Undergraduate Program

Admission

Brochure

Click here to view the digital version of our brochure. File: Bard Conservatory Undergraduate Brochure.pdf

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Online Information Sessions

Our last Online Information Session about the undergraduate program was held on:
Wednesday, October 19 at 6:00pm (EST) with Melvin Chen, associate director of Bard Conservatory, and Lily Sutton, Admission Director

*please email Lily Sutton ( lsutton@bard.edu) to sign up - or to be added to the list for future information sessions!

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School Visits

Thursday, October 20 (1pm):  Walnut Hill School for the Arts (Natick, MA)
Thursday, November 3 (5pm): Eastman School of Music, The 6th Annual Upstate NY Music College Fair

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Overview and Majors Offered (2012)

Admission to the Conservatory is highly selective. The Conservatory admits only exceptionally talented musicians who have already achieved a superior degree of instrumental proficiency, or have substantial accomplishment as composers. 

To be admitted, applicants must perform a successful audition and must also be admitted by Bard College. (Additional information on Bard College's academic standards can be found here.) The chances for admission to the College will be substantially enhanced by outstanding achievement in music. 

The Conservatory is under no constraints to admit target numbers of instruments in any given year. This allows both flexibility and rigor in the admission process.

For the 2012 academic year, we will accept students in the following majors:

  • Bass
  • Bassoon
  • Cello
  • Clarinet
  • Composition
  • Flute
  • Harp
  • Horn
  • Oboe
  • Percussion (click on the link below for a description of the program)
  • Piano
  • Trombone
  • Trumpet
  • Tuba
  • Viola
  • Violin

(Degrees in Conducting and Voice are offered at the graduate level only)


File: Studying at Bard with So Percussion.pdf

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Application Process

1. Submit an Online application (using SlideRoom) to Bard Conservatory on or before  January 3, 2012.
As part of the online application, you will upload a prescreening recording (audio or video), a musical resume, and a letter of recommendation from a music teacher.


2. Submit the online Common Application to Bard College on or before January 3, 2012.
Note that there is a required Supplemental Essay Question.

3. All applicants must submit a Financial Aid application to Bard College to be considered for need-based or merit-based aid. The application deadline for the FAFSA is February 15, 2012.

NOTE: If you are an INTERNATIONAL STUDENT, these are the 2 Financial Aid forms that we need from you: International Student Financial Aid Form and Certification of Finances 
These forms should be emailed to lsutton@bard.edu

3. Prescreening results will be emailed to applicants by the end of January 2012

4. Live auditions (by invitation only) will take place the first week of March 2012

5. Admissions decisions will be sent by April 1

6. Admitted students must respond to admission offers by May 1

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Audition Dates and Notification




Admission Plan
 Application Deadline*
 Audition Dates
Regular Admission *January 3, 2012 March 2012 (exact dates will be posted later this summer)
Transfer Admission November 1, 2011 (for spring semester), March 15, 2012 (for fall semester) Ad hoc



Regular Admission: Auditions will be held at Bard College in March 2012 (Exact dates will be posted in the fall). Invitations to attend a live audition will be extended no later than February 1.

Transfer Admission: Auditions will be held on an ad-hoc basis, either in New York City or at Bard College.

Audition by DVD: Every attempt will be made to accommodate students for whom travel presents financial or other difficulties. In most cases a DVD will be acceptable in lieu of an in-person audition. This DVD may be uploaded to the applicant's Online Application, or it may also be sent via postal mail.

Notifications 

Prescreening
Candidates will be notified within two weeks of the application deadline whether they have been selected for audition, and, if so, the time and place of the audition.  An accompanist will be provided free of charge at each audition by the Post Graduate Piano Fellowship program. 

Final notification
Regular Decision applicants who proceed to the live audition round will receive notification of the final result by April 1. All accepted students will have until May 1 to decide upon the offer of admission.

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Prescreening Repertoire Requirements

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* We will accept prescreening AUDIO (mp3 files) OR VIDEO (mov, wmv, flv, mp4 files)

All collaborative works must have piano accompaniment

For piano

  • A work by J. S. Bach
  • A movement of a classical sonata
  • A movement or work from the romantic era

For violin

  • A movement from an unaccompanied Bach partita or sonata
  • A movement of a standard concerto
  • A work of your choice

For viola

  • A movement from an unaccompanied Bach suite (originally for cello) or partita or sonata (originally for violin)
  • A sonata or concerto movement 
  • A work of your choice

For cello

  • A movement from an unaccompanied Bach suite
  • A movement of a concerto
  • A work of your choice

For bass

  • An étude
  • Two contrasting sonata movements
  • A work of your choice

For harp

  • Two pieces of the following level of difficulty:
    • Bach/Grandjany études
    • Marcel Tournier: Feerie
    • Nina Rota: Sarabande and Toccata
    • Handel: Concerto in B-Flat Major

For flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon

  • An étude
  • A concerto movement
  • A work of your choice

For horn

  • An étude
  • A concerto movement
  • Two of the following excerpts:
    • Wagner: Short Call from Siegfried's Rheinfahrt
    • Ravel: Pavane pour une infante défunte
    • Shostakovich: Low tutti from Symphony No. 5 (1st movement)
    • Brahms: Symphony No. 3 (3rd movement)
    • Strauss: Ein Heldenleben (opening)

For trumpet, trombone, or tuba

  • An étude
  • A concerto or sonata movement
  • A work of your choice

For percussion

  • Marimba: Mallet solo (5-12 minutes)
  • Timpani: An étude of choice. The following are recommended: Elliott Carter Eight Pieces for Solo Timpani, Richard Hochrainer Etuden Für Timpani, Jacques Delecluse Vingt Etudes
  • Snare Drum: An étude of choice. The following are recommended: Cirone Portraits in Rhythm, Delecluse Douze Etudes, Smith Publications' The Noble Snare Collection
  • Something Else (optional): Send us something else that makes you a unique musician. Possibilities could include orchestra excerpts, steel drum playing, multiple percussion solo, drumset, even another instrument

For composition

  • A portfolio of scores that best represent the applicant's creative potential 
  • Recordings of the works submitted (preferably not in MIDI format)
  • A recording of the applicant playing an instrument or singing

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Live Audition Repertoire Requirements

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For piano

  • A work by J. S. Bach
  • A movement of a classical sonata
  • A movement or work from the romantic era
  • A 20th-century work
  • A work of your choice

For violin

  • Two contrasting movements from an unaccompanied Bach partita or sonata
  • A movement of a standard concerto
  • A movement of a sonata
  • A work of your choice

For viola

  • Two contrasting movements from an unaccompanied Bach suite (originally for cello) or partita or sonata (originally for violin)
  • A concerto movement or étude
  • A movement of a sonata
  • A work of your choice

For cello

  • Two contrasting movements from an unaccompanied Bach suite
  • A movement of a standard concerto
  • A movement of a sonata
  • A work of your choice

For bass

  • A movement of solo Bach (6 cello suites) of your choice
  • A solo work of your choice
  • Mozart Symphony #39, first movement, Allegro to letter C
  • Brahms Symphony #2, first movement, E to F

For harp

  • Three pieces of the following level of difficulty:
    • Bach/Grandjany études
    • Marcel Tournier: Feerie
    • Nina Rota: Sarabande and Toccata
    • Handel: Concerto in B-Flat Major

For flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon

  • An étude
  • A concerto movement
  • A 20th-century work
  • A work of your choice

For horn

  • An étude
  • A concerto movement
  • At least three of the following excerpts:
    • Wagner: Short Call from Siegfried's Rheinfahrt
    • Ravel: Pavane pour une infante défunte
    • Shostakovich: Low tutti from Symphony No. 5 (1st movement)
    • Brahms: Symphony No. 3 (3rd movement)
    • Strauss: Ein Heldenleben (opening)

For trumpet, trombone, or tuba

  • An étude
  • A concerto or sonata movement
  • A 20th-century work
  • A work of your choice

For percussion

  • Marimba:

    • Four mallet solo (5-12 minutes in length)
    • Two mallet solo (transcription of J.S. Bach or other substantial work)
    • Two mallet sight-reading may be asked at live audition

  • Timpani:

    • An étude of choice. The following are recommended: Elliott Carter Eight Pieces for Solo Timpani, Richard Hochrainer Etuden Für Timpani, Jacques Delecluse Vingt Etudes
    • Interval knowledge and basic tuning may be examined

  • Snare Drum:

    • An étude of choice. The following are recommended: Cirone Portraits in Rhythm, Delecluse Douze Etudes, Smith Publications' The Noble Snare Collection
    • Sight-reading may be asked

  • Chamber Music:

    • Candidate will be asked to sight-read an excerpt from the chamber music repertoire with members of the percussion faculty. Music and instruments will be provided

  • Something Else (optional):

    • Please feel welcome to bring in something else that makes you a unique musician. Possibilities could include orchestra excerpts, steel drum playing, multiple percussion solo, drumset, even another instrument (although time and space may play a factor in what can be accommodated). Please notify the Conservatory ahead of time in order to make any special arrangements

For composition

  • An interview will take place in lieu of a formal audition

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International Applicants

ANNOUNCEMENT!

We will be holding live auditions in China in December 2011. Please email Lily Sutton at lsutton@bard.edu to sign up for an audition!

Other information for International Students
1) Audition video
International students may apply by video recording or DVD (uploaded to SlideRoom) if travel to the United States for a live audition is not feasible. The live audition repertoire requirements should be used for the audition

2) Academic Transcript
Please send an ENGLISH TRANSLATION of your academic transcript. The academic transcript is an official document from your school that lists the courses you have taken and your grades.
Your transcript can be emailed to lsutton@bard.edu

3) Information about Scholarships
To apply for financial aid (scholarships), international students must submit 2 Financial Aid forms: International Student Financial Aid Form and Certification of Finances
Your Financial Aid application should be emailed to lsutton@bard.edu

Information about English Language proficiency:

A TOEFL score of 100 (iBT) or 250 (computer based) or equivalent evidence of English language proficiency is expected for admission.

