Ensemble Auditions
Specific Audition Requirements for Our EnsemblesSpecific audition information for enrolled students seeking to join a UNM Ensemble
Bands:
Marching Band
Please see the “Spirit Marching Band and Soundpack” page on Facebook.
More information on Fall 2024 Auditions and Policies
No auditions necessary, but students must commit to attendance at Band Week, which is held the week before classes begin in the fall semester.
Not offered in spring semesters.
Contact: Geoffrey Harman
Soundpack (Basketball Band)
Please see the “Spirit Marching Band and Soundpack” page on Facebook.
Auditions (for fall semester) are required.
Audition dates: usually mid-to-late October, at locations TBA.
Appointment times are needed: Signup sheets are posted near the Kurt Frederick Room (large band rehearsal hall) in early October.
Contact: Geoffrey Harman
Wind Symphony & Symphonic Band
More information on Fall 2024 Auditions and Policies
Auditions for Wind Symphony & Symphonic Band are held during the week prior to classes in the Fall semester and at the end of the Fall semester for Spring. Call the Band Office at (505)277-8998 for specific information and scheduling.
Wind Symphony Contact: Emily Moss
Symphonic Band Contact: Chad Simons
Our Ensembles
Bands >
Orchestra >
Chamber Ensembles >
Choirs >
Jazz Ensembles >
Opera Theatre >
Orchestra:
Strings
For the Fall 2024 semester, auditions for the UNM Orchestras will take place virtually, with video recordings to be submitted no later than midnight on Monday, August 12, 2024.
For specific string audition requirements, music, and links to sign up, click here.
For any additional information, about auditions or about the orchestral program generally, please email Dr. Christoph Wagner at christophwagner@unm.edu.
Winds
For further information, contact UNM Director of Bands Dr. Emily Moss at emoss@unm.edu
Choirs:
UNM Choirs Placement Procedure
For information regarding 2024-2025 auditions, please click here.
For all questions, contact Dr. David Edmonds, Director of Choral Studies at dmedmonds@unm.edu.
UNM Opera Theatre
For information regarding Opera Auditions for fall 2023 please contact Dr. Kristin Ditlow
Other Ensembles:
Early Music Ensemble
Contact: Colleen Sheinberg
Guitar Ensemble
Jazz Bands I & II and Jazz Combos
Jazz Band and Combo auditions take place the week before the fall and spring semesters. Jazz Band auditions consist of a prepared etude, sight reading, and an optional improvisation on a blues or tune of your choice. Etudes are available online and auditions are scheduled by calling the Band Office: 505-277-8998 starting August 1st.
Audition Materials Found Here.
Combo auditions consist of an improvisation on a blues or tune of your choice; rhythm section instruments will also be asked to comp and sight read.
For more information, contact Dr. Chris Buckholz: cbuckholz@unm.edu.
Marimba Band
Interested students call Prof. Ney to set up an audition time:
Contact: Scott Ney
Percussion Ensemble
Interested students call Prof. Ney to set up an audition time:
Contact: Scott Ney
Honky Tonk Ensemble
Musicians should play their instruments at an intermediate level. All instruments and singers welcome.
To audition, please contact Dr. Kristina Jacobsen at:
Founded in 2014, the UNM Honky Tonk Ensemble is the only collegiate ensemble in the country focusing exclusively on country music of the 1950s, ‘60s, and ‘70s, also known as “honky tonk.” Inspired by the community music ethic of Chicago’s Old Town School of Folk Music and focusing on country music as a form of verbal art, the class is open to community members and UNM students and is offered each fall and spring semester. Class incorporates music from the classic honky tonk canon, but also the music of lesser-known African American and Indigenous country music canons. The class is taught collaboratively by performing country artists, scholars, and numerous guest artists, and is designed to teach musicians how to play as a band.