11+ Music scholarship...

One person's pushy is another's laid back, especially when it comes to music. The norm form us was 40 mins four times a week but Purcell require 2 hours 40mins. That will come as an unpleasant shock for us and I'd rather it was not the case. But I know of plenty children who do this already. I'm seen as pushy but my son is just talented in this area and could be a lot better if he put more work in!

Why do people use the 'P' word to rationalise why their DC don't do as well as some other child?
In Year 6 my daughter's friend, who was Grade 5 Pass, told DD that her mum thought DD only got Distinction because we were pushy parents. Well, if getting DD to practice 20min 4 days a week is 'pushy' then no wonder her DD got Pass for all her previous grades.

DS applied for one at 11+ he was Grade 4 in one instrument and nearly grade 4 in another. Also a soloist in school choir.

I had a conversation with the school beforehand, and they encouraged him to apply, saying he was the right level.

He didn't get one. They only awarded 3 that year (usually 5 or 6). Two went to kids already in the school, and one went to a girl whose mother was an opera singer, and very pushy talented.

I think a flawless performance would be best, within reason though. So maybe one grade lower but not two. If two pieces are required then maybe a flawless lower grade followed by a good current grade which may or may not be flawless on the day iykwim! DS did this and his higher piece was brilliant on one audition and dodgy on the next, although we did say that he was going to play a piece he was working on to show what he would be capable of soon. It was a risk but it paid off.

Based on my experience schools will say they look for higher marks at a lower grade than the other way round. This is how it should be of course. On the other hand, where I live (London) there is no shortage of grade 5 merit/distinction level children applying for 11+. I think very good advice would be to play one of the less common instruments; for this reason violinists are encouraged to switch to viola by some schools.

And to follow on from Pushy Dad, examiners mark differenty and a child could have a bad day and fluff an exam so get a pass when on another day they may have got a distinction.

A Grade 4 Distinction 11 yr old is not necessarily a better player than a 11 yr old Grade 6 pass player. Its like saying a 16yr old A* GCSE student is cleverer than a 16yr A level Grade B student.

When I say grade 5 I mean a child who can play consistently well at grade 5 not someone who has scraped a pass. Exams are not necessary but the level is a guideline.

ds was given a music award at 11+ (not a scholarship, but an award for free music lessons). When he auditioned he had 2x grade 2 and didn't sing, so we never really considered he was in the running for a scholarship, but within a year he had 2x grade 5 - at that stage they progress so quickly, so don't worry too much if they are a little below the expected level, it's often still worth a go.

High marks not high grades ...

Hi Colleger
I can't speak for other 'outside London' schools but here in Herts
Grade 5 minimum is pretty much universal. Grade 3 seems to be the minimum if your child is sitting the music exam at a selective state school.

It also depends on the instrument and how long they have been playing. They are more likely to offer a scholarship to a grade 5 woodwind played who has been playing for 2 years than a grade 7 violinist who has been playing since the age of 3.

Really? That's good to know. Dd is yr3 & took grade 4 last week. We're hoping she'll be grade 7 by yr 6, but still thought competition might be too high for scholarships. I do know of a very talented violinist at grade 8 in yr 6 -she was offered 80% scholarship!

I agree with Pushy Dad. Grade 5 for 11+ is very high and most schools outside of London would suggest grade 3. I assume the London schools do not want too many applicants and with the conservatoire JD's on the doorstep they probably have plenty of grade 5 applicants as this is the minimum standard for JD. But there are lots of grade 7/8 11 year old violinists and they wouldnt get into a music school as the standard is ridiculously high in this specific instrument. Nor would many grade 7/8 musicians wish to opt for a music school.

At the start of Year 6 my wife was talking schools with our son's violin teacher and the teacher suggested trying for a music scholarship. My son was Grade 5 Merit at the time and I recall saying that the websites mention at least Grade 5 so I didn't fancy his chances if he only just met the minimum expected standard.

The teacher said that she had students that weren't as good as mine yet have secured scholarships. Based on that we went for it and he got awarded a 20% scholarship plus an exhibition.

My point? Don't be discouraged by talk about how your child must be minimum Grade 5. If your child is roughly Grade 5 merit level and he can demonstrate an interest in music (courses attended, membership of an orchestra etc) then he stands just a good a chance as the next boy. I mean, if a parent had a Grade 7 distinction 11 yr old then the family would be aiming for a music school.

On the subject of being commited to the musical life of the school, my son has orchestra practice after school Monday and Thursday. This is when all the extra curr clubs meet :( So I can understand the parents who handed back the scholarship.

I believe latymer expect grade 5 and Hampton take in a number of choristers from HCP so it may be worth getting involved as a chorister. I think they get a guaranteed 25% scholarship.

DD's music scholarship is 10% of the fees, but she also has two other scholarships, and the school recognizes that she has to split her allegiances between these areas of interest. Nonetheless she is in two orchestras, a string group, and two choirs. And that is entirely expected. She is playing/singing in three separate concerts this week and next. But she is also on the netball squad, and in an after school art group. They all want their pound of flesh (Wanders off muttering about when she might do some ACADEMIC work.....) (Have to add - it is not us driving any of this - she is a self starter).

marialuisa, that's a good point. We did not put our DS in for a music scholarship because we did not want him to be defined as a musician.

Be careful of the commitment the school expects in return. DD has been offered a music scholarship at 11+ to transfer into the senior department of her current school. After a lot of discussion she won't be pursuing it as the kids are expected to always put music first and although DD is a gifted musician she's not ready to narrow her activities in that way and we're not prepared to push it for the sake of £250 per term. She takes part in a couple of orchestras but has no desire to join the choir, for example, which is compulsory for music scholars. A friend's DS "handed back" his music scholarship because he wanted to play hockey after school once a week rather than join a fifth ensemble. DD, like my friend's DS, plays an unusual first instrument and the pressure to join everything seems to be greater than for the kids playing violin or clarinet.