Orchestral jobs and orchestral auditions for viola

If you are looking for orchestral jobs and orchestral auditions for viola, here is the place for you.

Orchestral jobs also means all type of jobs that form part of a musical institution, such as a symphony orchestra, a opera house etc. Therefore there are jobs for many types of musicians and non musicians. Orchestral auditions are for players of all instruments, then a musical institution needs singers, répétiteurs (in case you don't know, it is a pianist who helps during rehearsals with singers and dancers), more people who know music such as librarian or archivist, and all administrative people to work in the offices to organize the musical events, promote them, people who make costumes, scenes, videos, electricians, etc., from the top manager to the youngest guy just hired.

Most people don't think about this, but there is a lot of work going on behind the scenes.

Here you can find useful information (especially for viola) on where to find these orchestral jobs, which pieces to prepare for orchestral auditions, which orchestral excerpts, where to find them. This information is about professional orchestral, but it applies also to school, conservatoire and university orchestras, summer courses auditions and amateur orchestras auditions.

As a general rule, at orchestral auditions candidates will have to play a solo piece, a concerto movement, sometimes a sonata movement, some orchestral excerpts and a bit of sight reading. As already said, this is a general rule, each orchestra will choose its own programme.

This depends on how selective the orchestra wants to be: some will request more demanding solo and concerto pieces even from the tutti candidates, a sonata movement, more orchestral passages (even impossible to find or copyrighted ones!). So from the programme you can get the feeling of the type of orchestra, if you don't know it already. Finally, for principal positions they'll want you to play some orchestral solos.

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Now here you can get all of them on CD-ROM, twelve volumes, from A to Z, and you can print only the pages you need, OR you can have many volumes of printed orchestral parts and orchestral solos.

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Sheet Music Sale

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Solo pieces for viola orchestral auditions In most cases you'll be asked to play one or more contrasting movements from Bach's Suites transcribed from the cello original. In some rare cases, or for principal positions, they'll ask to play movements from Bach's violin sonatas and partitas. Other times they may want to hear Reger's Suites or a study or caprice. Here you can find some.


FREE viola parts of three suites

Cello suite n. 1 in C major BWV 1007;
two files: the viola version and the cello original Download free sheet music

Cello suite n. 2 in d minor BWV 1008;
two files: the viola version and the cello original Download free sheet music

Cello suite n. 4 in Eb major BWV 1010;
two files: the viola version and the cello original Download free sheet music

Downloadable sheet music with FREE MIDI and Mp3 files
Transcriptions for viola and other instruments

Cello suite n. 1 in C major BWV 1007; Buy Downloadable sheet music

Cello suite n. 2 in d minor BWV 1008; Buy Downloadable sheet music

Cello suite n. 3 in Eb major BWV 1009; Buy Downloadable sheet music

Cello suite n. 4 in Eb major BWV 1010; Buy Downloadable sheet music

Cello suite n. 5 in Eb major BWV 1011; Buy Downloadable sheet music

Cello suite n. 6 in Eb major BWV 1012; Buy Downloadable sheet music

If you prefer, of course there are already printed versions of cello suites. Bach Suites - Printed sheet music for viola edited by several important viola players

Sonatas and Partitas for solo viola (transcribed from violin)
Sonatas and Partitas - Printed sheet music

Max Reger

Three Suites for solo viola op.131d; Buy Downloadable sheet music + free MIDI & Mp3 files
Buy Reger Viola suites printed sheet music

Studies / Etudes /Caprices

Rudolphe Kreutzer

42 Studies for viola (transcribed from violin); a classic, very useful;
Buy sheet music + free MIDI & Mp3 files
Kreutzer 42 studies (viola) Printed sheet music

Bartolomeo Campagnoli

41 Caprices for viola; They are original for viola, a classic, very useful;
Campagnoli 41 Caprices for viola - Printed sheet music

Concertos for auditions for viola orchestral jobs

At auditions they'll ask to play a classical concerto and something romantic and more modern. In most cases the classical concerto for viola tutti (and sometimes also for principal viola) will be Stamitz concerto in D, in some cases Hoffmeister or Johann Christian Bach. Telemann is rare, although it could be suitable for some school or amateur orchestras.

