I'm thinking about taking the bass clarinet audition with the Detroit Symphony but am frustrated that the prelims and semis are held in early June (3rd-6th), but the finals won't take place until sometime in the fall. From the standpoint of people who have significant travel costs and/or have to take off time from work, this seems a bit harder than most auditions. Aside from the committee’s scheduling problems, why might the orchestra want the finals to be at such a later date?

Is it possible that the finals include playing with the orchestra? This would be the only reasonable explaination as to why they are several months in the future.

It could also be that they want somebody particular - such as the music director - to be in the finals, it could be that some interesting people have announced they can't be there for the main dates, and have individual appointments.

(In some cases it could even be postponed to eliminate a certain person's vote if that person is out of the system by then...)

I have experienced this, but then the travel costs for the final round were paid by the orchestra. I think that's fair when you have to travel twice.

Eurobassoon is correct - DSO only has a music advisor, not music director right now (Peter Oundjian), and he isn't on the premises all the time, so they have the finals often several weeks after the earlier rounds to work within his schedule. I believe that they do also pay the travel expenses for the trip back for the finals, but I could be wrong about that.

This type of planning has happened in the past. Hold the prelims & semis when the committee can and the finals when the Music Director is there. I am not sure of the situation in Detroit (embarrassed to say since I'm from there), but even if the have a music director designate or something like that, until they find one it could be that he will be a part of the decision. I am pretty sure that Bernard Haitink in Chicago will be acting like a music director when it comes to hiring until they have a MD.

As for your concern about $$$ - when an orchestra holds finals at a later date - THEY pay the expenses to get the finalists there and the hotel costs. So get practicing and good luck. I know some of the people in the orchestra and they are not just good musicians but good people too

GOOD LUCK!