Junior Clinic Audition Info
On Saturday, January 18, 2025, Junior Clinic Auditions will be held at John Sevier Middle School in Kingsport, Tennessee. Auditions will begin at 9:00am and each student that has signed up will be given a specific audition time at school. Please note the following details that will help make your day run smoothly…
Be early! Students will receive tryout times at school. Arrive at Sevier one hour before your scheduled audition block in order to warm-up slowly. You will need to be prepared to play at the beginning of your audition time block. For example, if your time is from 9-9:30, be ready to play at 9. There is no guarantee you will be first in the group, but you want to be ready.
Dress for your first impression! Show all those involved in the audition process that you take all of your hard work seriously! You do not need to wear a dress or tie, but jeans and baseball caps are too casual. Be sure that you are comfortable in what you choose to wear.
Stay calm! Relax and take a deep breath! You have worked very hard to prepare for this audition. Do your best, and I will be proud of you! Do not put pressure on yourself to achieve a certain chair, band, or that you have to beat someone in your section. Your 100% effort is all that is required. I am proud of you for putting time into this process. If you have done your preparation, there is nothing to worry about!
Look for signs to find the warm-up area. Signs will be posted throughout the school helping you find your way. The warm-up room will be loud and crowded. Do not try to warm-up the way that you hear other students warming up. Use your chromatic warm-up, scales, and lip slurs, just like you do in band class. Take your time and block all of the other out. Do not play through the prepared music 100 times or try to change something that you hear someone else playing. Trust in your musicianship.
Take all of your stuff! Be sure that you take your music to the audition. The judges will not have extra. Woodwinds should have several good, broken-in reeds…no brand new! Brass players should take valve oil. Percussionists should have a snare drum and stand, sticks, bell mallets, timpani mallets, and a pitch pipe. If you have a problem with your instrument during warm-up, take it to the people running the warm-up area and ask where to find the repair person. Do not panic! It can be fixed!
Do your best on your sight-reading and don’t give up! Push through that piece using our STARS acronym. Give your top effort to this portion of the audition. Be sure to use all of the time that the judges give you to look at the music. Stay calm, count, play with beautiful tone, and show off your talent!
You do not have to stay for results! You may leave as soon as your audition is over. Go do something fun! I will send the unofficial results through BAND App. Remember, unofficial results may change. I will notify you when the results are official. This usually occurs the following week when we return to school.
In case of snow or other inclement weather: Cancellations or delays will be announced through BAND App. Please be sure you are signed up to receive notifications from BAND App.
John Sevier Middle School Address: 1200 Wateree Street, Kingsport, TN 37660