Saturday, March 16, 2013

What to Expect in a Music Exam

By Anita Hale


Anytime you start learning a musical instrument at school we will nearly always be encouraged to acquire "grades" of the particular instrument. By trying to learn grades, you are provided the chance to master the technicalities of your instrument. Moreover you'll also master the music theory behind it.

And so who exactly sets these music grades? That would be any of three examination boards. The first two are the smaller boards: London College of Music and Trinity College London. However, the the most popular examination board is the ABSRM (Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music). ABRSM is an examining board whose main function is to provide a structured way to grade music learning. This can help inspire musicians, but it also sets a level of musicianship to aspire to.

The ABRSM offers exams in theory, jazz and practical musicianship. However, the most common course is practical exams for your chosen instrument. These begin at grade one and continue up to grade eight for the very advanced.

In a practical exam each student will have to sit four different components. The first is the set pieces element. Each student must play three prepared pieces on their chosen instrument. Each of these will have been chosen by them beforehand from the course syllabus. Every instrument carries its own syllabus with a range of music to chose from. This gets updated every two years. The set pieces carries a total of 30 marks each, with 20 marks needed for each piece to pass.

The as scales and arpeggios section of the exam requires the student to play as dictated by the examiner. He will usually request several scales or arpeggios and these will be played from memory. The pass mark here is fourteen out of a potential twenty-one marks.

The aural test requires the student to listen to an examiner's set of instructions and provide a response. The answer will require clapping, singing or a spoken response. This tests ithe student's musical ear. It carries a total of eighteen marks. To pass this section you must score a minimum of twelve marks.

The final section in the practical exam is sight-reading. This can be particularly challenging as it requires students to play from a piece of sheet music that they have never seen before. They will be presented with it during the exam and given thirty seconds to prepare before playing it for the examiner. This is marked out of 21 and the passing mark is 14.

A total of 100 marks out of 150 are needed to receive a music grade. If the student scores 120 then they are awarded a pass with merit. If they are talented enough to score a 130 then they receive a pass with distinction.




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