Vocal Arts Prescreening & Audition Procedures

Requirements for Vocal Arts

Vocal Arts applicants must submit a prescreen video in order to be considered for an invitation to an in-person or recorded audition.

Step 1: Prescreen

Include ALL required repertoire for the degree level you are applying to, as listed in the dropdown menu below.
Upload your prescreen recordings directly to your application.
Prescreen Deadline: December 1.
Videos do not have to be a professional or studio recording, but the sound quality should be of high quality and should accurately reflect your musicianship.
Each piece or movement should be uploaded as a separate video. However, each individual video must be unedited.
All works must be performed from memory.

Step 2: Audition

Prepare ALL of the required audition repertoire for the degree level you are applying to, as listed in the dropdown menu below.
Be prepared to introduce yourself at the beginning of your audition, saying your name clearly. Also be prepared to pronounce the composer and librettist’s names correctly.
Note that audition repertoire requirements may differ from prescreen requirements. However, applicants may choose to include selections from their prescreen submissions in the audition where requirements overlap.
MSM offers in-person and recorded final auditions, except for the Doctoral of Musical Arts & Artist Diploma programs, which require an in-person audition.

Carefully review the specific repertoire requirements for your degree level in the dropdown menu below. Please upload your videos to your application.

Undergraduate: Bachelor of Music (BM)
Prescreen & Audition

The repertoire requirements below are the same for both the prescreen and audition rounds.

Three songs are required:
- One song in Italian from the 17th or 18th century
- One song in English (not a translation)
- A song of your choice. This can be in French or German, in your native language (other than English or Italian), or a work by a composer from a historically underrepresented racial/ethnic group, gender, and/or culture. Allow this selection to tell us something special about you!
Master of Music (MM)
Prescreen & Audition

The repertoire requirements below are the same for both the prescreen and audition rounds.

Seven songs/arias* are required:
- One song in English
- One song in German
- One song in French
- One song in Italian
- An operatic aria*
- An oratorio aria  OR a second operatic aria*
- A selection of your choice. This can be a work that is in your native language (other than English, French, German or Italian) or one by a composer from a historically underrepresented racial/ethnic group, gender, and/or culture. Allow this selection to tell us something special about you!
For the Audition: Be prepared to introduce yourself at the beginning of your audition, saying your name clearly. Also be prepared to pronounce the composer and librettist’s names correctly and know something about them and their contributions to the vocal canon.

*Note: Your repertoire list must contain no more than two (2) arias. Of the seven required pieces, an aria in English, French, German or Italian can count as either your aria selection OR your art song selection in that language, but not both. Your selections should be no more than four minutes in length. Any work that exceeds four minutes may be stopped due to time constraints.
Professional Studies (PS), Professional Performance Diploma (PPD), Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) & Artist Diploma (AD)
Prescreen & Audition

The repertoire requirements below are the same for both the prescreen and audition rounds.
- At least four languages must be represented within the combined audition repertoire package – Italian, German, French and English
- 2 operatic arias – different languages, period styles, tempi/moods represented – you may substitute one operatic aria with a concert or oratorio aria
- 4 art songs – different languages, period styles, tempi/moods represented
- Applicants are strongly encouraged to include at least one piece by an underrepresented creator – composer, poet or librettist. Refer to the description below. Applicants are encouraged to include at least one piece by a living composer if the work allows the singer to use classical singing style– extended techniques or musical theatre repertoire is not suitable for this audition.

MSM Vocal Arts Division List of Underrepresented Creators
The term underrepresented refers to persons who have not been traditionally included in the study, teaching, and performance of western European classical music. Each academic division at MSM has developed a list of what this means in their area. In the Vocal Arts Division, this includes:
- Indigenous, Native, First Nation or Aboriginal people from any continent/country
- People of Africa and descendants of the African diaspora – including both dispersal through colonization or the slave trade, and through voluntary migration. This includes African Americans, Afro-Caribbeans, Afro-Latin Americans, Black Canadians and many more
- Hispanic or Latinx people
- Asian American & Pacific Islander people (AAPI)
- Eastern Asia, South Asia & Western Asia (Middle Eastern) people
- Persons subjected to genocide during their lifetime – genocide is an internationally-recognized crime where acts are committed with the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial, or religious group
- Women or Female-Identifying (lesbian & cisgender) people
- Transgender people
- Non-Binary people
- People with disabilities
- Neuro-divergent people – this may include persons with Autism spectrum disorder, Down syndrome, Dyslexia, Intellectual disabilities, Sensory processing disorders, Tourette syndrome and other genetic conditions that impact cognitive ability.
Underrepresented does not include white/Caucasian creators who, as part of the traditional western European classical music canon, were not recognized during their lifetime and may now be viewed as lesser-known or under-recognized. It also does not include gay creators whose works are already a well-recognized part of the canon – for example: Benjamin Britten, Francis Poulenc, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, George Frideric Handel, Jean-Baptiste Lully, Aaron Copland, Samuel Barber, Ricky Ian Gordon, Jake Heggie and many others.
Repertoire Resources

There are a growing number of resources and databases you can resource to explore repertoire by underrepresented creators.

Here is a partial list to help you in your search.

https://msmnyc.libguides.com/culturalinclusion – MSM Library’s Database

Songhelix.com – Searchable database from University of Utah

Africandiasporamusicproject.com – Searchable database compiled by Dr. Louise Toppin

Music by Asian & Asian American Composers – music for purchase from Theadore Front

Kassiadatabase – Database of Art Songs by Women Composers by Logan Contreras

Latinamericanartsong.com – a resource created by Devonna B. Rowe

Composerdiversity.com – a database created by SUNY Fredonia

Vocal Works by BIPOC Composers – database created by Alexandra Smither

Theartsongproject.com –Living and Deceased Composer art song repertoire

Songofamerica.net – a database of songs by American composers from over 250 years