PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Berkshire Music School continues its enhanced scholarship program to support musicians of all ages, backgrounds, and levels of experience. 

 

For the 2022-2023 academic year, BMS will offer increased need-based financial aid for private lessons, as well as competitive talent- and merit-based scholarships to attract the most talented and promising musicians in the region.

 

Students accepted into BMS Talent & Merit Scholarship Program will benefit from: financial assistance (up to 100 percent tuition); invitations to participate in masterclasses with guest artists; audition coaching and workshops; complimentary tickets to performances at BMS and other venues; and performance opportunities throughout the Berkshires including individual and group recitals. 

 

In the 2021-2022 academic year, Berkshire Music School awarded more than $24,000 in need-based financial aid and merit-based scholarships to 24 students, including full-tuition scholarships to 9 students. BMS Trustee Cecylia Arzewski comments on the profundity of the program. 

 

"As a former member of the Boston Symphony Orchestra and a jurist of the International Bach Competition," Arzewski says, "I am very excited about finding and supporting the most talented students in our region and providing them with a musically rich environment in which to develop their skills at the Berkshire Music School."

 

Auditions will be held by appointment on Saturday, April 9 beginning at 10am for a panel of professional musicians. Auditions are open to the entire community, and musicians do not have to be a current BMS student to be considered. BMS encourages people of all ages and diverse backgrounds to audition for these scholarships.

 

For the audition, instrumentalists (other than guitar) should be prepared to perform the following: major and minor scales in two or more octaves, as requested by the panel; etude of musician's choice; movement from a sonata or a movement from a concerto, or comparable piece. 

 

Guitarists should be prepared to perform major and minor scales in two or more octaves, as requested by the panel, as well as two songs of your choice in contrasting styles showing your ability to play chord progressions, picking techniques, and soloing/improvisation. 

 

Vocalists should be prepared to sing two songs in contrasting styles, one of which in a foreign language. Instrumentalists should be prepared to perform without accompaniment; vocalists may perform to pre-recorded accompaniment that they provide. BMS will not be providing an accompanist.

 

Each audition will last 5- 7 minutes. To make an appointment, musicians should submit their audition requests to Executive Director Natalie Johnsonius Neubert at nneubert@berkshiremusicschool.org and include their training and performance background as well as a letter of recommendation from someone familiar with their work as a musician.