Musical potential

[Aurea]

Hello!

My son who is 12 (nearly 13) has just passed Grade 6 piano with merit. He's also taking violin grade 6 in June. He achieved distinction in his Grade 5 theory when he was only 11.

Would you say this standard show future potential for music college, or is he just averagely good?

Many thanks for any input.

Hard to say with just that information and grades are just one aspect but although very good it is not exceptional. Plenty of others will be at that level or way ahead. As a guideline specialist music schools guideline for age 12/13 is having passed grade 8 (a good past at that) for piano and violin albeit grade 7 for other instruments and plenty will be above that. Saying that music college could be an option if he progresses well in the next few years but be warned piano and violin are phenomenally competitive.

I would say a bit above average but why are you worrying about music college at this age? The decision to become a musician (or go to music college - not the same thing) must come from so deep within the person. It is one hell of a journey, hard work, small rewards, unstable life. Only someone utterly driven from within to seek music as their creative expression should go there. It's nothing to do with a parent really, and definitely not glamorous.
I am writing as a successful musician with an international career. I know what I am taking about. And it's really hard and a life times work for some not huge reward. It has to come from within, and that is not your place to choose - especially not at this age.

He sounds very talented to me. Encourage him with his music as the skills are invaluable in so many ways and then see what he wants to do and how it goes.

Thank you for your replies. He just has a 20 min lesson a week for both instruments in our local state school. I might see about getting him a private teacher if he's keen.

You see that makes an enormous difference! The children I know who are a higher standard have at least an hour a week lesson plus parents who are semi professional to accompany/help practice. Those grades on 20 mins lesson are much more impressive and show a dedication to practicing alone! Get him into some orchestras if possible - ask here for suggestions...playing in groups is a huge help for musicality!

Thank you! He is part of a school orchestra (a bit screechy) and plays in a good strathspey and reel ceilidh group for adults as well as children (we are in Scotland)

He doesn't practice a huge amount - most days but just a few minutes per instrument. He just seems to have taken to it easily. I encourage him and used to play the cello as a child but don't do much to help.

He sounds like he has a lot of potential. If he enjoys it look in to private lessons. Good luck.

Agree, assessing potential can't be done on standard alone, you need to consider the context of how long they have been learning and what their trajectory is. My son is the same age, doing grade 8 piano in June, grade 8 standard on violin, considering grade 8 theory (yes he's a bit of a theory freak; did grade 6 a couple of years ago because a teacher was keen to put a group of them through it at school). But he started violin lessons at the age of 4, and has had a lot of music in his life generally.

So from the sound of it your son is doing very well, in his context. The "social" side of music is where it will really tell, in my belief - so keep up the group music making, and see how his interests develop. Potential for music college is likely to demonstrate itself in a wish to spend increasing amounts of time playing and/or practising over the next few years. I do believe in the advice I've heard from others, that music careers are something you should do because you couldn't possibly not do it, rather than "oh yes I suppose I could try that". So academically encourage him to keep options broad at this point.

Good luck to him!

I totally agree that potential cannot be done on standard alone. You have to look at the whole thing. I know a child who got in a top music specialist school with grade 4 violin. The school said the child was full of potential and passion.

dragonslaire sounds a bit too harsh to me, but I guess what she was saying was the desire has to come from the child which I do agree. I think talent and potential alone wouldn't be enough to make a music career and even more so in the classical world but then this can apply to any serious profession.

Aurea is not asking if he could be the next Perlman or Lang Lang but if he has potential to aim at music college which I would say a big yes if that's what he desires and has dedication to make it. He sounds very musical!

Actually, dragonslair is right, in that music is more a calling than a choice. I've yet to meet a successful musician who ever seriously considered doing something else, or fell into music by accident.
That said, a number of people do get into music college without that passion...and then leave music to go and do something else at the end of it.I
Standard at this age is pretty unimportant; potential and drive are everything.

He's about a year younger than my son then. The advice from dragonslair is spot on I think. He sounds like he has some talent and enjoys it.
My boy is 14, did grade 7 horn at 13 but only passed-he'd been distinctions all the way so it was a shock to him. His friend has just done grade 7 violin and got disctinction. Of the two of them my boy is the one likely to want to study music and be musician. His friend may currently look better on paper but there's more to it. My boy has played in bands and orchestras weekly since the age of 9, he adores performing and is in NCO this year (first year of trying). He practices enough but won't devote enough attention to scales etc at the moment but he's pretty good on that undefinable 'musicianship', it's instinctive. If he worked really hard he'd be really good. His friend only plays in school, no out of school ensembles at all. He's forced to practice by very strict parents and derives very little enjoyment from it. So which boy has the greater prospects musically?
All that said, he's determined to get distinction in his grade 8 and will resit if needed.

I think he's more than averagely good with that bit of extra context. In my experience, those who have got grade 8 by 12 have come from very musical families where they are immersed in music at a young age, and have private lessons etc.

Agree with other posters that it can be a hard life/profession and has to be its own reward.

I would say he had the potential to compete for a music scholarship at an independent school but that in itself is not evidence of music potential.

S bit of context -
Both myself and my DH are professional musicians, with careers playing for many of the country's major orchestras.
We both came from non-musical families. I started learning the flute at 9, got grade 8 distinction at 12, went to a junior department and then music college as an undergraduate and then post-grad, and started working professionally while still at college.
DH started playing drums in a pipe band as a child, then moved into full drum kit in gigging bands, then went to performing arts college, and only in his 20's went to music college as a percussionist. He doesn't have music A level of a degree or a single ABRSM exam qualification.
There are many ways into the profession; you don't have to have pushy, musical parents, don't need to have been at a JD or specialist music school, don't need to have been in NCO/NYO/ ECYO etc. You just have to have talent and determination, a fantastic work ethic and excellent social skills...and a bit of luck.

Floot
I do think it sounds as though your ds has lots of potential though and I would look into getting private lessons . That's made all the difference to ds who also started learning at school . You really don't get much done in 20 minutes and here the lessons are often in groups as well .
I do agree with the others though that say that the desire to study music has to come from within. I keep trying to put Ds off !! and in some ways would be quite relieved if he changed his mind ( and as the same age as your son he has lots of time to do that ) . Hopefully your Ds has many years of enjoying playing ahead of him . As a non musician myself I am very much making it up as I go along to provide my ds with a bit of guidance and suggest things that he could do . I also think it's good to have an idea of how good is good and what opportunities are out there . I'm glad it's not just me that asks these sort of questions !!