I was just wondering- does anyone here have the skinny on, or can at least shed a little more light on this?
It’s the (in)famous contrabassoon audition that was circulating some years back. It’s an orchestral audition with all the standard fare. Mozart concerto, Also Sprach Zarathustra, Beethoven 9, Sorcerer’s Apprentice, Petrouchka. It was sad and hilarious. When you know what is expected, it’s just a gutbuster, this. All the ppp entrances where delicacy and control are tested have the finesse of an overclocked chainsaw. The second try at Also Sprach has me laughing out loud just remembering that attack.
I happened to come across it again today, and I’m still wondering- was the applicant just pulling the board’s leg and doing this on a lark? If the alternative is true, and he thought he had a chance with that playing, well….that’s incredibly sad.
This fills me with mirth and a terrible conscience at once. Although I have to say- if it shows itself to be just a joke on the part of the applicant, it would be substantially less funny. It’s very possible we will never know…
-BB