AUDITIONS

How do I audition?

Every September, nearly every Hopkins a cappella group has auditions. All groups participate in an orientation week showcase at Shriver Hall, where you can hear each groups’ sound. The groups then set up tables at the Glass Pavilion where you can sign up for audition time slots. If you miss the showcase, check out HopkinsGroups (around audition time) for more information, and a link to the sign-ups.

Who can audition for the vocal chords?

Any Johns Hopkins or Peabody student, undergraduate or graduate, is welcome to audition for a spot in our group. Even if you’re not a freshman!

what goes on in the audition?

We’ll ask you some questions about yourself (both personal and musical), and have you sing a verse and chorus from a song you’ve prepared. Sometimes the audition will include vocal warm-ups, musical exercises, and even fun games! If you are invited for a callback after your audition, we’ll continue singing together and getting to know you!

How Can I best PrePare for an audition?

There are a number of things that you can do to prepare. The first thing you should do is to think through your music collection and choose a song for your audition solo that best shows off your voice. It's nice for us if you sing a song that is popular enough that a few of us have heard it before – however, this is by no means a must. You can also take a look at our repertoire to get an idea of the type of music we usually perform. 

It’s important that you are comfortable singing in front of people! If you haven’t done this in the past, it's not a bad idea to practice your solo in front of friends or family. This can help you to feel more comfortable during your audition. But don't worry, because we're not that scary! 

Other than that, you can try to get yourself comfortable with singing scales and interval patterns. It could be helpful to be around a piano for this so that you can check your tuning.

Do I have to memorize my solo?

Not necessarily...this is entirely up to you. If you would feel more comfortable using a piece of paper or note card to help you, that is more than okay! The purpose of the solo is for us to hear your solo voice on a song that best fits your voice: we want to hear you sing. However, musical performance always includes a visual aspect so using a memory aid might hurt this to an extent.
 

Hey, did you know that I can beatbox?

No, we didn't, but we're glad that you told us! We love to come across auditionees who have had some experience with vocal percussion and/or beatboxing, as it is an important aspect of what we do. For The Vocal Chords to function, we need singers and beatboxers, as well as musical arrangers, editors, managers, etc. There are a lot of roles to fill besides just having people with beautiful voices! If you’re a singer who has some of these additional talents, we’d love to hear about them.

I can't read music, is that bad?

Reading music is always a helpful skill, but it is not a requirement for being accepted into The Vocal Chords. There are a number of members who have little experience singing in a group and who have not had formal music training. Don't worry – if you get accepted, you’ll certainly grow as a musician!

My audition solo is a little... different. Is that okay?

Absolutely. Although we prefer that you choose a pop or rock song, since that's what we usually perform, you can certainly sing anything that you like in order to impress us. The most important thing for you to do is to pick a song that highlights your voice and your talents. If that piece happens to be a show tune or a classical piece, then we'd love to hear it. We don't confine ourselves to any particular genre of music, so neither should you when deciding on your audition solo.

Are there a specific number of spots open for each voice part?

Although we generally have an idea of what we're looking for when going into an audition period, absolutely nothing is set in stone until after we see everyone who is trying out. It is our policy to accept the very best singers/people into The Vocal Chords regardless of what voice part they sing. Seriously, we're not just saying this. Many of the group members are versatile enough to sing at least two voice parts and therefore we can often switch what we are looking for based on who we have to choose from. There is absolutely no quota system that we use.

Are you guys mean? Will this be like American Idol?

Yes. We judge everything that you do in front of us. Just kidding! Of course not! A thousand times no!! We are very friendly and will do everything that we can to make your audition as comfortable and painless as possible. We promise we don't bite... hard. 

Nevertheless we will probably be taking notes while you sing. Sorry, we know this can be nerve-wracking. We're just trying to make sure that we can recall everyone's audition as clearly as possible.

Is there a limit to the number of groups I can try out for?

You are more than welcome to try out for as many a cappella groups as you wish, although it is customary and probably best to only join one group. After the audition period is over and we (and any other group for which you might have auditioned) have notified you of our final decisions there is a period of a few hours for you to consider your options and make the right choice for you.