Although entrance test criteria seem decisive for accessing higher music education programmes, and problems and challenges with the assessment process are reported, the area is largely unexplored. This article concerns how entrance auditions, specifically primary instrument auditions for Swedish specialist music teacher programmes, are examined and discussed. The data comprise video-documented auditions, focus group conversations, and stimulated-recall-based interviews involving assessor groups at four music education departments. Social-semiotic theory is used to study how assessors judge applicants’ knowledge representations in audition performances. A music-centred assessment culture is constructed, emphasising assessments of technical, communicative, and genre-anchored interpretation skills essential for meeting the demands of the education and profession. Also, a person-centred assessment culture is revealed, emphasising the assessment of personal traits suitable for education and profession. The discussion addresses the reliability, credibility, and validity of assessing abilities in terms of being and behaving in a particular way.

尽管入学考试标准似乎对于进入高等音乐教育课程具有决定性的作用，并且据报告评估过程中存在问题和挑战，但该领域在很大程度上尚未得到开发。本文涉及如何检查和讨论入学试听，特别是瑞典专业音乐教师课程的主要乐器试听。数据包括视频记录的试音，焦点小组对话以及基于刺激召回的访谈，涉及四个音乐教育部门的评估者团体。社会符号学理论用于研究评估者如何判断申请人在试镜表演中的知识表现形式。建立了以音乐为中心的评估文化，强调对技术，交流，以及流派锚定的传译技巧，对于满足教育和职业的需求至关重要。此外，还揭示了以人为中心的评估文化，强调了对适合教育和职业的人格特质的评估。讨论从以特定方式存在和行为方面评估能力的可靠性，可信度和有效性。