Vocal Division Policies

Dr. Virginia Lile Boaz, Coordinator

Studio Classes
All non-elective applied lesson students in the vocal division will attend the studio class offered by their instructor. Studio classes meet once per week at various times, according to each instructor's schedule and preference. Please check your syllabus for your meeting time and place. Each student will present formal and informal performances as assigned by the instructor. At least two formal performances will be presented, recorded and added to the student's electronic portfolio.

Students enrolled in elective applied lessons will participate in studio classes only as assigned by the instructor.

Juries
A jury examination is a brief performance venue in which a student performs before a panel of music faculty. Each student taking non-elective applied lessons is required to perform a jury at the end of each semester of applied study. Students performing recitals before mid-term may not be required to perform a jury at the discretion of the instructor. Students performing recitals after midterm are not required to perform a jury. Elective students are also expected to perform a jury, but exceptions to this policy may be made at the discretion of the instructor. For these students, an instructor may choose to utilize a different evaluation procedure in lieu of a jury.

Jury panels consist of a minimum of three faculty members. The student's instructor must be present for the jury, but may count as one of the three evaluators. The semester grade, or course grade, will be assigned by the student's instructor. The jury grade will count a minimum of twenty percent of the student's final grade.

Students will provide repertoire sheets that provide a comprehensive list of the repertoire studied that semester. The jury panel will select at random the literature to be performed. Repertoire sheets must be computer-generated from the online template.

Performance Major Audition
An audition for admission to the Vocal Performance Major on the BM Degree is required of all interested students and is administered no earlier than at the completion of the second semester of study. Students wishing to pursue the Vocal Performance Major are required to dicuss audition plans with both their advisor and private instructor at the beginning of the semester in which the audition is to take place at the latest. To complete the audition, the student must perform a jury examination as described above. However, the jury will be extended to provide additional time for the panel to be more exhaustive in their requests for repertoire and take time to dialogue with the student about his or her performance goals, practice habits, career goals, and other pertinent topics. The jury will be approximately 20 minutes in length. The student will provide a comprehensive jury repertoire sheet which indicates all literature studied at the college level at ETBU and any other institutions as well, plus a regular semester jury form.

The majority of the jury panel will determine if the student passes or fails this audition, but these results will in no way affect the jury grade.

The jury will reach one of the following conclusions at the end of each Performance Major Audition:
Pass: The student is allowed to declare a Vocal Performance Major.
Fail: The student is not allowed to declare a vocal performance major. The panel will address specific reasons for this decision and will advise the student to seek another music major on the Bachelor of Music or Bachelor of Arts degree. Students are allowed to re-audition at the end of any subsequent semester.

Accompanists
Each student enrolled in non-elective voice applied lessons will be assigned an accompanist by their private lesson instructor, based on literature demands. Generally, the accompanist is expected to attend half of the private lesson and meet with the student the same amount of time outside of the lesson each week. In addition, the accompanist will play for studio classes, GSR performances, and one jury each semester. Some repertoire demands more time in the lesson without the need of an accompanist. Each private instructor should monitor the activities of the student and accompanist to ensure a fair arrangement which allows for the successful completion of all assigned works. The accompanist is paid for these services by the University with fees assessed the voice or instrumental student at the time of registration. The voice or instrumental student is expected to pay the accompanist directly for any additional work desired. Accompanist changes after the first week of classes are strongly discouraged and require the Dean's approval. Accompanists must be secured by the end of the first week of school, and each applied lesson teacher is responsible for reporting the accompanist assignments to the Fine Arts Office by that time. However, both the students and accompanists are encouraged to confirm that the Music Office has the correct assignment recorded. Students and accompanists should report any problems to the applied instructor who is responsible for either resolving the matter or reporting it to the Dean.

Change of Instructor
Music majors with a concentration in Voice have the right to request a change of applied music teacher; however, no changes will be considered until one semester has been completed with the initial teacher. No changes will be made during a given semester. All changes will begin at the beginning of a new semester. The procedure outlined below must be followed exactly. A student is not to contact a proposed new teacher unless asked to do so by the Vocal Coordinator.
1. The student must meet with the Vocal Coordinator to discuss the issue. If the Vocal Coordinator is their instructor, they will meet with the Dean.
2. If reasons for the change are validated, the Dean and the Vocal Coordinator will approve or disapprove continuing the process, and, if in agreement, will determine availability of the requested teacher or suggest an alternate.
3. If the process continues, the Vocal Coordinator and the student will discuss the reasons for the change with the current teacher and request a release.
4. If the release is granted, the Vocal Coordinator will request acceptance of the student by the proposed new teacher.
5. If permission is not granted in 3. or 4., the student may appeal to the Dean who may hold additional consultations before making the final decision.

Repertoire Requirements
Each instructor is responsible for meeting current NASM guidelines for vocal instruction. Please refer to your individual instructor's syllabus for repertoire guidelines.

Secondary Performance Area
Music majors with a concentration in piano may choose voice as their secondary performance area. This requires three credit hours of secondary applied study to be taken in one hour increments over three semesters. Students may meet this requirement through either Class Voice or private instruction. Students are required to begin their applied secondary study at the beginning of their music study as instructed by their faculty advisors.