Wind Orchestra
PYSO Wind Orchestra and Symphonic Winds are back for the 2022-23 season! This ensemble combines our talented high school and junior high students from schools across the Valley into a symphonic wind ensemble. Weekly rehearsals are led by the Wind Orchestra conductor. Sectionals and chair auditions are held once per concert cycle, and are led by professional musicians from the Phoenix Symphony, college music professors, and local secondary music educators. Season plans also include a weekend retreat. As part of the ‘stair-step’ process of PYSO, the Wind Orchestra and Symphonic Winds are intended for students as they progress through their musical, instrumental and ensemble skills. It is the intent of the program for older students to progress into Philharmonic or Symphony Orchestra.
Wind Orchestra and Symphonic Winds have been combined for the 2022-2023 Season.
Grades
High School and Middle School
Ensemble Fee
$685
Rehearsals
Wednesdays, 6:30 – 9:00 PM
North High School
1101 E Thomas Road, Phoenix, AZ 85014
Conductor
Ensemble Music Level of Difficulty
Performs literature from levels 2-4. Music includes works by composers such as: Balmages, Grainger, Hazo, Smith, Sparke, Ticheli, Van de Roost.
Audition Components
Solo
Unaccompanied Solo of your choice. Please perform a total of 3:00 minutes of music from the work. Include both fast and slow passages and show advanced techniques. Please bring three copies of your notated music for the solo to your audition.
Scales
2 major scales of the student’s choice – 1 tongued and 1 slurred*
Full range chromatic scale – slurred**
*Harder scales will receive a higher score than easier ones. However, a well-played scale, no matter the difficulty, is best.
**You may perform as many octaves as you are able on both the scales and the chromatic. A greater range will receive a higher difficulty score. However, a well-played scale, no matter the difficulty, is best.
Sight reading
Sight reading material will consist of one or two short selections, selected by the adjudicators. Don’t neglect practicing sight reading pieces you are unfamiliar with to help prepare for this part of the audition.
Best of luck in your preparation, always start slow and work with a metronome!!
Questions?
View our stars in concert!
No events found – Join our Mailing List to receive announcements of upcoming events!
Jamal Duncan
Conductor, Wind Orchestra
Jamal Duncan is the Associate Director of Bands and Associate Professor of Instrumental Conducting at Arizona State University. Joining the faculty in 2020, his primary responsibilities include conducting the Wind Symphony, teaching undergraduate and graduate conducting courses, and serving as the Assistant Director of Undergraduate Music Studies. Prior to his appointment at ASU, Duncan served as the Assistant Director of Bands at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville.
Duncan’s research and creative interests center on conducting pedagogy, wind literature, and redefining the traditional concert experience. He has presented on these topics at prominent state, national, and international conferences, including the Midwest Clinic, the World Association for Symphonic Bands and Ensembles (WASBE), and the College Band Directors National Association (CBDNA).
A passionate advocate for expanding the repertoire of wind bands and chamber ensembles, Duncan actively commissions new works from both established and emerging composers. His programming deliberately highlights a diverse array of voices and cultures, bringing varied stories and perspectives to the concert stage.
Duncan is a recipient of the American Prize in Band/Wind Ensemble Conducting and was selected as a fellow at the Reynolds Conducting Institute. He maintains an active schedule as a guest conductor, clinician, and adjudicator for ensembles of all levels throughout the United States and internationally.
An experienced educator, Duncan taught in the public schools of Lansing, Michigan, for seven years, serving as the director of bands at C.W. Otto Middle School and later at Dwight Rich Middle School. For eleven seasons, he was also the music director and conductor of the Flint Youth Wind Ensemble, a premier ensemble within the Flint School of Performing Arts.
A native of Flint, Michigan, Duncan earned his Doctor of Musical Arts and Master of Music degrees in Wind Conducting from Michigan State University, where he studied with Dr. Kevin L. Sedatole. He holds a Bachelor of Music degree with a dual emphasis in Clarinet Performance and Music Education from the University of Michigan.
Duncan is an active member of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Fraternity, the National Association for Music Education (NAfME), WASBE, and CBDNA, and holds honorary memberships in Kappa Kappa Psi and Tau Beta Sigma.