Choral Award - is it worth it?

have you got any RSCM awards or grades?

Reply 2

OP

arisk01

have you got any RSCM awards or grades?

I got my RSCM Dean's Award about 6 years ago (I think its called a bronze award now)

Reply 3

you haven't done the Bishops (Silver) or St. Cecilia (Gold)?
EDIT: pass merit or distinction? and what voice part?

Reply 4

OP

arisk01

you haven't done the Bishops (Silver) or St. Cecilia (Gold)?
EDIT: pass merit or distinction? and what voice part?

I got merit (on treble), but then my voice broke and I haven't done any awards as a bass because we don't do them at my choir

Reply 5

ChemistBoy

16

I'd advise getting a few lessons to pump yourself up, but you haven't got much to lose by applying for an audition. Choral awards such as the St Nick's are all well and good but they aren't essential. I got an audition at New College without one. Have you done any cathedral singing or singing in groups like the Northern/Southern Cathedral singers?

Reply 6

sonofdot

I got merit (on treble), but then my voice broke and I haven't done any awards as a bass because we don't do them at my choir

OK, what's your repertoire? You're going to be asked this sort of thing. It would've been advantageous to have redone your bronze as bass (which by the way is the best voice part :wink:

). I take it you haven't done grades. Yeah anyway so repertoire lol

Reply 7

quakeeem

I would definitely recommend it! I didn't realise that you had to hand in your CAF form early until the 16th last August, so I was doing pretty much everything in those 2 weeks, and if you really try, it can get done to a high standard.
If you truly love singing, then go for it! If you don't think you're strong enough for clare or caius or the likes, then there are many choirs that i'm surely would take anyone who's vaguely musical. Also, these colleges won't work you hard, so having the award won't be much effort, just 3 or so things a week.
& when you're interviewing, having a scholarship can do nothing to hinder your application.
Hope that helps. :smile:

Reply 8

oh btw I am recommending you go for it lol, I'm just trying to help along the way :p:

Reply 9

ChemistBoy

16

Bass - learn a Bach aria I'd say and of course lots of sight reading, they give you some shockers at the big colleges.

Reply 10

sonofdot

I have sung in my church choir for far too many years and I am in my (very good) school chamber choir. I am not the most amazing singer, but I can hold a bass line pretty well and I really enjoy singing. About a year ago, when I first decided that I was going to apply to Cambridge, I was considering applying for a choral award, but I decided a few months ago that it wasn't worth the extra effort.

Anyway, over the last couple of weeks my parents have been suggesting to me that I should still go for it. They say I've got nothing to lose, but I'm not sure. Have I left it to late? Have I got a realistic chance? Is it really worth having to make an early application and go to auditions, etc??

Thanks :smile:

Of course, ultimately only you can decide whether you want a choral scholarship or not, but it's definitely not too late to go for it. From a practical sense, 2/3 weeks is plenty long enough to sort out personal statement etc (provided you're not on holiday for all that time or something!), and I'm guessing nothing much is going to happen between September and October that would make your application better if you applied later. It was rather a relief to have got all my personal statement and stuff sorted before sixth form restarted to be honest. Going to auditions...well, you have to take a few days off school and pay for travel but I was definitely more relaxed when I went to do my academic interviews having already stayed in Cambridge for a few days.

Have you got a realistic chance? Impossible to say without hearing you, but you don't lose anything by having a go - and don't be put off by only having sung in church and school choirs, that's all a lot of people have done.

Your choice :smile:

Reply 11

quakeeem

.
& when you're interviewing, having a scholarship can do nothing to hinder your application.

When you're interviewing, they won't know you have a scholarship :wink:

As an aside: what is a Dean's award? I've never heard of it before :confused:

Reply 12

Number6

9

What sort of standard, grade-wise (if that is even a word :biggrin:

) do you have to be?

Reply 13

quakeeem

faik_kheft

When you're interviewing, they won't know you have a scholarship :wink:

As an aside: what is a Dean's award? I've never heard of it before :confused:

That's true if you get into your first place, but (since you apply at many colleges for the award, but only one academically) if you get into your 2nd or 3rd choice, your CAF form and the such have to be transferred over, so they'll know then. in my interview, I was told that not all my information had bin transferred from St John's yet so he'd have to ask me some questions I'd already answered, so that was a hint, but yeh. So if you reach for the stars (as in, too far) but get a scholarship elsewhere, then it will work out.

and you don't have to be a specific grade. If you're musical and good at sight reading, then you can get in on an average voice!

Reply 14

quakeeem

That's true if you get into your first place, but (since you apply at many colleges for the award, but only one academically) if you get into your 2nd or 3rd choice, your CAF form and the such have to be transferred over, so they'll know then. in my interview, I was told that not all my information had bin transferred from St John's yet so he'd have to ask me some questions I'd already answered, so that was a hint, but yeh. So if you reach for the stars (as in, too far) but get a scholarship elsewhere, then it will work out.

Ah yes...it all goes a bit complicated if you get passed to otherscolleges...ho hum. Even so, them knowing that you have a scholarship should make no difference to whether you get an academic offer or not.
:smile:

Reply 15

Number6

What sort of standard, grade-wise (if that is even a word :biggrin:

) do you have to be?

And yeah, ditto what quakeeem said, you don't need to be a particular standard - some people have beautiful voices despite never having had lessons and others get in with fairly unremarkable voices but are musical and good sight-readers.

Reply 16

quakeeem

faik_kheft

Ah yes...it all goes a bit complicated if you get passed to otherscolleges...ho hum. Even so, them knowing that you have a scholarship should make no difference to whether you get an academic offer or not.
:smile:

I'll give you that one! :yep:

Reply 17

OP

Thanks for all your replies :smile:

I think I'm going to go for it, if I can sort out references and such in time.

Has anyone got any ideas as to what I could sing? I haven't done much solo singing really, but what sort of piece is considered acceptable?

Reply 18

OP