I thought I saw a blog some time ago on this site by Sam Bergman about this subject but cannot locate his great info. Does anyone know the rules about orchestras not inviting qualified applicants to auditions? I just received a rejection from a really small orchestra(NHSO) for a principal flute audition. I have recently advanced for several much bigger jobs for principal flute and have held principal positions for other small orchestras but that doesn't seem to matter to this orchestra. I was quite shocked that I wasn't invited and have submitted a request to be heard in spite of the rejection notice. Does anyone have any advice?

Sometimes when places see your resume/experience and you seem very qualified, they may view that as overqualified. This may cause them to choose not to invite you for an audition not because you're not fit for the job, but because they're afraid you'll accept a position w/ them, but then move on too quickly once something else comes up- because you've got the talent to work w/ bigger orchestras or organizations. Remember, when searching for gigs and auditioning, you're auditioning and interviewing them just as much as they are you.

This comes up repeatedly here on MyAuditions. There's no "rules" per se, just try to avoid bad form.

Call the personnel manager and politely ask them to reconsider - stressing your eagerness to audition and gently highlighting your qualifications, (not how stupid they were to not appreciate them or how shocked you were to not get invited). If you have a teacher or respected colleague that could put in a good word with someone on the committee, that might also help with an invite.

The truth is, when you don't have a job, this happens a lot. As hard as it is, try not to take it personally.

Marie, with all due respect, I have a feeling the rationale you describe occurs rarely if at all. Small orchestras want the best players too. Sometimes, they just don't operate like the bigger groups do.

Since I haven't seen your resume this might not apply, but some advice I got from a colleague once was to remove things from my resume that sounded "student-ish." Things like playing in college orchestras, student recitals, masterclasses, teachers I've studied with, etc. Of course this is not always practical if you are very recently a student, but if it is at all possible to still have a full-looking resume that only has your professional affiliations and activities, as well as the fact that you do have formal music education, then you might want to consider going that route. That way your resume says "professional" and not "student" to a prospective committee or personnel manager.

That said, I think RWhite has a good point that smaller orchestras sometimes to operate differently. They have less resources and time than larger orchestras and sometimes can only afford to listen to a limited number of candidates.

quote:

That way your resume says "professional" and not "student" to a prospective committee or personnel manager.

From my standpoint, in checking out players, "student" is not in any way a negative term.

did you hear back from anyone yet?

I'm not saying that being a student is negative, per-se, but if a particular orchestra is only able to hear a limited number of candidates, they will probably pick the resumes that have the most professional experience first. If it is obvious from your resume that you are still a student, it seems reasonable that a committee would assume you have less experience. Doesn't say anything about how you play of course, but I'm just saying there are situations where it does seem to matter how you represent yourself on paper prior to anyone hearing you play a note.

I think it depends on the opening. If you don't have any professional experience, you are probably not going to make the resume cut for a principal position or titled position. In recent memory, there have been a few section players who have won auditions in our orchestra straight out of school (albeit a conservatory) and usually they were principal players in their orchestra (think Juilliard and Curtis). So it is possible to be a student and win a professional job. It's probably different for a wind player than it is for a string player.

Our three most recent viola hires have all won their jobs straight out of school, as did our last cello hire. All were section players. I would have some worries about hiring a student for a titled position without at least some professional experience, but for section jobs, where you're only responsible for your own playing, I see no reason why learning on the job should be a detriment.

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