Battle with teacher over grades needed for Music at Uni

[circular]

Posted here on Higher Ed.

I know quite a few music teachers and very knowledgeable parents post here, so would be interested on their views.

Basically, DD1's teacher quite anti grades. Amazing teacher, gets her playing pieces across all time periods, teaching her much around her playing and over and above school musc studies.

She has a task on her hands convincing she needs to have grade 8 before UCAS/CUKAS applications in just over a year. Being told not necessary, just need the playing standard.

What is the mystery instrument?

It's not a mystery instrument! I expect most people know and in fact it's quite obvs from the thread but it's not for me to give out information about circular's DD. I'm sure she will be along soon. :)

Snork! I guess those of us who do know have been careful not to mention as circular hasn't done so.

Sorry, no real mystery - recorders, all sizes including crumhorns lol

Aiming for grade 5 piano too, also plays violin, no grades taken, but plays in ensemble where everyone else g5/6, and school orchestra.

theas It's not like if they searched on our names they wouldn't find out easily enough is it!

Should have added, no intention of doing a 2nd study instrument at Uni, but would be nice if good enough for ensemble.

Circular you don't have to give house room to crumhorns do you? If so you have my sympathies.

They are of the devil.

It's OK -DH is an electrical guitarist, so there's always the volume control

Just be checking out TG entry details, and they need school / teacher info. So an independent entry won't be possible, unless she does ABRSM.

What a pain! is her academic school not an examination centre? Ours is ( as is DH school and they'd take externals onto their list as you have to have so many people to get an examiner into school) so maybe you could piggyback somewhere>?

That's only so it can be addressed correctly entered on the certificate.

Ive entered Trinity drama candidates and the certificate reads x of y school has passed etc.

I'm sure you can enter Trinity yourself ... Have done so for my children. .ring them up they are very helpful. Crumhorns are great!

They are of the devil. I'm just sayin'. Of. The. Devil.

you don't like crumhorns do you russians lol.
at least it's not shawms. note there is an out for instrument that needs a large battlefield !

Thea Changing school for sixth form. First choice is an ABRSM centre, other boards at discretion of instrument centre.
Would have a problem getting accompanist if we had to commute to main centre, even if we could do independent entry for TG.

DD happy for me to speak to Music school, so will try.

She thinks they want her to be able to sight read Gr8 pieces before they will let her enter - sounds a bit much.

instrument teacher, not centre - but doesn't help as she won't be doing recorders at school.

circular I don't actually think that is a bit much, to be honest...

Russians I'm surprised as sight reading in the exams seems to be two grades lower, so thought being able to sight read a grade lower would be enough to take the exam. She generally does very well on her pieces, full marks have been known.

The last exam she took was Grade 6, yes? There is a massive increase in standard. But it's not just that. It's about the difference between being able to play and being drilled in pieces.

I think you (well, your Dd really) needs to at least consider the possibility that the teacher is right and she isn't ready yet, just purely because she hasn't had enough time.

You're absolutely right - she isn't ready yet.
But she wants to work on being ready for March which is 8 months away.

And she can't start working why? I just don't understand really what the problem is at this stage. The teacher doesn't think she's ready - so she proves the teacher wrong. It sounds like she doesn't have a plan B and perhaps she should have one (my Dd1 has plans B and C because you've always got to have a plan B, as a minimum - she's got no intention of ever following them but just having them removes one slight potential stress) but at the end of the day, your DD hasn't started 6th form yet. So she has time. But I really do think you are losing sight of the forest for the trees. It's not about the exam. It's about developing as a player. And if she does that, the exam will follow. It will.

The problem is that her teacher is anti-grades, and thinks she should be looking more at the types of courses that don't need them on paper.
Of course she can start working towards the grade - she has - but she needs the teacher on side.

She does have a plan B, which would be to go for the same goal by a longer / different route.
Her plan C is a totally different career, which is completely impractical for her.

Well, if I recall correctly, for a DipABRSM you have to sight-read a Grade 6 piece so while it is unrealistic to expect her to have three Grade 8 pieces to perfection on first reading, she should be able to bash her way through them. I'd really get on with learning the G8 pieces and worry about it nearer the time. If she turns up in September pretty well able to play her pieces, her teacher won't have many legs to stand on. Having had DSs who have done things the unconventional way, through indecision, it's much easier to follow the well-trodden path ... and that means taking the exam. My younger DS was a fantastic organist at 12 ... playing Grade 8 pieces, improvising. Never did an exam, dropped it totally at 14. Now he's 19 and no-one believes he can/could play whereas if he'd done the exam ...

Moomin - yes, I was thinking make a good fist, not perfection!