Then, for principal viola positions they may also want to hear a modern concerto, either Bartok Viola concerto or Walton Viola concerto or Hindemith Schwanendreher. More and more often they've been asking for these modern concertos also for a tutti position in professional orchestras.

Generally they want to hear the first and second movement with cadenza.

Carl Stamitz

Concerto for viola and orchestra in D major, viola and piano; Download viola and piano part + free MIDI & Mp3 files
Stamitz Viola concerto - Printed sheet music, several editions also with score and orchestral parts   

Read the article on Stamitz Viola concerto

Franz Anton Hoffmeister

Concerto for Viola and orchestra in D major, viola and piano; Download viola and piano part + free MIDI & Mp3 files
Hoffmeister Viola concerto - Printed sheet music, several editions also with play along CD, score and orchestral parts

Johann Christian Bach

Concerto for Viola and orchestra in C minor, viola and piano;
Bach Viola concerto - Printed sheet music, also with play along CD, score and orchestral parts

Georg Philipp Telemann

Concerto for viola and orchestra in G major, viola and piano; Download part + free MIDI & Mp3 files
Telemann Viola concerto - Printed sheet music, several editions also with play along CD, score and orchestral parts

Read the article on Telemann Viola concerto

Bela Bartok

Concerto for viola and orchestra
Bartok Viola concerto - Printed sheet music Recently new editions have been made, but the best known version of Bartok's viola concerto is the first one, edited by Tibor Serly, with the viola part edited by William Primrose, so it's very likely they at auditions they request this one. With piano reduction and score

Read the article on Bartok Viola concerto

William Walton

Concerto for viola and orchestra
Walton Viola concerto - Printed sheet music With piano reduction and full score

Read the article on Walton Viola concerto

Paul Hindemith

"Der Schwanendreher" Concerto for viola and orchestra
"Schwanendreher" Viola concerto - Printed sheet music With piano reduction and full score

Read this page for a list of more viola concertos?

Sonatas for auditions for viola orchestral jobs

If at an auditions for orchestral jobs they want to hear a sonata movement (or more), it's very likely that it will be Brahms or Schubert, sometimes Hindemith or Britten or Enesco.

Johannes Brahms

Sonata n.1 for viola and piano op.120, in F minor; Download part + free MIDI & Mp3 files
Sonata n.2 for viola and piano op.120, in E flat major; Download part + free MIDI & Mp3 files
Brahms Viola sonatas - Printed sheet music

Franz Schubert

Sonata "Arpeggione", for viola and piano in A minor D. 821; Buy sheet music, part + free MIDI & Mp3 files
Schubert Arpeggione Viola sonata - Printed sheet music

Paul Hindemith

Sonata op. 25, n°.1, for solo viola;
Hindemith Viola sonatas - Printed sheet music

Benjamin Britten

Lachrymae for viola and piano
Lachrymae - Printed sheet music

George Enesco

Concertstück for viola and piano
Concertstück - Printed sheet music

Orchestral excerpts for viola orchestral jobs

Here the list can be very long and finding all the requested works can be quite challenging. I'd recommend you to make your own collection of orchestral passages long before you need them, to save time and be ready at the right moment. Generally, they'll be a mix with some classical works (Beethoven, Mozart), romantic (Mendelssohn, Brahms, Tchaikovsky), opera (Mozart, Rossini, Wagner), 20th century (Stravinsky, Shostakovitch, Mahler).

Again, the list and difficulty of the works can vary a lot, depending on the type of orchestra and audition. Here you can find some collections of passages. Also see the page about viola orchestral parts.

The following ones are the orchestral passages for viola most often requested at auditions:

