Standardizing the euphonium repertoire: A comparative analysis of repertoire performed at ITEA conferences, Falcone festivals, and undergraduate auditions

In the United States, there is not currently a concise and agreed upon standardized list of euphonium repertoire. International Tuba Euphonium Conferences and competitions like the Leonard Falcone Competition are two of the primary settings to be exposed to repertoire. This study seeks to discover if ITEA conferences and Falcone Competitions are contributing to the development of a standardized repertory for auditioning undergraduate collegiate euphoniumists. A complete repertoire list of euphonium solos from ITEA conferences and Falcone Competitions over the last twenty years was compiled, isolating the most frequently performed and asked pieces. A list of undergraduate euphonium audition repertoire suggestions from universities in the United States was also collected to see what repertoire is being asked of euphonium students seeking a music degree. These results were then compared to the original repertoire lists to see which pieces were popular in all settings; all repertoire was rated according to the guidelines in the International Tuba Euphonium Association Official Standard Literature List to compare the difficulty of works performed in each category. The results of the study found that there was no significant relationship between the pieces that were most performed and asked at the conferences and competitions and the frequency they were asked at the university level; however, the data suggests there are other pieces that could be appropriate for auditioning students. This study can benefit collegiate professors as a resource to update audition requirements to be reflective of works being performed in the field of euphonium performance.