After you have received responses from your ad with candidates who want to join your band, you must select which candidates to contact for the next step. You are not merely looking through resumes as an employer but looking for talent and a fit. In your posting, you should have outlined specific criteria and asked the candidates to perform a task. Unless there is some extraordinary talent attached to a response, any candidate who fails to follow directions in the submittal of their application should be pursued with caution.
This first connection with potential musicians will be their response to your ad. Depending on the criteria you set in the posting, you can learn a lot about an individual before you even meet them. Can the drummer follow directions? Can the vocalist show creativity? Will the guitarist go above and beyond expectation? Will the bassist hint at an underlying personality?
Before you jump to band auditions, you want to spend a few minutes analyzing each applicant before you decide who to call. If you can eliminate candidates early, you will save time, especially if there are a large number of interested musicians.
Below are some ideas to help you weed through the competition. In your job posting, ask each candidate to complete one of the tasks below or come up with one of your own.
- Write 300 words about your musical background and experiences
- Tell us who your favorite band is and why
- Explain what the biggest obstacle is that you have had to overcome
- Upload a video of you playing a 1 minute solo on YouTube
- Upload a video of you playing one of our songs
- Upload a video of you stating why you applied for this job
- Send a resume including your work experience and education
- Tell us what your favorite song is and why
Judge the first few applications that come in as a reflection of the ad you posted. If there are a few things that seem to be missing, edit the posting. Determine what characteristics are most important and screen for those immediately. If commitment is your number one, looking at their work history for longevity may determine loyalty.
While you are considering each candidate, stack rank the applications from the best to the worst. Be picky and thorough in regards to completion, grammar, and presentation as the effort and care that goes into the application could indicate the level of interest of a candidate and signal the care and effort that goes into his or her music. The strongest looking candidates, of course, will be the first ones you plan to contact. |