Ensemble: Divertimento for String Orchestra, 2nd and 3rd Movement (Bartók) • Symphony No. 3, Op. 55, 3rd Movement (Beethoven) • Symphony No. 5, Op. 67, 2nd Movement (Beethoven) • Symphony No. 9, Op. 125, 2nd Movement (Beethoven) • Overture to Coriolan, Op. 62 (Beethoven) • Römischer Karneval, Op. 9 (Berlioz) • Symphonie fantastique, Op. 14, 5th movement (Berlioz) • Carmen, 1st Act Nos. 6 and 11, 4th Act No. 25 (Bizet) • Symphony No. 3, Op. 90, 1st movement (Brahms) • Symphony No. 4, Op. 98, 1st movement (Brahms) • Haydn-Variations, Op. 56a, Variations 4, 7 and 8 (Brahms) • Symphony No. 3, 3rd movement (Bruckner) • Symphony No. 4, 2ns movement (Bruckner) • La Mer, 2nd and 3rd movements (Debussy) • Philharmoisches Concerto, Variation 1 (Hindemith) • Symphony “Mathis der Mahler”, 3rd movement (Hindemith) • Hänsel and Gretel, 1st Act 3rd Scene and 3rd Act 3rd Scene (Humperdinck) • Symphony No. 1, 4th movement (Mahler) • Symphony No. 5, 3rd and 5th movements (Mahler) • Symphony No. 10, 1st movement (Mahler) • Midsummer Night's Dream, Op. 61, 1st movement (Mendelssohn) • Symphony No. 40, KV. 550, 4th movement (Mozart) • Symphony No. 41, KV 551, 4th movement (Mozart) • Overture from Marriage of Figaro (Mozart) • Overture from Magic Flute (Mozart) • Symphony Classique, Op. 25, 1st and 4th movements (Prokofiev) • Overture from Barber of Seville (Rossini) • Symphony No. 4, 4th Movement (Schubert) • Die verkaufte Braut: Overture and 6th Scene (Smetana) • Don Juan, Op. 20 (Strauss) • Till Eulenspiegelds lustige Streiche, Op. 28 (Strauss) • Symphony No. 5, Op. 64, 3rd movement (Tchaikovsky) • Symphony No. 6, Op. 74, 1st movement (Tchaikovsky) • Don Carlos, 1st Act, No. 3 (Verdi) • Ein Maskenball, Nos. 1 and 2 (Verdi) • Othello, 1st Act (Verdi) • Der fliegende Holländer, 1st procession, Nos. 2 and 6 (Wagner) • Lohengrin, 3rd Act, Introduction and 3rd Scene (Wagner) • Tannhäuser: Overture and 2nd Act, 2nd Scene (Wagner) • Overture from Euryanthe, Op. 81 (Weber) • Der Freischütz, Op. 77: Overture, 1st Act No. 2, and 3rd Act Finale (Weber) •

Free orchestral parts

Here are some orchestral parts you can download for free

Ludwig van Beethoven

Coriolan Ouverture op.62 (good viola part, for auditions, practice);
FREE viola part, zip all orchestra, zip

Symphony n.5 in C minor Op.67, second movement, the initial theme is requested often;
FREE viola part
Download all orchestra parts + free MIDI & Mp3 files

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There are many collections of viola orchestral parts on CD so you can print only the pages you need, or others already printed collections of orchestral passages.

Check this orchestral parts page for more details of a whole series of books with nearly all the most famous orchestral works required for orchestral jobs auditions, read the full list of works: all Beethoven's, Brahms', Schumann's symphonies, many of the Mozart's ones, with ouvertures, concertos; many of the 20th century works, really difficult to find in libraries and shops. They are on CD so you can print only the ones you need when you need them. Useful to have all of them at hand to practice. Also some orchestral parts for interesting solo viola works like Berlioz's Harold in Italy and Richard Strauss' Don Quixote.

Orchestral solos for principal viola auditions

Here are some of the solos that may be requested. They are from Symphonic, ballet and opera repertoire.

Giselle, 2nd Act, No. 21 (Adam) • Lulu, 2nd Act (Berg) • Coppelia, 3rd Act, No. 7 (Delibes) • Hänsel and Gretel, 2nd Act (Humperdinck) • Manon Lescaut, 3rd Act (Puccini) • Arabella, 1st Act (Strauss) • Don Quixote, Op. 35: Theme, Variations 1, 3 and 4 (Strauss) • Der Freischütz, Op. 77, 3rd Act (Weber).

Here you can find the parts for the above-mentioned orchestral viola solos

Also Prokofiev's Romeo & Juliet may be requested

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Websites for orchestral jobs

Here is a very good website with orchestral jobs: orchestral for viola and all other instruments, all other types of orchestral jobs vacancies. Also lists of orchestras, schools, competitions, musicians.

Orchestral jobs in Europe, Far east, Australasia

Orchestral jobs in USA, Canada, Latin America
...and more music is coming all the time, come and visit again for more free classical music download, more viola music.

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