Vacancies for the 2024-2025 season

All other instruments are welcome for consideration on our substitute list, with a preference for clarinet, bassoon, trombone, and tuba. Substitutes are used throughout the season for concerts and rehearsals.

BACKGROUND: The Capital Wind Symphony is an all-volunteer ensemble that attracts many of the region’s finest musicians and welcomes new players each season by audition.  Members include military musicians, freelance players, studio teachers, and music educators.  Accepted members must agree to the weekly rehearsals held on Monday evenings (except holidays) and the concerts.  Rehearsals take place at McLean High School, 1633 Davidson Road, McLean, VA, 22101, and concerts are scheduled at the Capital One Hall in Tysons and various community venues in the Capital Region.

PROCESS: The audition process consists of a resume and preliminary recording followed by a LIVE round.

Interested players should send a resume and an audio or video clip of a solo, etude, or excerpt(s) highlighting playing.  An email attachment or a link to Google Drive,  YouTube, Vimeo, etc is preferred for larger files SUBMIT HERE

• Upon review,  selected players will be invited for a live audition.
• The live audition will consist of the following excerpts.

Please direct any questions HERE.   Thank you for your interest in the Capital Wind Symphony.

Click on the instrument to download excerpts. 

Piccolo

• Fucik – Florentiner March,
• Grainger – Linconshire Posy, mvt 2
• Hindemith – Symphony in Bb
• Persichetti – Symphony for Band
• Pres – Wedding Dance

Flute

• Mozart – Concerto in G Major, Movement 1, Exposition
• Mendelssohn – Scherzo from Midsummer Night’s Dream
• Brahms – Symphony No. 4 in E Minor, Movement 4, mm 89-105
• Beethoven – Leonore Overture No. 3, mm 1-36 AND mm 279 – 360
• Beethoven – Eroica Symphony No. 3, mvt. 4, mm173 – 200
• Ravel – Daphnis et Chloe Suite No. 2, rehearsal numbers 176 – 179 and through the trill

Oboe

• Mozart – Quartet in F, 3rd movement, Rondeau
• Brahms – Violinkonzert in D Major op.77, 2nd movement Adagio
• Stravinsky – Suite from Pulcinella, Gavotta Variation 1a, Allegretto
• Tchaikovsky – Symphony No. 4 in F minor, op. 36, 2nd movement, Andantino

English Horn

• Gould – American Salute
• Berlioz  – Roman Carnival 

Bassoon

• Arnold – Four Scotttish Dances, II
• Grainger – Lincolnshire Posy, Rufford Park Poachers

Clarinet

• Shostakovich – Festive Overture
• Duble- The Circus King
• Grainger- Irish Tune from County Derry
• Holst – Hammersmith
• Nielsen – Masquerade Overture
• Bernstein – West Side Story
• Mozart – Clarinet Concerto in A Major, K. 622

Saxophone

• Ferling Studies, Etudes Nos. 3 and 4

Horn

• Choice of Mozart or Strauss Concerto – Exposition
• Strauss – Til Eulenspiegel (1st horn Beginning to rehearsal 1)
• Strauss – Don Juan (1st horn 11after N-P, 4 before Y to Z)
• Shostakovich – Symphony No. 5 (1st horn Movt I- 2 bars after 17-bar after 21)
• Tchaikovsky – Symphony No. 5 (excerpt from Andante Cantibile)

Trumpet

• Solo or etude of choice
• Rachmaninoff – Vocalise 
• Vaughan Williams – Toccata Marziale
• Vaughn Williams – Folk Song Suite, 3rd Mvmt,
• Hindemith – Symphony in Bb, mvmt, I
• Sousa – Sabre and Spurs

Trombone

• Bach – Sarabande from the 5th Cello Suite, Tenor Trombone
• Wagner – Tannhauser, Tenor/Bass Trombone
• Mozart – Tuba Mirum, Tenor Trombone only
• Respighi – Pines of Rome,  Near a Catacomb, Bass trombone
• Hindemith – Symphonic Metamorphosis, Tenor Trombone

Euphonium

• Shostakovich arr. Hunsberger – Festive Overture
  • Measure before 21 to downbeat of measure 23
• Sousa – Stars and Stripes Forever
  • Full march
• Holst – Second Suite for Military Band in F Major Movement I March, Euphonium
  • Solo – Pickup to E to Fine
• Grainger – Colonial Song
  • Measures 21 to 44
• A solo of your choice

Tuba

• Creston
  • Celebration Overture, Measures 156 to downbeat of 180
• Grainger – Lincolnshire Posy, Rufford Park Poachers
  • Square 51 to two bars after Square 83
• Heed – In Storm and Sunshine March
  • Beginning to first repeat mark, lower octave
• Pick-ups to four lines from the bottom, take 2nd ending
• Hindemith – Symphony in Bb
  • Circle H to Circle K
  • Measure 203 to the end
• Holst – First Suite
  • Beginning to Measure 9
  • 8 measures after B thru C, lower octave
• Menotti – Overture and Caccia
  • Beginning of page to T
• Verdi – La Forza Del Destino
  • Entrance after Circle 3 to 11 after Circle 5
  • Circle 7 to one measure after Circle 10

Percussion

• Snare Drum
  • Rimsky-Korsakov: “Scheherazade”, Movement 3
  • Rimsky-Korsakov: “Capriccio Espagnol”, Movement 4 – beginning to 10 bars after L
• Cymbals
  • Tchaikowsky:  Symphony #4, Movement 4 – 11 bars after G to the end
• Tambourine
  • Dvorak: “Carnival Overture” – beginning to C & 8 bars before U to the end
• Glockenspiel
  • Dukas: “Sorcerer’s Apprentice” – 4 bars after reh. 17 to 2 bars before reh. 20
• Xylophone
  • Grainger: “Shepherd’s Hey” – 2 bars before reh. 35 to 3 bars before reh. 45 & reh. 85 to 3 bars after reh. 95

Timpani

• Excerpts are marked in the linked PDF.