*Please note that this page is for semesterly ensemble auditions. If you are looking for School of Music admission auditions, please visit this webpage.*

Jazz Audition Information
Trombone player performing with jazz ensemble
Ensemble Audition Information

Fall 2025 Jazz Band/Ensemble auditions will be held in person on Tuesday, August 19, 10:00am-6:00pm in Music Building Room B12 (basement floor, practice room hallway).

Audition Sign-up via the JMU Jury System:

  • User accounts are created automatically by clicking the Login link in the main menu and logging in through the JMU portal and Duo two-factor authentication system. 
  • Enter your JMU creditentials. 
  • Once logged in, proceed to the Booking Tab.
  • Follow the listed instructions to reserve an audition time.
  • If you need to change your audition time, please follow the instructions accordingly. You will receive a cancellation code when you register, just in case.

Audition Procedures:

  1. Do not register for either ensemble until rosters have been determined and posted.
  2. You may audition on more than one instrument (or instrument and voice) if you wish. Sign up for one slot for each audition (can be back-to-back or not, whichever you prefer).
  3. Download the appropriate audition excerpt linked below (hard copies will also be available at the audition) and be sure to read below to see if your instrument has any special instructions.
  4. Auditions will also include optional improvisation on a blues (a concert Bb or F backing track will be provided), including optional scat singing for vocalists.
  5. WRITTEN AUDITION EXCERPT, Instrumentalists: Little Willie Leaps
    • Use the original Charlie Parker/Miles Davis recording for stylistic guidance (a few embellishments on this recording vary slightly from the audition excerpts). The recording at this link includes a false start, but the full head can be heard beginning at 0:46: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q02HyN-wfeg&list=RDq02HyN-wfeg&start_radio=1
    • You can perform the excerpt at a slower tempo than the recording if you wish (stylistic accuracy is more important than a fast tempo).
    • Download and prepare the appropriate excerpt:
      • Flutists: prepare the piano/guitar excerpt and play the treble clef melody as written (or 8va if you prefer)
      • Bb instruments (tenor sax, clarinet, and trumpet)
      • Eb instruments (alto sax, bari sax)
      • Tenor trombone/double bass (bass: play the written melody, then walk on the chord changes)
      • Bass trombone/tuba
      • Piano/Guitar (this excerpt is in Bb; the reference recording is in F)
        • Piano: play the head in octaves as written, then comp (letter D to H) as you would for a soloist in a big band
        • Guitar: play the head from the treble clef staff (not in octaves), then comp (letter D to H) as for a soloist in a big band
      • Drumset/vibes
        • You do not need to audition on both drumset and vibes unless you wish to play both in a big band
        • Drumset:
          • using brushes or sticks, play time, incorporating appropriate hits from the melody into your time keeping. Do not play the literal melodic figures (ie: play as if you are reading from a combo lead sheet).
          • In addition to the written excerpt, you will be asked to demonstrate medium swing, uptempo swing, jazz waltz, samba, bossa nova, and Afro-Cuban styles, including trading 4's in each. 
          • When registering online for your audition time, choose the "Drummer - 12 minute slot" option.
        • Vibes: play the written melody (treble clef)
  6. WRITTEN AUDITION EXCERPT, Vocalists: Like Someone in Love

Click here to view this information in PDF format.

Fall 2025 Jazz Audition Excerpts:

Jazz Chamber Ensemble (Combo) Audition Information

JMU Jazz Chamber Ensemble (Combo) Auditions for Fall 2025 will take place in person Thursday, August 21, 7:00-8:00pm in Music Building Room 108. 

Audition piece: Summertime (key of concert D minor)

  • All students interested in playing in a fall semester combo must audition (in person)
  • Bass and guitar amps will be provided (bring a cable); a vocal amp and mic will be provided
  • Combos perform at Clementine (downtown Harrisonburg) Thursday nights between 7:00-9:00pm. You must be available, in general, at this time (occasional conflicts with performances by other JMU ensembles are okay). If you have an ongoing Thursday evening schedule conflict, you cannot participate in combos.
  • Do not register for the class (MUAP 355) until combo rosters have been posted. Everyone placed in a combo must be registered. Contact Prof. Dotas (chuckdotas@mac.com) with questions.

