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CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION 1.1. Purpose of Study Winning a job in a professional music ensemble requires the preparation and mastery of instrumental repertoire. Musicians generally use a number of method and etude books to help develop the specific technical and expressive skills necessary to play these pieces properly. The vast majority of all euphonium auditions are for placement in wind bands, and thus, excerpts are usually selected from the wind band repertoire. However, because there is currently a lack of literature specifically meant to help facilitate the playing of these excerpts, euphoniumists have historically used supplementary method books written for other instruments. The purpose of this project is to design etudes that can be used to develop the specific skills needed to overcome the individual challenges found in selected euphonium excerpts in wind band repertoire. The challenges found in many of these excerpts are as follows: 1) keeping a consistent rhythmic pulse throughout technically demanding sections, including mixed meters and meter changes; 2) maintaining a clear articulation and tone quality throughout each passage and throughout the tessitura of excerpts (d5 to A-flat 2); 3) playing in tune, particularly in the upper and lower registers of the euphonium; 4) developing the endurance and breath control required to sustain long phrases; 5) understanding the musical style and context of how the euphonium part fits into the ensemble. The etudes created in this project include material that focuses on developing the skills and expertise required to address these problems. Careful attention has been given to create a process for selecting the literature and defining the difficulties and challenges therein.