Summer Term Music and Music Exams Thread

Hello joining you - very very non musical mom here! Still Waiting on result of grade 4 cello for my 8yr old; she then has grade 1 clarinet this term health permitting. I am busy learning music theory as I have promised to do grade 5 theory with her next year - a very big challenge for me as I have never played an instrument :)

Yet another non-musical mum here (there's a lot of us about).

No exams for DD for a while but she starts with a new guitar teacher tomorrow

DS will do Grade 1 piano this term but i'm not sure how he'll get on as he has big problems taking to adults

Just marking the thread, am involved in all aspects of music & exams, including teaching and being parent!

Another non-musical Mum who has had a steep learning curve with 3 DC playing several instruments.!

The main thing looming in our house is GCSE exams for DS1! He needs to re-do his solo for GCSE as well, apparently it was a few seconds too long.

DS2 is doing his Bronze RSCM singing award in May, at the ends of his KS2 SATS week, so will be busy. His brass teacher wants to delay his Grade 5 trombone until autumn, so he can enjoy the leavers events in Y6, but no decision made yet.

Summer concerts kick off in 2 weeks with the County Music Service concert, followed by the older DCs' school summer concerts the following week. Lots of other concerts coming up too.

Saddest concert will be DS2 last Junior School music concert in June. Can't believe it will be last one, after 3 DC at Junior School.

I am not remotely musical, but my dh is a musician. He also teaches brass - mainly trumpet. Dd2 will be doing G2 trumpet this term. Her teeth are a right mish mash at the moment, but she seems to be playing ok.

Ds2 has G7 violin this term. He wants to put it off another term, but that's due to his lack of self confidence. He sounds lovely when he plays and just needs to, in the words of a popular song in this house at the moment, let it go! He can then leave G8 for a couple of years - no hurry at all.

Dd1 did her G1 clarinet last term and got 134, so she's very happy and her confidence is high - hurrah! She lacks self confidence too, so it's lovely to see her playing with confidence for a change.

Wafflenose -

As for the theory, we did a past paper in the first lesson to establish what she does or doesn't already know. And I know the cheats. Identify melodic/harmonic scales? Well, hang on... you know the harmonic minor, so if it's not that one, it must be melodic! It helps that the scales chosen are pretty much the scales that she's already learnt on piano (she's doing grade 4).

I am a non-musical mum of a brass player aged 14. He's working towards his G5 theory later this year (hopefully), he's an audition coming up for a national youth ensemble and after that he'll be starting trombone as a second instrument. I didn't want him starting trombone before the audition as all practise on the main instrument would be straight out of the window. It's all very laid back and casual at the moment, no instrument exams in sight for the first time in seven years and the audition is still three months off. County wind band has knocked off for the summer and the only other thing on the horizon is a local contest in June. He's not entered a contest before so that comes under the heading of "life's new experiences" and seeing as he's ready now it's not going to be much pressure.

I'm not actually a mum but I find this forum useful so hang out here a bit!

I teach violin and piano, with a bit of keyboard. I also play viola, organ, flute and harp to varying degrees of competence. Oh, and I apparently now teach theory to other people's piano students (she's already been entered for grade 3 this term and now needs lessons to get her through... oh the logic).

This term I will probably be entering one grade 1 piano student (if he pulls his socks up), one grade 1 violin student (adult), maybe a grade 3 piano but he missed a lot of lessons due to illness, a whole bunch of prep tests on piano (ages 7-11) and we'll probably be doing some medals on violin.

I will also be entering some exams myself - grade 6 theory because I never sat it and consequently couldn't sit my ABRSM diploma on either instrument (intending to do at least violin in the future as a "reason to practise"), probably grade 8 general musicianship to find out what those exams are like, maybe a viola grade.

The most serious summer term for me so far: Ds1 has his first piano DipABRSM, and grade 5 violin. Ds2 has grade 7 piano. 1 masterclass, 3 concerts booked so far. But, we are all reasonably confident.