Berklee College of Music (US). The live audition has a prepared piece, improvisation, sight-reading and ear training. An interview follows.
Audition patterns
Contemporary and Popular Music Programs
These programs train performers, songwriters and producers in popular and contemporary styles. Many ask for original songs or your own production work. Most add an interview about your music and your plans. Some also test improvisation, theory or ear skills.
Practice for this pattern is at the end of the page.
Schools that follow this pattern
USC Thornton School of Music (US). Popular Music applicants send a video prescreen first. It includes a one-minute spoken introduction. Singer-songwriters submit original songs with lyric sheets. The live round includes a short musicianship check.
NYU Steinhardt (US). Contemporary Production and Songwriting applicants send original songs with lead sheets. A lead sheet shows the melody, words and chords on one page. The portfolio also holds a performance video and an arranged score. An interview by video call follows by invitation.
New England Conservatory (US). Contemporary Musical Arts applicants present a new version of an existing piece and an original work. The live round adds improvisation, an interview and an aural skills test.
BIMM (UK). Songwriting applicants perform an original song and bring a recorded demo. Production applicants bring their own demos. Performance applicants play two contrasting songs.
LIPA (UK). LIPA assesses your music theory at the audition. Applicants are also assessed at an interview stage.
ICMP (UK). Performance applicants play two contrasting pieces. They also take a skills check in scales, chords, improvisation, reading chord charts and ear skills. Songwriting applicants bring original songs with lyrics.
Trinity Laban (UK). Music Performance and Industry applicants send videos that include an original piece. Shortlisted applicants have an interview with a musicianship assessment.
Conservatorium van Amsterdam (Netherlands). Pop applicants are pre-selected from song recordings. Most of the songs must be original. The live audition adds an aural test and oral theory questions.
Codarts Rotterdam (Netherlands). Pop songwriting applicants perform their own songs. They also write a melody and lyrics over a given chord progression in a timed task.
Sydney Conservatorium of Music (Australia). Contemporary Music Practice applicants send two recorded original songs and a written overview. An interview by video call follows.
Global Music Institute (India). Contemporary performance applicants send video links. They then give an audition and an interview. The course combines Western contemporary and Hindustani music.
Practice for this pattern
- Music production covers recording and mixing your own tracks.
- StemLab takes a song apart by its instruments. Use it to study arrangements in your style.
- Interview questions come with guidance for reviewing your answers.
The Music Stem is independent. No school listed here endorses or reviews our practice. Our full pathway covers Berklee. The other schools are listed to show the pattern. Requirements change. Read each school's own page before you apply.