Your reputation, as well as what you do throughout the audition process, will greatly influence your ability to attract the best members.

You'll notice I didn't say singers -- sometimes the best member isn't always the person with the best voice. We'll get into that later on. As you go through the audition process, remember:

• Be careful about what image you portray. Words, images, tone, and style are important.

• Be friendly but professional. Be welcoming, follow up people's requests promptly, and run the auditions in a professional manner.

• Be honest and don't over or under promise.

What's Your Ideal Member Profile?

Before the audition process, you should decide what you're looking for in members.

There are three major elements you're looking for in a potential member: talent, personality, and commitment.

All are equally important, and your ideal member should meet your expectations in all three areas.

Talent

Talent is the most concrete quality in the list, although it's not always easy to assess. Here are some tips on what to look for to keep your selection process on track:

Are they a soloist? A background singer? Both?

What's their performance style and strength?

Do they have the "it" factor? Are you entertained?

What's their experience level? Does it show?

Vocal range?

Do they have any red flags? (Trouble reading or learning music, matching pitch, vocal strain/damage, etc.)

Remember you're not only looking at the person's talent as presented in audition, but you're also interested in how that will translate to a stage and how it will fit in with your group.

Personality

We're not just talking about stage personality, here. You're going to be spending a lot of time with this person, and a mismatched personality can TANK a group. Things to think about:

Do they get along with others?

Do they seem eager to be a part of the group?

Do they have a reasonable sense of responsibility?

This is another one that seems obvious, but I've seen firsthand how blinded people get by an individual's raw talent, only to watch his or her lack of team spirit eat away at the group like a cancer. So how do you prevent that?

Take your time!

Set up opportunities to get a peek at the real person behind the voice. Engage in conversation and ask questions. Observe how that individual interacts with the group and the other auditionees.

That latter one is important -- of course the auditionees are going to be nice and polite to you -- they want something from you. Their true character often comes out in how they treat their competition.

Relax and be yourself, so that you encourage that behavior in your auditionees. Meet with them more than once, ideally in different locations/situation to get a more well-rounded glimpse into what they are really like. You'll be glad you invested a little extra time!

Commitment

Having a common level of commitment is crucial to a group -- if half the members are looking for a Grammy and the other half are only looking for a casual pastime, you're bound to hit conflict with almost every decision you make.

Set the expectations up front and clearly. Spell. It. Out.

Go over rehearsal and performance schedules, expectations for learning music, and how and when it is OK to miss a rehearsal or performance.

Talk about all the non-singing commitments of your group -- does everyone have an administrative role?

Are all members expected to help with certain things? Do you travel?

You want this person to know how the group must fit into his or her life to make the pairing a success.

That's it for Part 2!
What other traits are on your list?

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