Auditioning for a Scholarship
As of April 1, the application period for scholarships from Cannon Music Camp has closed. Campers interested in scholarships are encouraged to seek those from organizations local to their area - see our page on Outside Scholarship Providers for some ideas (unaffiliated with Cannon). Although scholarship applications are not open at this time, camp registration is open to all students as long as there is space in their instrument area and in camp housing - up until 3 days before camp! See cannon.appstate.edu/apply for camp application forms and payment deadlines.
An audition is not required in order to be accepted to Cannon Music Camp, only to apply for a scholarship. (All students will audition for ensemble placement the first Sunday of camp.)
Three ways to receive a scholarship from Cannon Music Camp:
- Send in a video recording through our submission form. The complete steps and instructions are available in the form. Answering the questions in detail is helpful for our scholarship consideration process. [The scholarship application form will be available again in December 2024.]
- Audition in person for a camp representative at a District/Region or All-State audition site (see details below).
- Receive a scholarship offer based on placement in District/Region/All-State (if the results are known to the camp office). This is also based on an audition, but indirectly, as you already auditioned successfully to be placed in one of these honors ensembles.
Sending in a performance, attending an audition site, or receiving a scholarship offer DOES NOT SECURE a place for you at camp. You will need to apply to camp and make your deposit to secure a space in your performance area for camp.
Music students who are active in District/Region/All-State competitions may find themselves receiving multiple offers from Cannon Music Camp, often of the same or similar amounts. These offers cannot be combined, but students should inform the camp office of the highest amount received, and we will apply the highest single amount.
We have a limited amount of scholarship money to distribute to individuals who want to participate in the process. Scholarships are awarded and reviewed until March 31st or when our scholarship funds are all claimed by fully registered students, whichever occurs first. If the scholarship audition link is still available on our website above, it is still possible to audition for a scholarship.
Typical scholarship amounts
- An typical range for a scholarship is $150-$450. This covers a portion of the $2700 camp cost.
- Students generally receive the same or similar amounts regardless of the way they apply for their scholarship.
- Scholarships covering most or all of the camp cost are rare and are supported by donors local to the student's area, or from awards won the previous year at camp, rather than from the camp's regular scholarship audition award process.
Claiming your scholarship
- Complete the application process shown at cannon.appstate.edu/apply, including your initial $150 deposit, to claim the scholarship.
- Scholarships cannot be used for the $150 deposit.First the student/family will complete the application and deposit, and within 2 weeks after the application process is completed, the scholarship will be applied. (If the student has been offered a full scholarship from a donor, please contact the camp office for details.)
- If you received a scholarship offer but are not sure if you can fund your full camp attendance, you can still register and make your deposit to claim your space and scholarship. All but $50 of your payment can be refunded by April 1 if you decide not to attend for any reason. See complete cancellation and refund information at cannon.appstate.edu/apply.
- Receiving a scholarship offer DOES NOT SECURE a place for you at camp. You will need to complete the application process to secure a space in your performance area for camp. We honor registrations in the order that they are completed (with deposit). If your instrument area fills before you complete registration, or if other students claim all the available scholarship funding for the year, it may not be possible to use your scholarship.
- If you receive multiple scholarship offers from Cannon Music Camp, we only use one offer, so please request to use the highest amount. Unfortunately, it is not possible to combine Cannon Music Camp scholarship offers to make a larger scholarship.
Other ways to fund your camp attendance
- Cannon Music Camp scholarships can be combined with scholarships from other organizations! Depending on your area, you may find opportunities for scholarships through local music clubs and ensembles, school music boosters, churches or other places of worship, community groups, charities, and more. See this page for some ideas.
- Some students have helped to fund their own camp attendance by giving recitals, playing gigs, fundraising, and other creative endeavors.
Audition Repertoire
- For instrumentalists, pieces that are used for All-District, All-Region, or All-State auditions or Solo and Ensemble festivals are fine to play for your scholarship audition. The piece should not be too long. You can record it as a video or audio by using your phone recording device or other devices.
- For vocalists, solo pieces usually work better than singing a part from a choral piece. Pieces that would be appropriate for Solo and Ensemble festivals are acceptable. Any classical solo would be appropriate, but pop or Broadway pieces are not appropriate.
- Looking for other audition piece recommendations? Visit the Ensemble Auditions page for Cannon Music Camp and scroll to the bottom to find recommendations for each instrument family and voice.
Students auditioning in person should be prepared to perform any of the required major scales and chromatic scales for their grade level. Faculty hearing your audition will be listening to your tone, intonation, technique, and musicality.
Scholarships at District/Region and All-State Ensembles
If you are performing in North Carolina All-State Competitions from the following districts, NW & SW All-District Band, Eastern & Western Regional Orchestra, we should receive your placement and depend on that placement, we may offer you a scholarship. This may take to mid-February to award. The awards will be emailed to your school music director. It is best to apply first and then await your scholarship offer since performance spaces fill up. See cancellation information on the Apply tab.
There will be an opportunity to perform for an official camp representative (current App State or Cannon Music Camp faculty) at some of the All-State Audition Sites for high school students. Current 8th graders are welcome to visit the high school site to audition. Interested students can email cannonmusiccamp@appstate.edu to check if we will be sending a representative to the specific audition day they plan to attend.
Please bring your instrument, the name of your piece, your contact information, or parent/guardian contact information. You do not have to be selected for or perform at the All-State Competitions to audition for our Camp Representative; all are welcome to audition.
- Most kinds of band and orchestra instruments can audition for Cannon Music Camp scholarships on the same day and location at the auditions of the All-District Band or Regional Orchestra if a Cannon Music Camp representative is visiting. (Though it may be in the same building, this is a separate audition from the All-District/Regional audition. There is no charge to play an audition for a Cannon Music Camp scholarship.)
- Keyboard and Percussion: While snare drum auditions can be heard at any site, timpani and keyboard percussion may not be available at every site. Not every site will have a piano or keyboard available. Before attending, please check with cannonmusiccamp@appstate.edu to see if your desired location has a keyboard or appropriate percussion available for your use in the audition room. You may send a video through the link at the top of the page instead.
- Vocalists, Guitarists, and Harpists: we encourage these musicians to submit audition videos at the link at the top of the page - rather than attending a live audition site - so that our voice, guitar, or harp faculty can make a scholarship recommendation.
If you did not place this year or are unsure if we received your placement from your performance in All-State Competitions, you can get your music director to let us know! We calculate offers based on your chair placement, instrument, and grade.
If my child is applying to another summer event, and we won't know if they are accepted until after the Cannon scholarship offer expires, what should we do?
You should apply to secure your space and scholarship offer. If you must withdraw your application and it is getting close to the cancellation deadline to receive $100 of your application deposit refunded, e-mail us and we can review what we can do to honor the refund.