Jazz Piano Entrance Requirements

If you are hoping to be a music major at the University of Louisiana, Lafayette and jazz piano is your instrument of choice, you must possess certain skills to pass the audition. If you have strong skills in some areas but lack others, you are still encouraged to audition and may be accepted provisionally. In this case, you will be re-evaluated after one semester of jazz piano lessons to determine whether you have chosen an appropriate field of study.

Skills

1. Be able to play six different major scales in both hands
2. Have basic music reading ability on the piano in both treble and bass clefs
3. Have a basic knowledge of jazz chord construction—be able to construct a seventh chord, a major seventh chord, and a minor seventh chord
4. Be able to play two songs that demonstrate the ability to improvise

Theory

Know the key signatures of the following major keys:

• C, G, D, A, E, F, B♭, E♭, A♭

Understand and time signatures as well as whole notes, half notes, quarter notes and sixteenth notes.

For more information contact the Jazz Piano coordinator Dr. Garth Alper by phone at 337-482-6016, or by email at garth@louisiana.edu.