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Extra-curricular activities

Find advice on the best extra curricular activities in secondary schools and primary schools here.

Original poster

April Music Thread

970 replies

Wafflenose · 31/03/2017 13:38

We've managed to fill up the March thread, so I give you April's, around 10 hours early. Don't use it all up at once!

The music threads are for learners of ALL ages and stages, including beginners and adult learners.

My kids Goo (11) and Rara (8) break up from school today, thank goodness. Rara is off sick at the moment, in any case, but they both need a break. They did their music exams this week. Goo got a distinction for her Grade 7 Flute, and we are awaiting the results of Rara's Grade 1 Clarinet, plus a couple of my pupils. They will probably come on my birthday - the ABRSM ones often do.

Next term, we have a big community concert at the local high school - all the feeder schools take part. Goo could do Grade 7 Recorder and/ or Grade 4 Piano, but I don't think she wants to. Rara is doing Grade 3 Cello. My Year 6 Recorders have been asked to play in the local Festival gala concert, and I'm sure there will be primary school leavers' performances too.

OP posts:
Original poster
Wafflenose · 10/04/2017 22:24

There's not a big difference. Rara will be moving to a 2.5 quite soon. Just give it a bit of a soak first, put it on very fractionally lower than usual and give the top 1cm a very gentle push inwards (towards the mouthpiece) before she starts.

OP posts:
Kutik73 · 10/04/2017 22:30

DS had hardly any time for polishing his pieces for the last exam mainly because we decided to do it at the last minute (for multiple reasons). We got the music in April for the exam in June (and DS had a week off during May half term as we went Switzerland). So he had less than two months to prepare... Luckily he knew scales already so only pieces to learn from scratch. However he had a hard time with scales and seemed to have been spending more time on them than pieces - while pieces were learnt at ease, he was still making mistakes here and there in scales!

He kept practising one of the three pieces after the exam and played it at several venues in July. He played it much nicer by having had time to digest the piece properly.

DS didn't spend too long on exam preparation in the past but they were for lower grades so manageable. I suppose it will be difficult for higher grades. So we have no plan to have such a short preparation next time!

Fleurdelise · 10/04/2017 22:47

For grade 3-5 dd has started the pieces 3-4 months before the exam but alternating them with other repertoire. It is generally only a month or so before the entry deadline that all the other pieces are dropped and only exam pieces are practised.

So she would initially start with an exam piece and another 2-3 additional pieces or studies and the focus are the other pieces until gradually the balance swaps around. Her teacher also likes to have time to polish bar by bar if needed.

This time though I think we were thrown out of sink by the festival. The plan initially was to take the exam in march but no exam pieces were practised before the festival.

Fleurdelise · 10/04/2017 22:53

I am obviously tired, my eyes are closing:

*focus is

*out of sync. (Not sink by any means)

onlymusic · 11/04/2017 00:25

Talkng about preparation time.... I had this conversation on numerous occasions with teachers....and parents.... I think piano is more difficult instrument than violin. But people have different opinions.... What do you guys think? ;)

se22mother · 11/04/2017 07:31

Waffle thanks

Kutik73 · 11/04/2017 07:31

Surely people have different opinions as there should be many different 'right' ways for each individual. Smile

DS learns lots of different studies through a year and exam pieces are one of those so I don't really remember feeling 'working towards' a certain exam (but the last time, polishing scales made us feel a bit like that). I suppose it may change for higher grades as I assume some more good polishing would be needed? Though I'm not sure how challenge they will be as I have never seen them yet. His teacher says no difference in the approach as DS will be at the standard any way. We will see.

We know only piano exam so no idea how it's like with other instruments. Would like to know about violin exam as one day DS may take one.

LooseAtTheSeams · 11/04/2017 07:39

in the past DS2 has basically spent one term on a cello exam (10 lessons if lucky) but a year on piano! I think now it's different because he's working on grade 5 cello, so is doing lots of different pieces to get experience and technique. With piano, he's essentially got the pieces in two terms (did a couple of others as well but didn't like them!) alongside theory but he still has some scales to learn. If he'd spend a bit more time on practice, the scales would be done already!!
I'm currently grappling with the combination of him growing very fast and wanting to sleep all morning! Practice is happening but not until evening.
DS1 on the other hand is spending most days practising a lot without any prompting so I just have wait another three years...Smile

LooseAtTheSeams · 11/04/2017 07:43

Oh, and I should add that at the moment I am trying to ensure exams are spread out so they don't become the main focus. They have one each next term and then will be rationed to one each the following term!

stringchild · 11/04/2017 07:56

Onlymusic - i am not sure there is a comparison to be made; some children and adults will find one or other easier depending on how the brain/body is wired. personally, i have always thought advanced string playing is exceptionally difficult, not least tuning (which pianists don't have to figure out each time of course). But as we progress on woodwind, i am surprised how difficult it gets technically/physically compared to the early grades. So basically i think all instruments are hard and everyone should be incredibly proud of their children/themselves :)

BeyondThePage · 11/04/2017 07:59

DD only does piano and takes a year per exam. However, she is not doing every grade. So this will be a 2 grade year... How it usually goes for us :

She will get the pieces in June after GCSEs are done - learn one piece (usually B piece) between exams and summer, pick up another piece (A) in summer alongside Aural, then other piece (C) at Christmas alongside the extra scales and upping speed. Sightreading will continue (ha!) and she will be playing lots of other stuff as well - some for pure enjoyment with friends/alone, some for school exams, some for ensemble stuff at school concerts.

