PRE-COLLEGE DIVISION (GRADES 8-12)

Pre-College Division
Exam and Audition Requirements

At the twice-yearly exams, students must perform the following:

grades 8

Violin

1. Four major and minor scales, including thirds and octaves in legato and detached sixteenth notes
2. Two studies from Kayser, Mazas, Kreutzer, etc. addressing different techniques, such as
• a.      Slow and melodious
• b.      Double-stops
• c.       Perpetual motion, spiccato
• d.      Staccato
3. One fast movement from a classical concerto or sonata such as Haydn or Mozart, as well as one short slow piece exhibiting tone production
4. Orchestral excerpts:  Beethoven Symphony No. 3 Scherzo and Mozart Symphony No. 40 pg. 1 
5. A short sight-reading piece given to the student at the exam

The scales, arpeggios and concerto must be played by memory.

Viola

1. Four major and minor scales, including thirds and octaves in legato and detached sixteenth notes in legato and detached sixteenth notes
2. Two studies from Kayser, Mazas, Kreutzer, etc. addressing different techniques, such as
• a. Slow and melodious
• b. Double-stops
• c. Perpetual motion, spiccato
• d. Staccato
3. One fast movement from a classical concerto or sonata such as Telemann, J.C. Bach or Handel, as well as one short slow piece exhibiting tone production
4. Orchestral excerpts:  Beethoven Symphony No. 3 Scherzo and Mozart Symphony No. 40 pg. 1 
5. A short sight-reading piece given to the student at the exam

The scales, arpeggios and concerto must be played by memory.

Cello

1. Four major and minor scales, including broken thirds and octaves in legato and detached sixteenth notes in legato and detached sixteenth notes
2. Two studies from Krane, Schroeder, Popper, etc. addressing different techniques, such as
• a. Slow and melodious
• b. Double-stops
• c. Perpetual motion, spiccato
• d. Staccato
3. One fast movement from a classical concerto or sonata such as Ludwig Mendelssohn or J.C. Bach, as well as one short slow piece exhibiting tone production
4. Orchestral excerpts:  Beethoven Symphony No. 9 theme from the last movement and Mozart Symphony No. 40 pg. 1 
5. A short sight-reading piece given to the student at the exam

The scales, arpeggios and concerto must be played by memory.

Bass

1. Four two-octave scales and arpeggios in major and minor in legato and detached sixteenth notes or two slurred without separate or hooking bowing
2. Two studies addressing different techniques, such as
• a. Slow and melodious
• b. Perpetual motion
• c. Staccato/hooked
3. One fast movement from a classical concerto or sonata such as Cimador, as well as one short slow piece exhibiting tone production
4. A short sight-reading piece given to the student at the exam

The scales, arpeggios and concerto must be played by memory.

Grades 9, 10

Violin

1. Five scales in major and minor keys, including thirds, sixths and octaves in three octaves in legato, detached and spiccato
2. Two complete studies of major difficulty from Rode, Kayser, Mazas, Kreutzer, etc. addressing different techniques, such as
• a. Slow and melodious
• b. Double-stops
• c. Perpetual motion, spiccato
• d. Staccato
3. J.S. Bach: one movement from the Solo Sonatas and Partitas for the Violin
4. One fast movement from a Classical or Romantic concerto or a piece of similar difficulty
5. Orchestral excerpts: Overture from Marriage of Figaro and Midsummer Night’s Dream pg. 1
6. Sight-reading of one standard orchestral excerpt given to the student at the exam

The scales, arpeggios, Bach and concerto must be played by memory.

Viola

1. Five scales in major and minor keys, including thirds, sixths and octaves in three octaves in legato, detached and spiccato
2. Two complete studies of major difficulty from Bruni, Dont, Mazas, Kreutzer, etc. addressing different techniques, such as
• a. Slow and melodious
• b. Double-stops
• c. Perpetual motion, spiccato
• d. Staccato
3. J.S. Bach: one movement from the Solo Sonatas and Partitas for the Violin or Cello Suites arranged for the viola
4. One fast movement from a Classical or Romantic concerto or a piece of similar difficulty
5. Orchestral excerpts: Overture from Marriage of Figaro and Midsummer Night’s Dream pg. 1
6. Sight-reading of one standard orchestral excerpt given to the student at the exam

The scales, arpeggios, Bach and concerto must be played by memory.

