Auditions
The Brookline Symphony Orchestra is a community ensemble involving instrumentalists of all ages from the Greater Boston area. Orchestra members are volunteers and are encouraged to participate in the financial support of the organization. The winds operate with a rotation system.
Due to the ongoing pandemic, we require all orchestra members to be fully vaccinated for Covid-19 (proof of vaccination will be requested).
Our orchestra abides by a set of personnel policies, which are available for review here: Brookline Symphony Orchestra Personnel Policies.
Rehearsal Information
Rehearsals are held on Wednesday evening (with some exceptions), weekly from 7:15 to 9:45pm, starting in mid September and ending late May at All Saints Parish in Washington Square, Brookline. In addition, we hold a dress rehearsal the Thursday before the concert. Full details about schedule and location are on this page.
Audition dates
Auditions will take place in person on Saturday, September 9 and Sunday, September 10, 2023 at All Saints Parish in Washington Square, Brookline.
Current openings
We currently have the following openings:
Horn
Trumpet
Percussion
Violin
Cello
Double Bass
Substitute Viola
Substitute winds and brass
To request an audition
Contact the personnel manager at btyler@brooklinesymphony.org and fill out our audition form.
Audition Material:
Applicants should prepare required excerpts as listed, as well as material of their choice from either a Concerto, a Sonata, or the orchestral repertoire. The audition will last about 10 minutes.
Violin
Download Audition Excerpt Sheet Music (PDF)
Choose two excerpts from the following list:
Beethoven: Symphony No. 7 (Violin I), fourth movement, bars 5–90
Brahms: Symphony No. 2 (Violin I), first movement, bars 101–155
Mendelssohn: Scherzo from Mendelssohn Midsummer Night’s Dream, bars 17-99
Mozart: Symphony No. 35 (Violin I), first movement, bars 1–66
Viola
Download Audition Excerpt Sheet Music (PDF)
Prepare all excerpts below:
Brahms: Symphony No. 1, second movement, bars 50–62; fourth movement, bars 289–300
Dvořák: Symphony No. 9, first movement, bars 292–316
Cello
Download Audition Excerpt Sheet Music (PDF)
Prepare all excerpts below:
Brahms: Symphony No. 2, second movement, beginning–A and C–downbeat of bar 55
Beethoven: Symphony No. 5, second movement, bars 1–10, 49–59, and 98–106
Bass (section only)
Download Audition Excerpt Sheet Music (PDF)
Prepare all excerpts below:
Mozart: Symphony No. 35, first movement, bars 13–48 and 59–66
Wagner: Overture to Die Meistersinger, bar 158–end
(Note: Bassists receive a $10 cartage fee per rehearsal)
Flute
Download Audition Excerpt Sheet Music (PDF)
Prepare all excerpts below:
Brahms: Symphony No. 4, bars 89–105
Mendelssohn: A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Scherzo, two bars before P–end
OPTIONAL PICCOLO
Beethoven: Symphony No. 9, fourth movement, bars 343–431
Oboe
Download Audition Excerpt Sheet Music (PDF)
Prepare all excerpts below:
Brahms: Violin Concerto, second movement, bars 1–32
Mendelssohn: Symphony No. 3, second movement, bars 32–67
OPTIONAL ENGLISH HORN
Stravinsky: The Rite of Spring, “Adoration of the Earth,” [2]–[7]
Clarinet
Download Audition Excerpt Sheet Music (PDF)
Prepare all excerpts below:
Brahms: Symphony No. 3, second movement, bars 1–22
Mendelssohn: A Midsummer Night’s Dream, beginning of Scherzo–B
OPTIONAL E-FLAT CLARINET
Stravinsky: The Rite of Spring, [4]–[5] and [7]–three bars after [11]
OPTIONAL BASS CLARINET
Stravinsky: The Rite of Spring, two bars before [141]–[142]
Bassoon
Download Audition Excerpt Sheet Music (PDF)
Prepare all excerpts below:
Mozart: Overture to Le nozze di Figaro, bars 101–123 and 139–171
Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 4, second movement, bar 274–end
OPTIONAL CONTRABASSOON
Shostakovich: Symphony No. 5, second movement, bars 65–69
Horn
Download Audition Excerpt Sheet Music (PDF)
Prepare all excerpts below:
Brahms: Symphony No. 3 (Horn I solo), third movement, F–12 bars after F
Beethoven: Symphony No. 3 (Horns I and II), third movement, bars 169–202
Strauss: Till Eulenspiegels lustige Streiche, bars 6–20 and nine bars before 31–two bars after 33
Trumpet
Download Audition Excerpt Sheet Music (PDF)
Prepare all excerpts below:
Beethoven: Leonore Overture No. 3, offstage solo
Copland: An Outdoor Overture, bars 16–34
Stravinsky: Pétrouchka (1947 version), “Ballerina’s Dance,” one bar before [134]–[139]
OPTIONAL PICCOLO TRUMPET
Stravinsky: The Rite of Spring (Piccolo Trumpet in D), one bar before [11]–[12]
Trombone
Download Audition Excerpt Sheet Music (PDF)
Prepare all excerpts below:
Berlioz: La damnation de Faust (Trombone II), “Hungarian March,” six bars before [20]–two bars after [21]
Ravel: Boléro, solo, two bars after [10]–[11]
Mahler: Symphony No. 3, first movement, [13]–[17]
Bass Trombone
Download Audition Excerpt Sheet Music (PDF)
Prepare all excerpts below:
Berlioz: La damnation de Faust, “Hungarian March,” six bars before [4]–two bars after [5]
Schumann: Symphony No. 3, fourth movement, beginning–13 bars after A
Wagner: Die Walküre, “Ride of the Valkyries”
Tuba
Download Audition Excerpt Sheet Music (PDF)
Prepare all excerpts below:
Brahms: Symphony No. 2, fourth movement, O–14 bars before P
Wagner: Die Walküre, “Ride of the Valkyries”
Prokofiev: Symphony No. 5, first movement, [3]–[6]
Timpani
Download Audition Excerpt Sheet Music (PDF)
Prepare all excerpts below:
Beethoven: Symphony No. 9, first movement, 18 measures before S–end
Stravinsky: The Rite of Spring, [189]–end