Autumn 21 music thread

[thirdfiddle]

Well, we started the summer thread on a rainy day so how about an autumn thread on a sunny day?
Welcome all parents of musical young people, from total beginners to total professionals. Please come and chat in one of the friendliest and most helpful corners of MN.
What's new this term?

We haven't had introductions for a while.
I have a 12 yr old brass player DS and a 9 yr old violinist DD, both also play piano, all the above around grade 5ish with varying degrees of practice and actual exam taking.

They have accumulated quite a collection of ensembles between them so it's great to see everything going back to closer to normal this term. Just hoping they get to last the course this term and that we might get to hear them all in action. Some of their groups I still haven't heard since they joined. I know it's not for us but they do like performing too!

All the best to those on the last thread negotiating music college auditions!

👋 long time member of these threads but mostly from afar these days. DD1 at specialist music school and DD2 at JD both very happy to be back to something like normality! Lovely buzz about the place today as I sit in the refectory watching the world go by... we've been lucky to have a few courses and performances over the summer too. Happy new term (and new thread!) everyone x

Happy new term!

Sitting in a coffee shop while my two do the intro meetings for their music Saturday school (feels weirdly normal that they're back there). I

I have two DDs. DD1 is 14, and about grade 5 violin and viola but really more into science and debating, and DD2, whose the one who does most of the music, is 12, plays flute (and now piccolo), cello and bassoon, at variously grades 7, 4 and 5 (ish, apparently).

Also hoping this year is more normal than the last- it's been so tough on everyone.

It’s great! School choirs and ensembles back on. Music centre back on too.

No more screens in individual lessons and teachers allowed to reposition arms etc again. DD(10) sings and plays piano and cello.

I’ve got a 6th form child at a specialist music school. Currently applying for conservatoires whilst experiencing a more normal (hectic) term at school.

Hectic is good - here's to more hectic.

Ooh, new term, new possibilities. DS looking forward to getting back to piano, not done really had a lesson since June. He plays for relaxation, no exams. DD1 started at JD, and loving it so far. Dd2 going to finally get to join regional orchestra, after never having played live with others ( except family/ teacher and at church). Feels like things might be looking up and we might get some live performances, hopefully this side of Christmas.

Place marking

I have a daughter who spent 8 years at specialist dance/musical theatre school who is now about to start an MA in musical theatre.

And a son who after flirting with several instruments and singing took up keyboard age 14 and now wants to be a session musician/pit player/music arranger/keyboard programmer/whatever as long as music is involved. We are currently doing the rounds of uni open days.

Can I ask whether anyone knows whether we have to record all audition pieces for a conservatoire by the 1st Oct (next Friday)? Or whether we just need to put in the application by then and the recordings or actual auditions follow. We're super-stressed by the short deadline and the fact that the state specialist music school isn't being very proactive. Thanks so much

Hi, I’ve posted a few times on past threads (mainly questions because I’m fairly musically ignorant!). DD1 plays violin she’s due to sit grade 2 in a few months, she’s also started drum lessons last week and does ukulele at school.
DD2 has been doing flute for about 5 months so still a novice and has just joined the school choir.

I’m hoping I can get some hints and ideas for when they do their grades (dd1 missed grade 1 out).

@MaddieandLiv

Can I ask whether anyone knows whether we have to record all audition pieces for a conservatoire by the 1st Oct (next Friday)? Or whether we just need to put in the application by then and the recordings or actual auditions follow. We're super-stressed by the short deadline and the fact that the state specialist music school isn't being very proactive. Thanks so much

I’m not sure about all conservatoires but the 2 DD is applying to is Auditions by 18th October. One is online and the other is a choice of online or in person. Have a look on the individual websites audition pages. Good luck

Thanks so much. Good idea, I’ll look at the Conservatoire websites not UCAS 👍🏼

Real life concert for my 2 eldest today at the chamber music festival - I cant wait

@Mendingfences Hope it went well! No idea when we'll have our first live concerts. Probably not before December. Hoping for a couple of Christmas ones though.

horseymum it was really really lovely, great music and a great atmosphere. Hope you dont have to wait too long for concerts to start up again.