Cello

1. Five scales in major and minor keys, including thirds, sixths and octaves in three octaves in legato, detached and spiccato
2.  Two complete studies of major difficulty from Duport, Popper, Franchomme, etc. addressing different techniques, such as
• a. Slow and melodious
• b. Double-stops
• c. Perpetual motion, spiccato
• d. Staccato
3. J.S. Bach: one movement from the Solo Suites for Cello
4. One fast movement from a Classical or Romantic concerto or a piece of similar difficulty
5. Orchestral excerpts: Brahms Symphony No. 2 opening of 2nd movement and Beethoven Symphony No. 2 D – E from first movement
6. Sight-reading of one standard orchestral excerpt given to the student at the exam

The scales, arpeggios, Bach and concerto must be played by memory.

Bass

1. Five (three 2-octave and two 3-octave) scales and arpeggios in major and minor keys in legato and detached
2.  Two complete studies of major difficulty from Bottesini, Kreutzer, etc. addressing different techniques, such as
• a. Slow and melodious
• b. Perpetual motion
• c. Staccato
3. One fast movement from a Classical or Romantic concerto or a piece of similar difficulty (i.e. Dittersdorf)
4. Orchestral excerpts:  Solo from Othello and TBA
5. Sight-reading of one standard orchestral excerpt given to the student at the exam

The scales, arpeggios, Bach and concerto must be played by memory.

Grades 11, 12

Violin

1. All major and minor scales and arpeggios in addition to thirds, sixths, octaves and fingered octaves in legato, detached and spiccato; one double-stop scale in two octaves (thirds, sixths or octaves)
2.  Two complete studies of major difficulty from Rode, Kreutzer, Paganini, etc. addressing different techniques, such as
• a. Slow and melodious
• b. Double-stops
• c. Perpetual motion, spiccato
• d. Staccato
3. J.S. Bach: two movements from the Solo Sonatas and Partitas for the Violin
4. One slow and fast movement from a Romantic or 20th century concerto or a piece of similar difficulty
5. Shostakovich Symphony No. 5 (first movement- TBA) and Overture from Don Juan pg. 1
6. Sight-reading of one standard orchestral excerpt given to the student at the exam

The scales, arpeggios, Bach and concerto must be played by memory.

Viola

1. All major and minor scales and arpeggios in addition to thirds, sixths, octaves and fingered octaves in legato, detached and spiccato; one double-stop scale in two octaves (thirds, sixths or octaves)
2.  Two complete studies of major difficulty from Rode, Kreutzer, Bruni, Campagnoli, etc. addressing different techniques, such as
• a. Slow and melodious
• b. Double-stops
• c. Perpetual motion, spiccato
• d. Staccato
3. J.S. Bach: two movements from the Solo Sonatas and Partitas for the Violin; or Cello Suites arranged for viola
4. One slow and fast movement from a Romantic or 20th century concerto or a piece of similar difficulty
5. Shostakovich Symphony No. 5 (first movement- TBA) and Overture from Don Juan pg. 1
6. Sight-reading of one standard orchestral excerpt given to the student at the exam

The scales, arpeggios, Bach and concerto must be played by memory.

Cello

1. All major and minor scales and arpeggios in addition to thirds, sixths, octaves and fingered octaves in legato, detached and spiccato; one double-stop scale in two octaves (thirds, sixths or octaves)
2. Two complete studies of major difficulty from Popper, Piatti, Duport, etc. addressing different techniques, such as
• a. Slow and melodious
• b. Double-stops
• c. Perpetual motion, spiccato
• d. Staccato
3. J.S. Bach: two movements from the Solo Suites for Cello
4. One slow and fast movement from a Romantic or 20th century concerto or a piece of similar difficulty
5. Orchestral excerpts:  William Tell Overture 1st solo cello and Shostakovich Symphony No. 5, opening from 2nd movement and solo from 3rd movement
6. Sight-reading of one standard orchestral excerpt given to the student at the exam

The scales, arpeggios, Bach and concerto must be played by memory.

Bass

1. Five (two 2-octave and three 3-octave) major and minor scales and arpeggios in three or four octaves in legato, detached and spiccato
2. Two complete studies of major difficulty from Kreutzer, Bottessini, etc. addressing different techniques, such as
• a. Slow and melodious
• b. Perpetual motion, spiccato
• c. Staccato
3. J.S. Bach: two movements from the Solo Suites for Cello arranged for bass or two movements of a comparable solo sonata for bass
4. Solo from orchestral work
5. One slow and fast movement from a Romantic or 20th century concerto or a piece of similar difficulty
6. Sight-reading of one standard orchestral excerpt given to the student at the exam

The scales, arpeggios, Bach and concerto must be played by memory.

