Summer Saxophone Institute

• Costs
  • Residential Camp: $1,200
  • Commuter Camp: $800
• Capacity: 20 (5 soprano sax, 5 alto sax, 5 tenor sax, 5 bari sax)
• Ages: Rising ninth graders – graduating high school seniors

• 8:45 am Breakfast & Commuter Arrival
• 10 am “Essentials Workshop”
• 11:20 am Saxophone Quartet Rehearsals
  • Each student will be placed in a chamber group and be coached one of our world-class faculty members
• 12:30 pm Lunch
• 1:30 pm Electives
  • Conducting 101: Bringing Sound to Life through Movement
  • Introduction to Arranging for Your Instrument
  • Recording Basics for Musicians
• 2:30 pm Large Saxophone Ensemble Rehearsal
• 4 pm Special Topic Masterclass & Recitals
• 5 pm Dinner & Commuter Departure
• 7 pm Evening Social Activity

Each student will be able to choose an elective class that interests them!

• Conducting 101: Bringing Sound to Life Through Movement with Dr. Eric Laprade
  • Learn the essentials of conducting and how movement shapes musical expression. In this class, you’ll explore beat patterns, cues, and expressive gestures while developing the skills needed to lead an ensemble with clarity, confidence, and musical intent.
• Introduction to Arranging for Your Instrument with Dr. José Beviá
  • Learn the basics of arranging music with a focus on your own instrument. In this class, you’ll explore melody, harmony, and texture while creating your own arrangements in a fun, supportive environment—no composing experience required!
• Recording Basics for Musicians with Dr. Paul Schuette
  • Learn the fundamentals of recording in a hands-on, interactive setting. In this class, you’ll explore basic recording techniques, microphones, and simple audio software while gaining hands-on experience capturing great sound—skills you can use for practice, performance, and creative projects.

TCNJ Summer Saxophone and Brass Institutes have musical offerings for rising 9th graders through graduating seniors. The purpose of the placement audition is to ensure students are placed in ensembles that will challenge and support them, while maximizing their individual development. Please note that all students are eligible to participate in the institutes; there is no audition to be ‘accepted’ to the program. Rather, the audition helps to make certain that each student has the best possible experience at TCNJ Summer Saxophone and Brass Institutes.

Many factors are considered when determining a student’s placements. The most important factor is the individual student and ensuring they have a positive experience. Other factors include the needs of the student, their technical ability, musical and social maturity, the needs of the repertoire, and the needs of the ensembles.

All audition videos must be submitted via the form below by June 15, 2026.

The information below should serve as a guideline, not a requirement. Students should always consult their music teacher and/or private lesson teacher for ability- and age-appropriate repertoire.

• Two major scales (two octaves preferred), ascending and descending, that demonstrate range, tone, and technique.
• A two-octave chromatic scale through the range of the instrument, ascending and descending.
• A solo comparable in difficulty to region-band or all-state audition repertoire or two contrasting etudes (one fast/technical and one slow/lyrical).

Note: For any questions about Saxophone Institute audition repertoire, please contact  Professor Kathy Mitchell at mitchell@tcnj.edu. For questions about Brass Institute  audition repertoire, please contact Professor Alex Bender at bendera@tcnj.edu. 

• Equipment: phones today generally have great video and audio recording capabilities
• Location: find a quiet place to record, where you won’t be interrupted
• Lighting: be certain there is plenty of light in the room so that we can see you
• Camera Frame: the camera should face you so that we can see you playing your instrument. Be certain that you are centered in the frame of the camera and that your entire body and instrument are in the frame.

1. State your name, grade, and school that you currently attend
2. Tell us a little bit about yourself! What musical groups are you involved in at school? Outside of school? What do you like to do besides music? What are you most excited about for TCNJ Summer Saxophone or Brass Institute? We want to get to know you!
3. Tell us what you’re going to play before you play it (“I’m now going to play my E-flat major scale”)
4. Once you finish recording, watch/review the video before submitting!

1. Upload your video to a hosting site of your choice, such as YouTube, Dropbox or Google Drive. Your videos should not be password-protected.
   • In Google, set it to ‘anyone with the link can view.’
   • In YouTube, set the video to ‘Unlisted’
2. Copy and paste the link to your video in the form below