Bachelor's, Master's, or Diploma in Strings [Cello, Double Bass, Viola, Violin, Classical Guitar] (BM, MM or Diploma)

Admission Info

Location: Chicago
Start Term: Fall, Spring

Music Conservatory auditions will be held live on-campus, and we will also host live-virtual audition options remotely. All undergraduate applicants are strongly encouraged to submit their Audition Preview, which is not a pre-screen, through GetAcceptd.

Learn more about the application process and audition requirements for CCPA.

String Audition Requirements

For violin, viola, cello, and double bass, all repertoire composed unaccompanied must be played by memory. A score may be used for etudes or orchestral excerpts. It is strongly suggested that any repertoire composed with an accompaniment be performed with a piano accompaniment, but it is not required. The CCPA will not provide an accompanist, but applicants may bring their own if they wish.

Violin

• Undergraduate (BM): One etude or caprice; one movement of a Bach Partita or Sonata for solo violin; a fast movement of a concerto.
• Graduate (MM): A caprice or short virtuoso piece; two movements of a Bach Partita or Sonata for solo violin; a fast movement of a concerto.
• Performance Diploma: A Paganini caprice; a Bach fuga or chaconne; a complete concerto with cadenza from one of the following: Bartok (#2), Berg, Brahms, Dvorak, Mendelssohn, Prokofiev (#1 or 2), Shostakovich (#1), Sibelius or Tchaikovsky.
• All Orchestral Studies Applicants: 6 Excerpts from the orchestral repertoire; An etude or virtuosic work; one movement from a Bach Partita or Sonata for solo violin; the first movement of a relevant violin concerto with cadenza or other relevant piece for solo violin and orchestra (such as Vaughan-Williams’s The Lark Ascending, Bruch’s Scottish Fantasy and so on).

Viola

• Undergraduate (BM): An etude; one movement of an unaccompanied Bach piece; a fast movement of a concerto.
• Graduate (MM): A fast movement of any major 20th-century viola concerto; two contrasting movements of an unaccompanied Bach piece; one other piece of the candidate’s choice.
• Performance Diploma: Three major works including a complete sonata or concerto.  If any composition is composed with accompaniment, the audition must be played with piano accompaniment.  At least two stylistic periods must be represented.
• All Orchestral Studies Applicants: 6 Excerpts from the orchestral repertoire; An etude or virtuosic work; one movement of an unaccompanied Bach piece; the first movement of a relevant viola concerto with cadenza or other relevant piece for solo viola and orchestra (such as Hindemith’s Der Schwanendreher, Berlioz’s Harold en Italie, and so on).

Cello

• Undergraduate (BM) / Graduate (MM): Two contrasting movements of the same Bach Suite; a Popper Etude; the fast movement of a concerto such as the Dvorak, Lalo, Prokofiev Sinfonia Concertante (or work of similar difficulty).
• Performance Diploma: Three major works including a complete sonata or concerto. If any composition is composed with accompaniment, the audition must be played with piano accompaniment. At least two stylistic periods must be represented.
• All Orchestral Studies Applicants: 6 Excerpts from the orchestral repertoire; a Popper Etude or other virtuosic work; two contrasting movements of an unaccompanied Bach suite; the first movement of a relevant cello concerto with cadenza or other relevant piece for solo cello and orchestra (such as Tchaikovsky’s Rococo Variations, Bruch’s Kol Nidrei and so on).

Double Bass

• Undergraduate (BM) and Graduate (MM): Two solo pieces of contrasting style, preferably including a movement of unaccompanied Bach and a fast movement from a concerto or a work of similar difficulty. Two standard excerpts representing two different composers selected from the following list: Mozart: Symphony No. 35, movement 1 or 4; Mozart: Symphony No. 40, movement 1 or 4; Beethoven: Symphony No. 5, movement 3; Beethoven: Symphony No. 9, movement 4; Brahms: Symphony No. 1, movement 1 or 4; Brahms: Symphony No. 2, movement 1 or 4; Strauss: Don Juan; Strauss: Ein Heldenleben. 
• Performance Diploma: Three majors works with piano accompaniment, including a complete sonata or concerto. At least two stylistic periods must be represented.
• All Orchestral Studies Applicants: First movement of a standard bass concerto, one movement from a Bach Cello Suite and one standard orchestral excerpt from each of the following composers:
  • Beethoven: Symphony 3, 5, 7, or 9
  • Mozart: Symphony 35, 39, or 40; or any opera
  • Richard Strauss: Any tone poem or opera

Sample Strings Courses

• String Performance Class
• String Chamber Music
• Symphony Orchestra
• Degree Recital

View in-depth degree requirements in our course catalog:

• Strings BM
• Classical Guitar BM
• Strings MM
• Orchestral Studies MM
• Classical Guitar MM
• Strings Graduate Performance Diploma
• Classical Guitar Performance Diploma

Career Opportunities

CCPA prepares students for multi-faceted careers as musicians.  Our outstanding performance pedagogy paired with classes in entrepreneurial activities and in music history and literature helps students become informed performers and pedagogues.  String Performance majors graduate with the skills necessary to succeed as Orchestral Musicians, Pit Orchestra Musicians, soloists, recording artists, teachers, and more.