MIDDLE SCHOOL | CARNEGIE HALL

Selection Process

The honor of participation in the Honors Junior Ensembles is limited to the most skilled middle school performers chosen through an individual application and selection process.

Sightseeing Extension

Selection of Junior Finalists

Selected Junior Finalists receive the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to work with and learn from renowned conductors as they prepare to perform at a truly world-class venue, Carnegie Hall. In a special performance, students perform for New York concert-goers, educators, and family.

In most cases, qualified students are invited to apply after having been nominated by a music teacher familiar with their accomplishments. Given that not all directors are aware of the opportunity to nominate, students who have not received a teacher nomination may still apply and are required to submit the contact information for a teacher reference as part of the application process.

Application Requirements

To be considered for selection to the 2022 Honors Performance Series, a student must be in US grades 6-8 (or equivalent international study level) during the 2021-2022 school year and submit a completed application, which includes:

Application form (includes a $30 nonrefundable deposit fee and a $250 participation deposit that is refunded if the applicant is not accepted)
Contact information for a teacher reference
A performing biography
A three- to five-minute audition recording

Please review the Application tab for additional details about these requirements.

Instruments & Voice Parts

The Middle School Honors Performance Series at Carnegie Hall is planned to feature a full choir and one to two instrumental ensembles, likely a concert band and string orchestra.

Accepted Junior Finalists are assigned to an ensemble based upon the recommendation of our Selection Board to satisfy balance requirements for each ensemble, and to maintain an equally high level of musicality for all ensembles. The Series cannot guarantee that, if accepted, applicants will be placed into a specific ensemble.

Past choirs have included sopranos, altos, tenors, and basses. Previous instrumental ensembles required the following instruments: bassoons, cellos, clarinets (including Bb, Eb, and bass), string basses, euphoniums, flutes, French horns, harps, oboes, percussion, pianos, saxophones (including alto, tenor, and baritone), trombones, tubas, violas, and violins.

Evaluation Process and Selection of Junior Finalists

All completed applications received will be reviewed by our expert Board of professional musicians to select Junior Finalists for the Honors Junior Ensembles.

All applicants will be notified by email in mid-March 2022 regarding their acceptance status for the 2022 Middle School Honors Performance Series. Following review by our Selection Board, applicants are placed into one of three categories: Junior Finalist (selected to perform), First Runner-up (waitlisted), or Deferred (not accepted and not waitlisted).
Selected Junior Finalists should expect to receive the selected music for preparation by mid-May 2022.
Should any Junior Finalist cancel their participation, a First Runner-up will be offered the opportunity to fill the empty seat.

How to submit your application materials

“Carnegie Hall is an acoustically beautiful and historic hall where many great artists and ensembles have performed. The opportunity for students to perform on this stage before a panel of distinguished conductors is a ‘once-in-a lifetime’ experience that will be remembered for a lifetime.”

Frank L. Battisti – Conductor Emeritus
New England Conservatory of Music