 * In certain circumstances international students may be granted Exception Admit status for their first year at Bard, with the understanding that by the start of the second year these students will have achieved the required level of English-language proficiency. For such students, First-Year Seminar may be postponed to year two.

Even for Exception Admit students, it is required that the TOEFL test be taken in the home country and reported to Bard before arrival in the fall. 

The purpose of this is for placement purposes in the ESL course, and to provide a baseline for measuring progress throughout the first year of the student’s study of English.   As part of the application process, each student needs to provide information about the schedule for taking the TOEFL test.

In their first year Exception Admit students' full-time course load of 12 credits will typically consist of

  • Studio Instruction (4 credits)
  • Chamber Music (0 credits)
  • Orchestral Studies (0 credits)
  • English as a Second Language (8 credits)

In order to complete the double-degree program in five years, Exception Admit students will need to carry increasingly full schedules in subsequent years. For some majors, it may not be possible for Exception Admit students to graduate in five years.


Caption: Information on Auditions in Budapest

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Transfer Applicants

The Conservatory welcomes transfer applications from students currently attending other conservatories, liberal arts colleges, and universities. Transfer applicants must submit the online Conservatory application (available in September 2011), which includes a prescreening recording, in addition to the Bard College Transfer Application.

The deadline for transfer applications is November 1 for Spring admission, and March 15 for Fall admission.

More information for Transfer Students is available here.

Upon favorable review of the prescreening materials, invitations will be extended to audition at Bard College or New York City on an ad hoc basis. *Transfer applicants are also welcome to submit their materials by the January 1 deadline, and audition along with first-year applicants in early March.

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Scholarships and Financial Aid

Through the administration of its financial aid program, Bard College seeks to assist students and families whose personal resources do not allow for total payment of the costs of attending a small private college. The College is committed to helping as many qualified candidates as its funds will allow; in recent years, approximately two-thirds of all students have received financial aid.

Financial aid is awarded on the basis of need, musical ability, and academic achievement and promise. For domestic applicants, financial need is determined annually by the U.S. Department of Education, the College Scholarship Service of the College Board (CSS), and Bard College.

In order to qualify for financial assistance, students must submit the appropriate forms annually. Forms and other materials are available in the fall and early winter of each year. It is important to meet the deadlines.

The Bard Admission Committee evaluates applications without regard to financial need. International students may be eligible, based on need and merit, for Bard scholarships and loans. Awards are made without reference to ethnic or national origin, sex, age, marital status, or handicap. Types of available financial aid are summarized in the Bard College Catalogue. More detailed information can be obtained from the Office of Financial Aid website.

International Students

To be considered for financial aid at Bard College, international students and their parents are expected to complete the following forms:

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Fees and Expenses

The annual tuition and fees for the Conservatory program are the same as for the College. Note, though, that the program will usually require five years rather than four, and students may choose to enroll in summer and January intersession programs, which carry additional costs. All Conservatory applicants are automatically considered for merit-based aid, in addition to any need-based aid for which they may qualify.

Click here for complete information about Tuition, Fees, Billing, and Payment.

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Sample Documents

We created the document below as a guide to help you format your résumé before you upload it to SlideRoom to support your conservatory application. This is only a sample; the format does not need to be followed exactly. File: SampleResume_BardConservatory.pdf

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Mailing Address and Contact Information

Conservatory applicants must submit materials online using SlideRoom

High School transcripts should be mailed to this address:

Attn: Lily Sutton
The Bard College Conservatory of Music
PO Box 5000
Annandale-on-Hudson, NY 12504-5000

If you have questions, please contact Conservatory Admissions Director Lily Sutton at lsutton@bard.edu (or 845-758-7604)

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Visiting Bard College Conservatory of Music

Visiting Campus
Click here for information about visiting campus, including campus tour schedules, campus maps, and directions.

Bard Campus Tours
Prospective students should attend campus tour and information sessions offered through Bard College's Admission Office. Reservations are required. More information can be found here.

Conservatory Tours
To arrange for a tour of the Conservatory building and/or meeting, contact Conservatory Director of Admissions, Lily Sutton, at lsutton@bard.edu or (845) 758-7604. We recommend reserving your college tour first before making an appointment to visit the Conservatory. Depending on the exact timing of your visit, we are happy to arrange for you to observe rehearsals, chamber music coachings, master classes, and concerts.

Conservatory Office location
The Conservatory Office is located in the Blum Music Building, within the Avery Center for the Arts complex on 59 Blithewood Road.  (You can also find us by looking for the Edith C. Blum Institute on this campus map.)


Website: http://www.bard.edu/admission/visiting

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