Then around Feb hols or Easter hols she will "beautify" the pieces, fall apart on the A piece, mess up the scales, forget how to actually play the piano and be ready for her exam as usual.

(does not matter if she has more or less prep time - the last month always goes that way - hey-ho...)

Fleurdelise · 11/04/2017 08:19

Beyond that made me laugh, dd has the same routine of ruining it all the last couple of weeks before exams.

Dd also did an exam a year but a couple of grades each time so grade 1 followed by grade 3 and now grade 5 a year after grade 3. For grade 5 the festival slowed her down but benefited her on the performance side.

Dd plays a lot of pieces between exams, she never jumped from exam pieces to exam pieces but has a history of always picking the harder pieces of each grade usually she'll listen to the cd that comes with the book (I always buy the book with the cd) and likes a couple of the alternatives meaning I need to buy the additional books. She took half a term to prepare for grade 1, a term for grade 3 and now two terms for grade 5 but on and off as the grade 5 pieces were ignored in favour of the festival ones.

The clarinet is much easier from the point of view of being able to already read music, she did grade 1 after 12 lessons and now will do grade 3 a year after starting lessons, but I am sure that once she'll head towards grade 5 it will be more difficult.

Greenleave · 11/04/2017 08:21

Great results everyone!

On exam, it really depends on each child, I could see patience and resiliency in my second child. For my 9 yrs old then the logic that the longer you learn the piece the better it will get doesnt work. Once she reaches to a point then the learning will be completely diminished, she could overcook it badly. Now, it could be because we havent found a right way to teach her another way of mastering the piece better. Same for violin and piano here. It also depends on our (parents) priority. Without an exam ( or festival) I have less motivation to pay for lessons.

foundoutyet · 11/04/2017 09:22

dc2,(the one who just passed her exams), struggled with the exam piano (not our usual centre). Her best piece became her worst piece. She said the piano was so "heavy" she couldn't really do the dynamics justice. I know our piano at home is a really light one. Any of your dc complaining of this?

Kutik73 · 11/04/2017 09:40

found, yes it happened to DS too. The centre his teacher books for her pupils has a piano with incredibly stiff keys. We were warned in advance that playing too soft may not make any sound. DS said it was not easy to create the dynamics he wanted.

Kutik73 · 11/04/2017 09:46

We had a concert at the centre using the same piano and I could see many children struggling to make sounds of some keys. Older and more experienced ones kept going but smaller and less experienced ones kept stopping and re-playing the note that didn't come through. They looked so puzzled. I was wondering if the examiner noticed the problem.

Original poster
Wafflenose · 11/04/2017 13:29

Look what came today! She is very pleased. I'll have to get a new frame, and I'll move her current cello, recorder and music medal certificates too, to create her own special wall.

April Music Thread
OP posts:
Kutik73 · 11/04/2017 13:50

She is absolutely adorable. Star

onlymusic · 11/04/2017 16:27

We got 124 for exam, though I knew it was going to happen one day 😂 but first merit after all distinctions was still a bit of shock 😂
However, one thing that I totally relate to teacher's fault is sight reading-They didn't touch it at all (as it is very good smile)-all our do teachers this mistake again and again....does not matter how many times I asked them to practice it....
Apparently she got the lowest marks for the piece she played the best according to accompanist....
Oh well, back to business now Grin

onlymusic · 11/04/2017 16:28

Waffle, Rara is sooo cute! Well done Rara we are all very proud of you :)

onlymusic · 11/04/2017 16:49

Oh, and her aural is max marks minus 1 - Aural Books app rules :)

BeyondThePage · 11/04/2017 16:52

haha only ... my DD can only aspire to a merit.

Great at playing piano - both practise room and performing - just rubbish at playing when in exam conditions. (102 to 118 is her usual range... but to be fair she only does the exams to "see where she is at")

well done to all those who have results! Don't have ours yet, but the exam was only last week.

LooseAtTheSeams · 11/04/2017 16:56

Waffle that is the cutest photo - she must be so proud!!

Original poster
Wafflenose · 11/04/2017 17:03

Well done to your DD, only - that's a lovely mark. Rara got 17 for aural too, and knew she'd made a slip. Pieces were 25, 27, 26, scales 19 (she forgot the crescendo, except in the last one, but didn't make any mistakes) and 16 for sight reading.

Over the next year or so, she will be collecting Grade 3s! She has her Grade 3 Recorder from last year, Cello lined up for June, and Clarinet probably next March!

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Fleurdelise · 11/04/2017 17:21

That is such a cute picture!Star

Only well done to your dd, we had the same experience with grade 3 piano also regarding sight reading, since then the teacher is hard on it, she's put her on grade 2 improve your sight reading (so a grade below as she didn't want to shock her) and we went through all the books since grade 3, now doing the grade 5 book twice. You can work on it yourself, in our case the teacher just explains each new chapter, the piano Ones have 9 chapters, and Dd does 2-3 exercises a day with each piano practice, takes her about 2 months on each book. She is so much more confident, I can't wait to see what she'll get in grade 5 as there is a massive improvement in her sight reading.