Audition Process
Mezumenet auditions are a 2-step process: preliminary auditions and callbacks. There are two days of preliminary auditions toward the beginning of each semester. These auditions are open to anyone who would like to give Mez membership a shot. Callbacks are held one to two days after the second day of preliminary auditions. Callbacks are by invitation only.
STEP 1: THE PRELIMINARY AUDITION
We will begin with a few group warm-ups to help you relax and get your voice in top shape for your audition! Then everyone auditioning will go out into the hall, and we will call in each person one at a time. When you come in, we will have you do 3 things:
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SCALES: We will ask you to sing simple scales, similar to what we show you in our group warm up, so that we can determine your vocal range.
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PITCH-MATCHING: We will ask you to sing some notes played on a piano, to see how well you match pitch.
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SOLO SONG: You should prepare a verse and a chorus of a song that you think shows off your voice. We may ask you to sing parts of your solo again at a different key (starting higher or lower than you chose to start with).
Then your audition is done (you can breathe) and we will use the contact information you provided us on a “quick facts” sheet to let you know whether or not you made it to callbacks!
STEP 2: CALLBACKS
Mezumenet callbacks are very similar to our preliminary auditions. When you receive your invitation to callbacks, you will receive a short excerpt from one of our songs, which you should prepare to sing at your callback. On the day of the callback, we will again begin with group warm-ups, but instead of sending everyone into the hall, we will break up into voice parts and a current Mez member will work with you on the song you learned at home. You may also be taught a second excerpt from a different song at the callback.
Don’t worry! We will sing both of these songs together as a group as many times as necessary for everyone to feel comfortable on their parts.
At this point, we will again send everyone out into the hallway and call in each person one at a time.
When you come in, we will have you do the following:
-
SCALES: We will ask you to sing simple scales, similar to what we show you in our group warm up, so that we can once again determine your vocal range.
-
PITCH-MATCHING: We will ask you to sing back some notes played on a piano, to see how well you match pitch. They will typically be more difficult at callbacks than auditions.
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SOLO SONG: We will ask you to sing a different prepared verse and chorus of a song that you think shows off your voice. This new song should be qualitatively different from the one you sang at your preliminary audition (i.e., if you sand a fast pop song at your preliminary audition, try a ballad at your callback).
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MEZ SONG: We will have you sing the harmony you prepared at home with one Mez member from each other part. A Mez member who knows the harmony you learned will stand with you to help you get back on track if you need it, so let yourself relax and just sing! We are looking to see how quickly and accurately you learn a harmony, how well you can hold your harmony when singing with the group, and how well you can blend with the group.
Members of the group may ask you some questions about yourself. Don’t get nervous; these questions are just to help us get to know you! This will also be your opportunity to ask us any questions that you may have.
GENERAL ADVICE
Remember to relax and have fun. Mezumenet loves to laugh! That’s why we write parodies and have silly fun on stage. Throughout the audition process, we are looking for people who will enjoy being in Mez as much as we do, and we want to see that you can feel comfortable being silly and fun (but still professional) with us!
Most importantly, remember to be yourself! We want to get to know you!
Good luck!!!