Audition Registration:

Audition Process:

  • Sign up for the audition prior to the 7:00pm start (you will need to enter your class schedule information on the google registration form).
  • Have your instrument assembled and ready to play by 7:00pm.
    • Guitar/bass amps provided; bring your own cable.
    • Drumset provided (bring sticks; use the cymbals already set up).
    • Vocal amp and mic provided (bring your own mic if you prefer).
  • Students will be called up from the audience in random small groups (complete combos). The group will play the head for, and improvise/comp on, Summertime (key of concert D minor) by George Gershwin. There are many recordings easily accessible on YouTube; auditionees should learn the head and chord progression. No sheet music/phones will be allowed for the audition.
  • Link to Summertime backing track: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/wh2652vqe85y1afgjpb1a/Summertime.mp3?rlkey=mf1xdng5zy2qnawjy3im16j8i&st=mzb475y9&dl=0
  • Leadsheet linked above.
  • If the audition ensemble includes a vocalist, that person will sing the lyrics the first time through the tune; all instrumentalists will play the head together the second time through (vocalists will scat sing the melody along with the horn). Each student will perform two choruses of improvisation (drummers: two choruses of trading 4's with the horns).
  • JMU Jazz Faculty will assign students to combos; results will be communicated via email by Monday, August 25. At that time, students who have auditioned into a combo should register for the class (MUAP 355: register for your faculty coach's section #).

Click here to view this information in PDF format.

Fall 2025 Jazz Ensembles Information

Jazz Chamber Ensemble (MUAP 355): Membership is open to all JMU students by audition. Ensembles are student-run with weekly faculty coaching. Repertoire includes all styles of small-group jazz with an emphasis on creative improvisation. Performances are held at various local establishments.

Meeting Times:

TBD upon combo placement and availability

Jazz Combo Fall Performance Dates:

Thursdays, 7pm @ Clementine Cafe

Jazz Band (MUAP 348): The JMU Jazz Band, founded in 1979, is a select group of approximately 20 students per semester. Membership, determined by audition at the beginning of each semester, is open to all JMU students and typically includes students from majors across campus. Students study repertoire that includes all major styles of big band jazz, as well as student arrangements and compositions. The ensemble has performed with a variety of well-known jazz artists. Recent guests include NEA Jazz Master Sheila Jordan, Joe Sullivan, Mike Titlebaum, Jim White, and Steve Wilson.

Meeting Times:

Tu/Th - 3:55-5:10pm

Forbes 1115

Jazz Band Fall Concert Dates*:

  • October 6, 7:30pm; Forbes Concert Hall
  • December 2, 7:30pm; Forbes Concert Hall

*please review your syllabus for dress rehearsal dates for these concerts.

Jazz Ensemble (MUAP 347): Membership is open to all JMU students by audition. The James Madison University Jazz Ensemble was founded in 1971 and is the premier jazz group in the School of Music at James Madison University. The ensemble has performed at the Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage in Washington, DC, the Montreux International Jazz and Blues Festival, the North Sea Jazz Festival, and the Virginia Music Educator's Association annual convention. The JMU Jazz Ensemble has been featured with the United States Navy Commodores Jazz Ensemble, the United States Air Force Airmen of Note Jazz Ensemble, and at the East Coast Jazz Festival in Rockville, Maryland.

The ensemble has performed with many well-known jazz artists, including Dick Oatts, John Clayton, Greg Gisbert, Nate Smith, Shelia Jordan, Mike Holober, Joseph Eckert, Clay Jenkins, John D’Earth, Chris Merz, Mike Titlebaum, and Jim White.

Meeting Times: 

Monday - 5:20-6:10pm, Music Building 108

Tuesday/Thursday - 3:55-5:10pm, Music Building 108

Jazz Ensemble Fall Concert Dates*:

  • October 6, 7:30pm; Forbes Concert Hall
  • December 2, 7:30pm; Forbes Concert Hall

*please review your syllabus for dress rehearsal dates for these concerts.

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