Wind Ensemble Assessments 26-27 Concert Season
Jennifer Olis
Good Evening,
I hope you are all having a great July so far!
Below you will find all the details regarding the Wind Ensemble assessments for ourĀ upcoming 2026-2027 concert season. We are so excited for the year ahead, and I truly hope many of you will consider submitting a recording!
A quick note on this year's process:Ā To ensure that everyone in our community has a completely fair and equal opportunity, we are asking all interested musiciansāboth new and returningāto submit an assessment.
While these initial assessments are kept blind to maintain absolute fairness, please rest assured that the dedication, experience, and history of our returning members from last season are highly valued and will absolutely be taken into consideration as we finalize our roster.
If you have any questions at all about the process, please feel free to reach out to me atĀ assoc...@columbuspridebands.org.
šµ Assessment Music
Instructions and music can be found in the attached document, and excerpts are also linked directly here.
A few notes about recording your assessment:
Create 3 separate recordings:
1. Scale(s)
2. Excerpt 1
3. Excerpt 2
No talking ā Please do not identify yourself during your recording. See the Blind assessments section for more details on why.
Recording equipment ā No special recording equipment is needed for this process. The majority of you have cell phones, and recordings via those devices should be plenty sufficient for this purpose.Ā Common options without requiring you to download an app or additional software are:
IOS: Voice Memos app
Android: Voice Recorder/Sound Recorder app
Either: Record a video with camera facing stand or covered so you are not visible
š„ Assessment submission
Submit your recordings via theĀ Wind Ensemble Assessment form on or before Tuesday, August 11. A couple of notes:
No Changes After Submission ā In order to support evaluating recordings on a rolling basis, you will not be able to directly edit your submission once you have sent it. If you need to make a change, please reach out to assoc...@columbuspridebands.org and we will update your information for you.
File Names ā No particular file names are required. The form will make it clear which file is for which part of the assessment and any personally-identifying part of a file name will be changed prior to it being sent to an assessor.
Section Leader Interest ā The form will collect your interest in serving as a Section Leader for the Wind Ensemble. If you are selected as a Section Leader, please note that there will be a meeting on Tuesday, September 8.
Feedback Interest ā The form will collect your interest in being sent your assessment feedback if you are not offered a position in the Wind Ensemble. This will be sent directly to you at the email address collected with your submission.
š¤ Blind Assessments
In pursuit of fairness and equal opportunity, all assessment submissions will be fully anonymized before being brought into the evaluation process. Those anonymous submissions will be evaluated by individuals with no direct ties to the band, and their feedback will be used by Jenn to determine who will be offered a position in the Wind Ensemble.
šŖ Single Ensemble Placement
For each season, band members will be able to be part of either the Wind Ensemble or the Concert Band, but not both. Based only on ensemble instrumentation need and capacity, a few members may be invited to participate in both, but this will be the exception and by invitation only.Ā
Additionally, those who submit assessments will be asked to agree to the following statement: āI acknowledge that by submitting this assessment, I am agreeing that if offered this position, I am committed to practicing, attending rehearsals, and performing with the Wind Ensembleā. Essentially, we are asking individuals to make their own ensemble preference decisions before the assessment process, not after.
We know this may impact decisions for some of you about whether to submit an assessment for the Wind Ensemble. If you have any concerns or questions, please donāt hesitate to reach out.
šŗ Ensemble Placement Communication
The roster for each ensemble will be communicated to the whole band via email on or before August 25th. Once communicated, we will continue to track those placements via spreadsheet to account for any last minute changes that occur.
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