An Ensemble Training Program: Fill & Download for Free

Have you ever heard of the Clown Conservatory? I hadn’t either.Clown Conservatory is a performing arts school in….wait for it….San Francisco! Clown | Mime | Puppetry | Circus Center | San FranciscoThey claim to be a “multidisciplinary training program in physical comedy, precision idiocy and eccentric acting.” You don’t need a college for that, I perfected precision idiocy on my own several years ago.** I swear to god in heaven this is one of the faculty members. Hannah Graff is an AcroSports instructor. She is also a member of Clowns without Borders, Medical Clown Project and something called Idiot String. There’s that word again.Here is a description of their program in their own words:“This 24-week training program is a tilt-a-whirl of character creation and narrative clowning where the conjuring of solo, duo and ensemble work culminates in showcases for Ring, Stage and Film. Our program’s directive is to foster the super-versatile Human Cartoon.”The 24-week training program is broken down into 2 terms. Tuition for the entire program is $6,900.Financial aid is available.

I am no longer directing a public school band/orchestra program. I do run a thing we call Bandestra. We combine all instruments…violin, viola, guitar (acoustic and electric) electric bass, drums, keyboards, trumpet and sax and learn about how to play popular styles of music like blues, rock, etc. If our instrumentalists want to sing, then we give ’em a mic and we rock. Students take turns singing. Most school instrumental programs are only instruments and don’t combine with singers, but our program is more like a typical rock ensemble training program where singers can join us if they want to sign up. You didn’t give any details about what kind of music you sing or why you’re asking. If we know what your goals or interests are, we can give you more well-defined answers.

Undergraduate programs in conducting in the U.S. probably exist, but they are not commonplace. Most usually conducting as a major is reserved for graduate-level programs, the underlying assumption perhaps being that a musician needs several years of college-level training before he is ready to get in front of an ensemble and lead it confidently and competently (I do not claim that this assumption is correct; in fact, I would tend to disagree with it). Undergraduate conducting is also probably uncommon because there are limited opportunities within a given institution for a conducting student to actually get podium time. This can be a problem even in a graduate curriculum with maybe 10 or 12 majors in play at once; imagine how little opportunity there might be in the same program for 20 or more undergraduate majors.Typically the application process for a graduate degree in conducting begins with the submission of video footage of the applicant conducting an ensemble in rehearsal and performance, and of course also includes at least one major interview with faculty.Composition, though, is offered as an undergraduate major by most schools of music. The applicant usually submits several samples of her work according to the parameters specified by the school (which can vary considerably from one school to the next, but usually entails a mini-portfolio of several examples for contrasting forces, etc.). These samples must usually be accompanied by high-quality recordings of the music. An interview is usually part of the process, and the applicant is almost always required to demonstrate a high level of proficiency at one or more instruments. Sometimes composition majors are required to go through the same audition process as performance majors, and sometimes the requirements for demonstrating instrumental capability are rather less than for performance majors. There is no national standard in this respect. Composition majors, particularly at the graduate level, may also be asked to submit samples of their prose writing about music.Typically all applicants to such programs are required to take examinations to demonstrate their knowledge of music theory, analysis, and aural capabilities (dictation, etc.), but no institution I know of in the U.S. would require 'composing on the spot.'