College Symphony Orchestra Audition

What are they hoping to hear? Basic facility including the ability to shift beyond third position. Decent intonation. The ability to play straight through something without breaking down. Your tone, your control over dynamics, and your vibrato.

The first movement of the Bruch will be easily adequate to this task, having contrasting material built into it, and if you play it well, the person doing your audition will not need to listen past the middle of the second page (where the bariolage section ends). I personally think this choice would be better than your solo Bach, but your description of this college and its orchestra suggests to me that the barrier to admission will be quite low, and just about anything will be okay.

I once auditioned for our college orchestra (I'm a professor, but the previous conductor allowed "townies" to audition), and I prepared the Beethoven Romance in F Major. The conductor listened to about one page of it and asked me a few questions about my orchestral experience before inviting me aboard. As it turned out he needed violists that year so I switch-hit. My daughter auditioned successfully on violin with Vivaldi (first movement of Summer, which is not anywhere near as hard as Bruch).

I'm a "townie," and I've recently been accepted into our local college orchestra without any audition. Considering how COVID has impacted orchestras, I have a hunch that they're in full need of participants. (Especially violinists.) I also had an option of playing in another college, community orchestra 25 miles from my home. Ditto: no audition required. So, it surprises me a little that their auditioning guidelines are so pressing.

Previous to COVID, both orchestras required an audition, or at least a video. Perhaps the fact that I asked to play in the 2nd violin section has some bearing on an audition requirement. (My primary interest is in the camaraderie and sense of community that goes along with playing in an orchestra.) I had also provided an explanation of my history, and the fact that I had been taking lessons over the past year to prepare.

If you're concerned about whether a piece you've selected is sufficient to the task, consider having a brief, prior conversation with the person with whom you will be auditioning. It never hurts to double-check.

40 concerts a year is INSANE. There are roughly 25 school weeks in a university academic year (not counting summer and other breaks). That means that there are roughly two concerts a week. If they are on the same time and day every week, that's at least something you can plan for. But if they move around they'll be a huge headache. If they're runouts rather than being on campus, that's a major timesink, also. And then I assume they meet at least once a week for rehearsal.

I'd skip the college orchestra if I were you, and join a community orchestra instead, where there's normally once-a-week rehearsals and perhaps three to five concerts a year, usually on weekends.

I would also guess that it's 40 rehearsals a year, not 40 concerts.

If the orchestra plays selections musicals or movie scores, it might be helpful prepare something in that genre, perhaps a selection from the Sound of Music or a movie theme.

An audition for a college orchestra should test for both skills.

I don't recall that my college orchestra even auditioned us. Like the OP's it also was a small liberal arts college with science and engineering departments. I think they took care of it through application information, interviews and a <10% acceptance rate, thus assuring a well- balanced symphony orchestra out of a student body of about 1,000 - but that was 70 years ago. We were a pretty good orchestra. I played with them for 16 years, quitting (for various reasons) 12 years ago.

I joined the community-college orchestra here in Marin when I moved here 27 years ago at age 60. The orchestra's violin coach auditioned all incoming violinists and violists with a 3-octave A major scale, some piece and a bit of sight reading. This was done following the applicants' sitting their first rehearsal and had three possible outcomes:
1. 1st violin
2. 2nd violin
3. viola
4. rejection

That violin coach had been principal 2nd violin with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra (SFSO) for 20 years and was founding and emeritus concertmaster of the (regional) Marin Symphony. In the college orchestra he played toward the back of the 2nd violin section (and an occasional performance solo with the orchestra). There was also an retired-SFSO cellist who served as cello coach.

Sorry for the delayed response. I will try to address some of the concerns below.

Our LASC requires an audition because everyone in the orchestra receives some form of scholarship, whether or not they are a music major. I do not think there is currently anyone in the orchestra who is not receiving any scholarship nor if it is actually possible to do a "no scholarship = no audition" form of entry. I also did not submit any arts-related supplementary materials during my application (the portfolio I submitted was my research works) that is why I am doing a separate audition.

Based on the previous academic calendars, there are a maximum of 40 concerts a year. The majority of these concerts, however, are not played by the whole orchestra (e.g. college and community operas). For the concerts where the whole orchestra (or almost the whole orchestra) is present, these are generally special events like college-wide ones, including cultural events (wherein there are no classes), Yuletide season, Holy Week, and other notable holidays and community events. During events like the Yuletide season, the orchestra plays for different communities around us, usually two different communities each day for 4 or 5 days (counted as one concert each so 2 • 4 = 8). The program is the same each time during those days. The same same-program-each-time is observed for some of the college-wide cultural events (usually twice a day for 2 to 3 days) to cater all the students, parents, guests, locals, and the general public who want to visit.

I also do not think it is possible for the orchestra to actually play 40 different programs each academic year since the policy is no non-academic activities during departmental exams, including exit exams and other "big deal" exams. An orchestral member is also only required to join 4 concerts per academic year (unless they are counting their participation in the orchestra as course credit, then they are required to play in more concerts). One can participate in more concerts if they want. I apologize for the confusion due to lack of provided information.