Autumn / Winter 2025 Music

[northerngoldilocks]

Time for a new thread in time for the new school term!

Come and talk about music lessons, choosing instruments, exams, auditions, specialist schools, orchestras or whatever other music activities are going on. Everyone is welcome, from those with total beginners to those whose children are studying music at advanced levels. Ask for advice or share successes or struggles.

@herbaceous @achangeofnameisasgoodasarest - I think I said upthread that I know a Cambridge DoM - not one of the prestigious colleges but knows the CS system inside out as he administered it for a bit. He also got there from a south London state school with CYM and LSSO so understands that sometimes people from less priveleged backgrounds have to fight for things.

On the functional keyboard skills a good way to get into that is to get a hymnbook and sightread one a day - after a while your hands learn what common harmonies feel like. My DD did this in the summer holidays after Grade 6 and it really helped with sightreading too.

Thanks @Compsearch and @Londonmummy66. As DS is total music geek, he's been playing hymns from the green book since he was about 8. What with that and the chorister experience, traditional churchy harmonies seem burned into his brain.

As he's at a private school, this may count against him.

He currently fancies St John's, as it's so amazingly good, and he loved the atmosphere and the 'vibe' with the choral scholars, as well as the thought of tours and recordings. Though it's a massive commitment, with six services a week, meaning not much time for anything else. He may yet think about one of the colleges with smaller commitment, but not much less prestige!

@Londonmummy66 @Compsearch thanks so much! Impressive that someone can get there from CYM/LSSO - DD2 has of course been very lucky to also have specialist school in her corner for a couple of years... she knows how much more help she's had because of it!

She is no church harmony geek though - more political/literary - I was surprised to learn she was giving a seminar on 'symphonies under the Soviets' last week at school. The love of Shostakovich is strong and she also loves history. But she probably should have remembered rather earlier than the night before!

Might lob a hymn book at her in the hols and see if she can do anything with it.

We’re also on the Oxbridge pathway. Dd wants to apply to Cambridge. Not for music but she’s very keen to sing in a college choir but not sure how realistic that is if she’s not there studying music. She has a couple of informal chats lined up with the DoMs of her favourite possible colleges - they were very prompt to respond to her cold-call emails so we’ll see how that goes.
She’s currently in the midst of Legally Blonde at school - shattered but euphoric - and is helping at a junior orchestra event next week.

She came second in her school’s string competition (cello section anyway!) which she was pretty happy with but now her bow is broken so we have to do a very quick fix of that before the scholars’ concert the week after half term. Her teacher has kindly lent her one of his but it’s old and very expensive and she’s terrified to use it!

You can study anything and still be a choral scholar!

Well, apparently it doesn't work with subjects like science, medicine or architecture with a heavy 'lab' element.

I think you very much have to pick your college if you’re studying anything but music- Or if you want a life. Friend of mine’s son was a choral scholar at Magdalen Oxford. He wasn’t getting out much!

I also meant to thank @Londonmummy66 and @Ubertomusic for the school advice. Not really any the wiser but have a lot of research to do!

Other considerations are which colleges re looking for which voice parts for the year of entry! It seems to vary year on year.

Well dd will definitely be applying for natsci so she has targeted colleges that sing max two services a week. She is used to 10 hour school days with all the stuff he has on so hopefully that’ll stand her in good stead.

@QueenMabby I can never fathom how your DD fits it all in - sure she'll continue to be similar when she gets to uni... what a powerhouse she is. Well done on the string competition too!

Looking forward to having DD2 home for halfterm here. She's got two exams at the end of this term - one ARSM and one grade 8 (flute and singing). Apparently it's not the 'important' ARSM, which is next term so that she has more time to prepare. Good she gets them out of the way in lower sixth anyway I guess.

@QueenMabby probably on her list but have a look at Emma and Pembroke - both lovely colleges and choirs. Also the choir and DoM at Girton are absolutely brilliant.

I'm after advice on improving sound quality on audition recordings. We have historically just used my iPhone (an older one, not a snazzy new one). It has been fine and various auditions have been successful. But iPhone microphones are not very kind to clarinets and I was wondering whether any of you have experience of recording using a basic microphone to improve audio quality? I am thinking something simple from amazon, not creating a home recording studio!!

Would be interested in recording info as well. DD is recording entries for big competitions on her iphone but I can't help feeling now she's moved up a league better quality recordings would stand her in good stead.

I’d thought about an external mic too- iPhones are fine but the sound in our living room that lacks soft furnishings in the bit they play music can be v harsh.

from other groups the Shure MV88 seemed recommended as a good option for working on phones and iPads. I looked at it but was more than I was hoping to spend at the time!

Funnily enough DH was talking about investing in some mics yesterday as he often records things at home (not for public consumption but still). I will report back on what he has gone for.

For anyone with a Guildhall connection, I think they do reduced rates for Milton court recordings for students/staff/alumni, and possibly other music colleges have similar, but probably overkill for auditions.

@northerngoldilocks - bit more than I/DD wanted to spend too.

@Londonmummy66 there is a used one on eBay for £70 from a seller offering returns- so could be a cheaper way of getting one

Thank you

@northerngoldilocks - just looked at that and there seems to be an issue with the connector on that model only working on older iphones and my pampered little princess has a newish one.

Shame! Though think there is something about messaging him if you want to swap the cable. Might be worth asking re compatibility and what else he has? Not sure if the cable swap would fix the connection issue?

When DS was recording stuff for his agent they recommended a hand held recording device, rather than an iPhone. I’ll sift through the wreckage of his room to see if I can find it.

Only did audio, mind you.

Emma and Pembroke are her top two! She has meetings at both.

dd’s just finished a four night run of the school musical. She’s shattered! Not too tired for the cast party tonight though!

Hi, have a look at Mill Hill County High - I'm a musician and don't have secondary age kids yet but a friend invited me to their DC's Christmas concert and I was very impressed. Huge variety of ensembles, clearly loads of kids that absolutely love it, and my friend said the Music dept have had lots of success in getting kids into Oxbridge for Music and conservatoires recently.

Thank you @Arlington45 I will have a look. I’ve been researching various options and feeling quite defeated/overwhelmed by it all.

I think DS would have a good shot at grammar but for most of them that would involve a house move + 2 years of tutoring and it seems a lot of eggs in one basket/massive stress for him (and me!) and he and his sister are so happy in their current school. I’m weighing up now whether to go for some of the schools that have out of catchment places, with a view to moving only if he got a place, but they seem even more competitive. It’s very difficult!

He’s got lots of extracurriculars and choir will be 3 x a week from September so I struggle to imagine how we’d even fit in the 11+ prep. I find it hard to fit in the violin practice!