St Marylebone C of E School for Girls - music aptitude

[vapourtrail50]

I'm looking at secondary schools for my daughter and I am wondering about the music aptitude test at St Marylebone's.

I had been told by a couple of people that to get anywhere with the tests then a child had to be "at least grade X" (one person said grade 4, another grade 6) by the time they apply. I can't see anything on the website about this being a requirement to apply through the performing arts channel but presumably being a certain grade by the time you apply means you are more likely to have the technical skill on your instrument to compare well to others.

I'm asking because my daughter does both piano and singing but is not keen on (though not completely resistant to) doing exams/grades - I'm happy not to force it but wanted to be clear if we were missing any opportunities by her just learning the technical skills etc without doing more exams.

Grateful for any advice!

Not St M's but my DD had a selection of music aptitude place offers to pick from for secondary.

She was G6/7 level in first study and G2 in second at that point. She now has 4 instruments and is G8 level in 1 and G5/6 in the others.

She has never done any music exams in her first study and only did G1 & 2 in piano before we all decided it was a hinderance rather than a help and stopped.

Lack of certificates was not an issue for any scholarship or aptitude place she applied for, state or private. They were interested in what she could actually do performance wise, not a piece of paper.

ETA: I would seriously question a school who were interested in exams. Beyond being a guide to level they are playing at, they're not very useful.

Certificates won’t matter. My DD tried, and failed, to get into another school on a music place, and she had already passed grade 6 at the time. Standards can be very high, but it depends on the popularity of the school.

DC is at in the Junior Department of a music school. Formally, they do not specify minimum required levels of proficiency for admission, either on their website or in any documentation. Informally, applicants' parents are told that it is really, really, really unlikely that they would be successful below certain levels. These levels varied massively, from ABRSM Grade 8 with Distinction for very popular first instruments such as piano or violin, to Grade 4 for less popular instruments such as oboe or tuba.

You should email St Marylebone and ask if the music department would provide any guidance on which levels most successful candidates have been at recently.

Edit: I agree with PP that schools rely on their own auditions and do not give any weight to external certificates. However, your DD's music instructors should be able to give her a sense of roughly which level she's working at.

My DD sat the music aptitude test last October and got a place starting this September. While she is naturally musical and very good at aural tests, she had only grade 1 at the time and preparing to sit grade 3. She skipped grade 2. I wouldn’t rule it out purely on grades. This is for piano so quite a popular instrument. I think a lot of it is to do with being naturally musical and have a ‘good ear’. Hope it helps

Also I would keep in mind that before even having the opportunity to play your instrument, you will need to score high in the music aptitude test which is essentially a computerised aural test. You definitely need to be naturally musical as a starting point. Once passed the first round, the second will consist in an additional aural test (this time played live by someone) and then play one piece of music. 100% not about grades but more around musicality, potential, uniqueness.

MAT is based on electronic sound that is rather unnatural and harsh (sometimes to the point of being painful) for acoustic instrumentalists. I know of a couple of musical children who failed it.
I'd do some practice on that.

Thank you, everyone, for the advice. That is reassuring. I can see how doing grades has helped accelerate her learning in many ways but I think it might turn her off if that is the main focus. Very aware that it could be very competitive but sounds like progress grades/external exams may not necessarily be a deciding factor - so might be worth a go when it comes to it.

Your DD sounds amazing!

Lol, I'm not sure her Geography teacher feels that way 😂

She's only interested in music so I am forever grateful that aptitude places and great school music departments exist.

Definitely give it a go with your DD - enthusiasm and a genuine love of music counts for a lot. Make sure her teachers do lots of aural tests as they will help. Also remember these places are really competitive - DD is planning a career in music and she didn't get offered them by all schools. There will be different criteria - some schools are more classical focused than others, some offer just based on MAT scores, some want orchestral instruments more than voice/piano. All she can do is give it a go and see.

And with grades, go with what works. Some kids love doing them and having a structure to work within. We found that DD got stuck in a weird mindset where she wouldn't play anything unless it was graded at her grade.

When she started her 3rd instrument I said to the teacher that it was strictly no exams, and to just go with what she wanted to do and try and teach the beginner bits along the way. Think the first piece she learned was on the G5 syllabus, but a) she did not know that and b) she really wanted to play it and so was motivated to learn and practice.

If they get to really high level, you can always pop back and knock off a couple of exams to get the UCAS points or to have something to stick on the cv. The main thing is that they have good teachers and just really enjoy music.

This is really interesting and so variable.

Round here (Cheshire) it's Grade 3 in one instrument. No reference to music theory.
DD is Grade 5-6 in her first instrument (piano) Grade 3 in her second and third (both orchestral - one wind, one string) in Year 6. Plus Grade 5 music theory (because of piano).

I always find the difference between London and the regions so interesting for this kind of thing.

I'm sorry, I think I threw out a red herring with this post. As I mentioned, DC is at a music school. The auditions were about potential, but they were also very much about achievement to that point.

If I understand correctly, aptitude tests are supposed to assess only potential. Schools aren't supposed to select based on prior achievement. In theory, technical proficiency on scales or performance pieces should not be a factor although, in practice, preparation for the ABRSM aural tests might be useful for a music aptitude test.

Thanks - ended up looking at a website for a music school and we're definitely not in that league! Even aptitude would be a long shot...

@BeProudPlumPoet - do you mind if i ask what song she played for her second round?
My DD is taking the aptitude test today - she is musical and has been playing the piano for a 4 years but more casually, we never pushed too hard but all her teachers told us she has lots of potential if she puts in the time. She can play well if she practices. Having an idea of the song level your DD play would be helpful picking her song, if she passes this first level. thank you!

She played The Sad Ghost, grade 3 sillabus for 2023/2024

Hello, how quickly did you hear back after she did the music test if was successful? Did they say how many were taken from each category? Seems like there is a bigger push for the music places 🫣
how’s she settling in now?

She did really good on the test. we got the call Monday morning inviting her back.
Her piano teacher said the song she was going to play was grade 1. She has been practicing The Sad Ghost which is a few grades higher. Hope she will do well - the test is this Saturday.

We heard back around a week or so later. Plenty of time before the deadline of the 31 October. Not sure how many but I suspect close to 4 for each category so around 4 places for instrumental. She’s loving it so far

Mine did The Sad Ghost too. Best of luck!!

Good luck! Would love to hear how she gets on in the final round

@BeProudPlumPoet - how long did the school take to let you know she was invited to the school based on the aptitude test? thanks!

They called us a couple of days after the first round. And the outcome of the second round was sent via email on the 21st of October if I’m not wrong

Thank you so much.