the Mephisto Waltz) or at least two contrasting movements of a larger multi-movement work
• One short work of the candidate's choice. This may be, for example, an etude, a prelude and fugue, or a character piece from any period

Graduate (recording must be at least 30 minutes in length)

• The first movement of a Classical period sonata
• A complete and substantial Romantic period work (such as a Ballade or the Mephisto Waltz) or at least two contrasting movements of a larger multi-movement work
• One short work of the candidate's choice. This may be, for example, an etude, a prelude and fugue, or a character piece from any period

Final Audition Repertoire

Undergraduate

A complete work from each of the following periods:

• Baroque (a prelude and fugue from The Well-Tempered Clavier or a fugal movement from a suite)
• Classical (a complete sonata by Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, or Schubert)
• Romantic (a work from the 19th century)
• Contemporary (a work from the 20th or 21st century)

Graduate

• A major work of Bach (partita, toccata, suite, etc.)
• An entire Classical sonata
• A Romantic work equal in difficulty to a Chopin ballade or scherzo
• A 20th-century work equal in difficulty to the Copland Variations or the Bartók Suite Op. 14

Audition Dates at SFCM

• TBD