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Pre-College Division Policies & Procedures

ATTENDANCE REQUIREMENTS
Attendance at each of the following events is mandatory.  STEP students are expected to plan for designated STEP events to ensure participation and attendance for the entire event.  If a student can’t attend a required activity due to illness or family emergency, contact the Artistic Director (marianagreen96@gmail.com) and the Project STEP office (jcaballero@projectstep.org or marysjaffee@projectstep.org ).

Participation in STEP events takes priority in the student’s program of study.  Please do not sign up for extracurricular school events that conflict with Project STEP activities.

Attendance at the following events is required:
(Please consult the calendar for dates)

• All private lessons, theory / keyboard / solfège classes, workshops, orchestra rehearsals and chamber music coachings
• Masterclasses
• The Spring Recital (students will perform)
• Community Service(2 per school year)  – date to be chosen by students / families
• Enrichment concerts in the Boston area (2 per school year), with concert reports on them submitted to office (2 per school year)
• Mid-year and Year-end workshops with the Artistic Director and accompanist
• Mid-year and Year-end performance evaluations (exams)

Students must contact the Artistic Director concerning participation in any outside musicial activities such as additional lessons or participation in additional ensembles.

ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENTS
Project STEP was designed to give the most talented under-represented students of color the training and support needed to become professional musicians.  In order for this to happen, both musical AND academic excellence is required.  To succeed in college or conservatory, young musicians need to have a strong academic background, good grades and SAT scores.  Analytical thought is the cornerstone of being able to be an expressive and literate musician.  A student who has weak academics will have trouble completing the course requirements in a college or conservatory and will have a more difficult time succeeding both in musical and other professions.

Most serious music students also tend to succeed in school.  Balancing the rigors of academic and musical life is a challenge for all students, and developing the organizational skills to find this balance is very important to Project STEP.  If your child is having academic problems, please contact STEP as soon as possible and we will try to help. The Project STEP staff, teachers and Board of Directors are excellent resources for advice on academic issues.  Please do not hesitate to call the STEP office with any questions or concerns.

PROBATION
Probation serves as a warning that a student is not making sufficient progress in the program and the student may be referred to another program if improvement does not occur.  If s/he is unable to meet the standards of the program, it will be recommended that the student transfer to a different music program.  STEP will work with these students to help them get scholarships with other music programs, such as the New England Conservatory Preparatory School, the Community Music Center of Boston, the Longy School of Music, or the Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra’s ICP.

Performance at the two performance evaluations (Mid-year and Year-end) are the primary measures for student progress.  Those evaluations will count for 80% of the student’s evaluation.

Other factors that will be considered in Mid-year and Year-end evaluations are:

• Jury grades from performance exam (largest single factor)
• Private Teacher’s grade
• Theory grade
• Chamber Music (*Tardiness and absences will affect grades)
• Composer of the Month reports
• Community Service
• Concert Reports
• Attendance at required performances and masterclasses

The last four factors are the responsibilities of students.  If a student misses one element, s/he will receive a probationary warning.  If a student misses two elements, s/he will be placed on probation.

ANNUAL PROGRAM FEE
Project STEP has an annual program fee of $350.  The purpose of this fee is for parents to participate in the cost of their students’ instruction to a nominal extent.  The fee represents approximately 5% of the direct instruction costs, and 3% of the costs of operating the program.  Full payment or the Financial Assistance Application is due by Friday, October 8, 2010. 

FINANCIAL AID 
Financial aid is available for the program fee.  We encourage families to apply who will find the program fee burdensome.  Families who wish to apply should complete the Application for Financial Aid in the section of this book called ‘Agreement Forms and Financial Aid Information’.  Financial aid awards may cover up to 90% of the program fee.  Families must reapply for financial aid each year.  All information relative to the financial aid application is confidential.  Applications are reviewed only by members of the Financial Assistance Committee of the Board of Directors.  The Executive Director is informed of the decision only and applies the aid to the fee balance.  Financial Aid applications are due by Friday, October 8th.  This year a late fee of $25 will be added to those applications that are not in by Oct. 8th.  Information about your application will be communicated approximately four weeks after submitting the form.

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