Everything You Need to Know to Prepare for Your 1st Jury in Music School

I had never heard of a musical jury until I began my first semester of music school. Once I heard the term, it suddenly sounded scary and daunting. Today I’m sharing a rundown of what a jury is, and how to feel prepared for your first jury in music school!

WATCH THE VIDEO HERE

What is a jury?

At the end of each semester, you might need to perform a jury for a panel made up of your teachers. This is basically a final for your private lessons.

This is for performance majors, sometimes other performance majors, and requirements are different for every school.

Choosing music for your jury

The way music is chosen for your jury can vary. In undergrad, my teacher and I would decide together what I would prepare for that semester’s jury. Usually the two of us would decide on my repertoire for the semester, and later on, she’d let me know what movements to prepare for the jury.

At other schools, the repertoire might be determined for you based on your department or teacher.

What should I wear?

I always wore concert-level clothes, but usually not all black. Think chamber recital where your group adds in some color.

The most important thing is to look professional, and to feel good. If all black feels best to you, go for it! If wearing a color helps you feel confident, wear that color!

Do I need an accompanist?

It always depends on what you’re playing and what the specific requirements are. Some semesters, I was able to perform by myself, and others, I played with a pianist.

In my experience, it was required or at least highly recommended to perform with an accompanist.

Do I need to memorize my music?

Different schools and different teachers all have different requirements. In undergrad, I don’t think I ever had to perform a jury by memory. The only time I really had to perform by memory was for the annual concerto competition.

At the school where I got my masters degree, juries were only required to perform a recital. But for juries and recitals, solo Bach, showpieces, and concertos all had to be memorized. (So I avoided performing these kinds of pieces because I hate performing by memory) 🙂

Even at one school, jury requirements can vary from department to department and from teacher to teacher.

What is the panel listening for?

Juries aren’t competitions. It’s a time for you to share what you’re playing and how you’ve progressed since last semester. 

The morning of my jury the fall semester of my sophomore year, my teacher made a Facebook post saying how excited she was to sit through violin and viola juries all afternoon, to listen to beautiful music and see how we’ve all progressed.

Reading this simple post made me feel so much more at ease through the day, as I started to realize that the panel was not out to get me; instead, they’re measuring your progress and providing helpful feedback to grow.

Is it scary?

Juries can absolutely be scary, but your jury is likely not the biggest, most important performance of your life (even if it feels that way in the moment).

A jury is your time to show your teachers the progress you’ve made through the semester. You don’t need to (and likely won’t) put on a perfect performance. That’s okay! The panel just wants to see that you’re working and learning.

If you struggle with performance anxiety, my biggest piece of advice is to perform more, and experiment with different calming methods. Unfortunately, finding things that help with performance anxiety is a process of trial and error.

The more you perform, the better you’ll know yourself, your triggers, and what works to calm you down.

Want some more advice on how to manage performance anxiety? Check out my post with a few starting tips here!

If you’d like to see me managing my own performance anxiety, watch this vlog!

Advice from others

I asked my friends on Instagram what they wish they’d known before their first jury. Here are their responses!

“It’s about growth, not perfection! Just focus on what skills you’ve really improved.” – @violabirdie98

“Juries don’t want you to fail, they actually want you to play really nicely!” – @flautandopracticestudio

“They want to see you succeed!” – @strings.of.steel

“A jury is just an opportunity to show what you have learned! (Progress not perfection)” – @theliteraryviolist

“It’s just an opportunity for you to share what you’ve worked on that semester.” – @nanetteplaysviola

“RELAX! Everyone wants you to play well, and juries are usually very low stress (at least to the judges!)” – @xharry777

See? All of those musicians agree that juries are not the biggest performances of your life, and are not the end-all, be-all. You’re going to be okay!

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I hope this post and video were able to help you feel more prepared and less stressed about your first jury! Going through anything new is difficult, especially when you know you’ll be judged. It’s okay, you’ll get through it!

Please let me know if you have any more questions about juries. I’m happy to make a part 2!