@PinotAndPlaydough Just ask away on exam questions, between us we've probably asked the same questions and got some answers too. There are some good apps around to help as well. You can also see whole exams on the Abrsm website so you can see what happens and how they mark them. We've hopefully got a couple of exams this term and one after Christmas. Will be nice to do it live as I don't think either DD would have the stamina to do the performance one with four pieces in one take. Live gives them the chance to get their breath in between.

Hello - can I jump on here to see if anyone has advice before I start a separate thread? My 17 year old did Grade 8 singing a while ago and wants to do a diploma - she thought ARSM. Her teacher has said she can't do it until she is mid 20s as the repertoire isn't suitable until then. It seems a bit off to me given the ARSM was clearly aimed at teenagers who have done Grade 8 but found DipABRSM with its viva a bit daunting and were defecting in droves to ATCL. Surely they should be assessing on how the candidate performs the music not on whether they have the voice of a mature opera singer or not.

For background she is an ex-cathedral chorister with a purer head voice and a warmer mezzo register and quite a lot of overlap between the two (so can produce a warm top G but her top Cs are more churchy). I can't help thinking that a careful choice of repertoire - oratorio/early opera/art song should be OK for ARSM. Failing that perhaps she could go down the ATCL route where you can select your own repertoire (although that programme does need to be mainly opera/art song but again with a bit of oratoria and early opera ought to be achieveable).

Otherwise are the exam boards saying that anyone can do any exam they are technically capable of except for singing where you need a fully developed adult voice?

Sorry - realised I should have introduced myself - have 2 DC one just started at RCM - piano, cello, harpsichord and one in sixth form - harp, violin/viola voice (grades 7, 7 and 8 but not done any exams for quite a while). Elder went to specialist music school younger CYM and now music scholar at a (non specialist) boarding school.

Happy to answer questions on how it was applying to specialist schools and JDs and senior conservatoires if anyone has them....

Can't help on singing londonmummy but nice to "meet" you, that's quite the musical CV both. Maybe bumping the thread might catch someone more in the know on singing.

Thank you @thirdfiddle - once upon a time that was my DD until she worked out that violas get more opportunities and don't need to put the work in......

Londonmummy I never understand why more people don’t take up viola. The top strings group at saturdayschool this week?30 odd violins, plenty of cellos and one viola (my poor terrified dd1 who is really new to it.) All the second and third violins complaining they weren’t violin one…

Ha! DD a violinist at specialist music school. Also plays viola but has NO lessons, had a years worth at age 11 and rest of her viola ability comes from what she learns as a violinist and playing in ensembles. Guess which instrument she plays in all the school ensembles... spoiler: not the one she's there learning!! However she loves it and it works for us as keeps her progressing.

Given the girls' music school's terrific fondness for moving students from oversubscribed instruments onto more unusual ones in the wind department, I don't really understand why they same doesn't happen in strings given the HUGE number of violinists.

"Flute is it?" one parent remarked to me about three years ago. "You'll be getting a bassoon soon..." She was right.

Hello, thanks for the thread, just introducing myself. have 8yo DS who plays cello (preparing for G4) and 9yo DS who plays violin (G6) and harp (G3). both just started at a London music school on Saturdays, two weeks in and it's going well so far albeit tiring! struggling to fit in much practice during busy school days, 20 mins per day per instrument feels like winning at the moment...

I play viola and violin, DD is interested in trying viola when we find the right moment. Her violin teacher thinks get her sight reading a bit more solid first.

For me viola's a bit like playing second violin. Happy to do it sometimes, don't want to do it always.

Maybe there's a bit of a vicious circle with viola. Not enough play it, so as a result if you do play it you get kind of stuck with it all the time, and that puts people off taking it up. Plus for DD's level, there is a definite difficulty gradient, easy 3rd violin part to hard 1st violin part as they progress through. Violas if any double the 3rd violins, which is good when starting out but may not sustain interest.