HIGH SCHOOL | SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE

Application Details

Ready to apply? Follow the steps outlined below to submit your application materials.

Who can Apply?

The privilege of participating in the Honors Ensembles is offered to talented high school students identified from an international pool of applicants. To be considered, you must be in US grades 9-12 (or equivalent international study level) during the 2022-2023 school year and submit a complete electronic application, in which all required information—as well as all supplemental files (audition recording, etc.)—is submitted online.

IMPORTANT DATES

All Sydney Opera House Applications are due September 12, 2024 and ensemble announcements will be made by October 4, 2024.

Required Application Materials

All applicants must complete the following steps.

Online Enrollment
Teacher Reference Form
Performing Biography
Audition Recording

All required components must be received on or before the application deadline for an application to be considered by our Selection Board.

Step 1: Complete Online Enrollment

If you received a Student ID with your invitation materials, please include it when you start the enrollment process.

To give appropriate attention to all applications, our Selection Board prefers to receive materials sooner than later. Completed Applications need to be in by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time September 12, 2024 to be eligible for the 2024/2025 Series.

Please note: If you aren't selected as a Finalist, all but the $29 deposit fee will be refunded. If you start the application process but don't submit the required materials by the deadline, or if you withdraw for any reason, your deposit will not be refunded.

Once you've completed online enrollment and submitted your application deposit, you'll gain access to your student portal, where you can submit your Teacher Reference, Performing Biography, and Audition Recording(s).

Access Online Enrollment

Step 2: Provide a Teacher Reference

All applicants are asked to provide the contact information for a music teacher who can answer questions about your application. While most questions can and will be directed toward the applicant directly, certain questions (such as verifying information in your application portfolio) may be asked of your teacher reference.

If you've already received a nomination, please confirm the contact information for the teacher who nominated you. Otherwise, your teacher reference can be any music professional—a schoolteacher, private instructor, etc.—who is familiar with your abilities.

Step 3: Complete the Performing Biography Form

Provide more information about yourself and your musical background by completing the brief Performing Biography Form in your student portal. An overview of the questions asked is included below to assist as you get ready to apply:

Do you take private lessons? If so, for how long and with whom?
Voice part(s) and/or instrument(s) you sing/play proficiently
Please list any SELECTIVE performance groups of which you are/have been a member (and when).
Please list any other performance groups of which you are/have been a member (and when).
Please list any honors/awards/recognitions (musically or otherwise) you've received that you feel are relevant to your selection for the Series.
Please list significant solo or ensemble pieces you've performed or learned.
Why would you like to be a part of the Honors Performance Series? Please respond in 250 words or less.

At the end of the Performing Biography, applicants are also given the opportunity to provide any additional information they feel is relevant to their application.

Step 4: Submit an Audio Recording

Each student must submit an audition recording by uploading a digital file with their application. Please review the following requirements before completing and submitting your recording.

Recordings may consist of one or multiple pieces and should total between three and five minutes for each instrument/voice part for which you are auditioning (except percussionists – see below). Recordings will not be disqualified if they are slightly over or under this guideline.
As the audition upload form accepts up to three recordings per part on which you are applying, different pieces may be submitted as separate recordings.
Begin each piece by introducing yourself, tell us the instrument/voice part for which you are auditioning, and the piece that you'll be playing—for example: “My name is John Smith, and the following is the suggested audition etude for snare drum.”
Recordings should be audio-only (no videos, please) and submitted in MP3 or M4A format only. Please note: We'll do our best to notify students if we encounter a problem with an audition recording, but we cannot guarantee the Selection Board will be able to review your submission if it's not submitted in the required format.
When naming the file, please include your first and last name as well as the instrument or voice part for which you're auditioning.
Recordings may not be engineered or enhanced in any manner.
You may audition on more than one instrument and you may audition as both an instrumentalist and a vocalist. In both cases, you should complete Online Enrollment once, submitting only one teacher reference and one performing biography. You'll need to submit a separate recording for each instrument/voice part on which you wish to apply.
All applicants are encouraged to prepare one of the sample etudes listed below. See below for information about the selection of additional audition pieces.

Please note: The audition upload form can be submitted only once per applicant. If you are applying on more than one part, please submit the form only when you are ready to upload your audition recordings for all parts.

Vocalists:

A selection from Schirmer’s Library of Musical Classics, Twenty-Four Italian Songs & Arias of the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries.
A selection from Joan Frey Boytim's, The First Book of (Soprano, Mezzo/Alto, Tenor, Bass/Baritone) Solos
A selection from Gary Arvin's, 15 American Art Songs

Instrumentalists:

If you wish to audition on an instrument not listed below, please select a technical piece (or pieces) that you feel best demonstrate(s) your musical abilities. Classical pieces are preferred but not required.
All performances must be solo, without accompaniment.

Instrumentalists should prepare one of the following sample etudes, and if desired, may play an additional technical piece of their choosing.

Clarinet – Bass
Clarinet – Bb
Bassoon
Cello
English Horn
French Horn
Euphonium

Flute & Piccolo
Oboe
Percussion – See Below
Saxophone – Alto
Saxophone – Bari
Saxophone – Tenor

String Bass
Trombone
Trumpet
Tuba
Viola
Violin

Percussionists should include solos of the below etudes for snare, timpani, and marimba. You may also select an additional solo, if desired, that demonstrates your technical abilities on one of these or another percussion instrument. Please clearly identify each piece and instrument in your recording. Your total recording time for all audition recordings should be approximately 3-5 minutes. Please label your recordings clearly as to which instrument is featured in each.

Snare: Portraits in Rhythm by Antony Cirone, Etude No. 6 – page 8
Timpani: The Solo Timpanist by Vic Firth, Etude No. 18 (XVIII) – page 33
Marimba: Masterpieces for Marimba arr. by Thomas McMillan, Sonata in E MAJOR by Handel – page 22 (play to the end of measure 24; no repeats)

Evaluation Process and Selection of Finalists

Applicants will receive an official confirmation email approximately two to three weeks following the Series‘ receipt of your materials. The Series will use the email address(es) you provide on your application to send official program communications.
Once a completed application is received, it will be reviewed by our Board of professional musicians to select Finalists for the Honors Choir and Honors Instrumental Ensembles. The Selection Board considers applicants equally for all relevant ensembles.
Performers selected for the program to perform as part of the Honors Ensembles are designated as Finalists and will be notified by email by the end of October 2024. Accepted Finalists are assigned to an ensemble based upon the recommendations of our Selection Board to satisfy balance requirements for each ensemble, as well as to maintain an equally high level of musicality for all ensembles. The Series cannot guarantee that, if accepted, an applicant will be placed into a specific ensemble.
All applicant notifications will be sent via email to the address(es) listed on your account.
Each applicant receives a notification email to all address(es) listed on their application for November Carnegie by the end of June 2024 and for February Carnegie by October 2024. This email will specify the student’s application results: Finalist (selected to perform), First Runner-up (waitlisted), or Deferred (not accepted and not waitlisted).
Accepted Finalists should expect to receive their sheet music and Conductor’s rehearsal notes no later than the end of May 2024.
After acceptance, should any Finalist cancel their participation, a First Runner-up will be offered the opportunity to fill the open seat.

“Nothing can compare to what this experience was like. Everything I have done up to this point helped me become a better musician. But this trip made me realize what you can accomplish once you are that "better musician."”

Zachary
Finalist