Posted by Rod Mathews on March 04, 2001 at 00:38:49:
In Reply to: Juilliard Auditions posted by Matt on March 02, 2001 at 13:47:32:
I agree with the comments about Warren choosing the best players who audition. It doesn't really matter who you know, if you don't back it up with the horn you aren't getting in. Another important thing to consider is that you audition for a committee, not just Warren. The year I auditioned, the committee was Warren, Joe Alessi, Don Harwood, and Per Brevig.
My first year at Juilliard (1989) was Warren's first year of teaching there. That year, there were three tuba students. The following year there were four students, and then the year after that it went back to three. After that I couldn't tell you. The way the orchestras and ensembles are set up at Juilliard, they can have three really busy players, or four moderately busy ones.
In case anyone is interested, here's who was there those years, to the best of my recollection:
1988-89 - Steve Foreman, Joe Boylan, ??? (this was Don Harry's last year)
1989-90 - Steve Foreman, Lee Burkhart, Rod Mathews
1990-91 - Eric Fritz, Steve Walton, Lee Burkhart, Rod Mathews
1991-92 - Steve DuMaine, Eric Fritz, Steve Walton
The experience itself was wonderful. Warren is a great teacher, and a FANTASTIC performer to hear every week. The other brass players at Juilliard were great, and the low brass classes that Joe Alessi and Warren Deck taught were fantastic, as were the orchestral rep classes taught by Joe Alessi and Mark Gould (principal trumpet of the Met Opera). Per Brevig directed an unofficial brass ensemble, which did a European Tour the year before I got there. The Juilliard Orchestra is a very fine ensemble, and plays all of their concerts in Avery Fisher hall. Lots of great groups, and lots of great musicians to learn from and perform with.
Funny story. Towards the end of my second year I had gotten to my lesson early to get set up. Warren was running a couple of minutes behind, so I was using the time to practice a Bach Invention I had to play on a piano exam immediately after my tuba lesson. Warren walked in as I was torturing the poor piano, looked at me with a smartass grin, and said "Keep practicing that piano - that will get you a job for sure!" I still laugh when I think of that...
I don't have a single tarnished memory of the two years I spent there, with the possible exception of having to practice piano too much to pass the proficiency exam. If you can get in, I can't think of a better place to get a great education. Of course, I'm a bit biased. ;-)
Rod