In the teachers' forum, thread entitled "Changes to ABRSM exam regulations". But you can do it now, anyway - that's good news!

21st November Grade 8 Piano attempt 2. Lets hope the nerves don't get me this time.

Glad to hear you managed to get it sorted, good luck in your exam.

My exam date is fortunately on a day I can take off, there were certain days in the exam period that I wouldn't be able to so I was very relieved. But being the start of half term, both my accompanist and teacher are away on holiday! I have texted my accompanist but it is not unreasonable that she is either out of range or doesn't have her work diary with her. So I may not find out till Monday whether she can do it! So I still have that worry to deal with this week. I think the time off work scenario is always an added worry for adults - it isn't always so easy to take a day off with only 2 or 3 weeks notice.

I had a dream last night that I broke my only working reed in half at the start of the exam...not that I'm getting stressed about it or anything...

Good luck to everyone else too, hope the last few weeks of prep go well.

Thanks Flobiano. Love the signature re Grade 8 piano and scales in 6ths... there is hope! Actually the scales are chugging on nicely . Fingers crossed for no interruptions this time. Pieces are OK if I hold my nerve. I've changed two out of three.

Kate the thread is in the teachers section. It appears some forumites have received emails about not changing running orders. When I received an email from the board I nearly paniced, but it contained the date for my grade 8 and my only candidate this session (other than me)'s Exam appointment.

I can just about do the scales in 6ths for C, D, B and F# both majors and minors but now trying to learn F minor and it is making my head spin! Glad you have managed to sort them out.

Which pieces are you doing this time?

Closely guarded secret!

Good luck all

No exams for me this session I do have a grade 1er to accompany though.

I'm accompanying a grade 4 and a grade 5 sax

Just got my date for LTCL Recital - Friday 9th Dec mid-morning.

Double-gulp.

But at least it's a lot more than 3 weeks' notice - boss will be pleased.

Two weeks and six days to go, and I'm trawling through books about performance strategies and neuro-linguistic programming......

....and losing sleep already.

Sadly I've cancelled my exam due to a family situation


BUT I will definitely do it in the spring next year hopefully followed in June with Grade 5 because I'm working on those pieces and maybe the scales just now !!!


MASSIVE Good Luck to everyone with the next few weeks!!!!

Very sorry to hear that , but best of luck when it comes to session A '12.

Am going for Grade 5 Cello - almost pulled out yesterday due to family crisis, but have decided to go ahead. I totally sympathise with you Lottie.

Just done my grade 8 oboe. Fairly confident I've done enough to pass (hopefully anyway) but generally quite unhappy with how it went. Nerves got the better of me and I played well below my best and made some silly mistakes. Very annoyed with myself.

Good luck to everyone else doing exams in the next few weeks.

Sounds like a fairly typical exam experience! Always you can think of an occasion when you did it better, but best of luck and fingers crossed.

Thanks, sadly in this case the occasion when played it better would pretty much be every other time I've played it in the last 4 weeks...

Trying to be positive, only 1 piece out of 3, less than half the scales and a few bars in the middle of the sight reading that really went more pear shaped than they should have done. Everything else was minor jitters.

best of luck for the result, flobiano

Thanks Barry, I think I would have given me 124 - which isn't too bad really. We'll see if the examiner agrees.

124's not to be sniffed at!

Good luck with your result. I hope everyone else here posts how their exam goes. Mine's a week today

Got a date for G7 horn. 6th December, just need to persuade him that sightreading and transposition are possible.

Well it is done and dusted and went better than in the summer.

The scarlatti was a disaster (which was a pity because I play it well) The phrasing and musicality was there, but the number of mistakes!

The Beethoven was a mixed bag when it was good, it was very, very good, but again there were errors that I just wasn't happy with.

The Chopin however had the odd wrong note but musically was a dream - quite pleased with that one.

Scales. Apart from a memory lapse in f# major in thirds and c# minor in sixths these were not too bad at all. Again I was reasonably happy with those.

Sight reading. The odd slip, and I probably could have done some more with the dynamics, but not a disaster.

Aural- absolutely fine.

If I have not passed this time I'll be very surprised.

Hope you get a better result this time round, jod

I have a date for my ATCL, see my thread in the diploma forum for details...

Very glad to hear it went better this time, jod. Was thinking about you yesterday!

It is a good feeling to get it out of the way - time to relax a bit and treat yourself!

Good luck for results - hopefully they won't take too long.

Fingers crossed.

Another pair of crossed fingers here

OH NO!!!

After all the hours of practice, the positive self-talk, the extortionate entry fee, the bananas and overwhelming nerves......

I SCREWED UP!

Post-mortem, for anyone who might be vaguely interested:-

Piece 1 was creative in the second half; Pepusch might be surprised to learn that he had written some of the notes that I played. Piece 2 was mostly good, except top F# (very last note) ran out at the end. Come to that, there were one or two F#s missing mid-piece as well. The accompaniment had some interesting notes in too! Unaccompanied study had two bars where I completely lost it, tried them again and still didn't get them (I know I shouldn't have done that!) Scales were mostly right after some false starts, but Bb melodic minor was creative, and bottom C / C# seemed to go absent without leave for C chromatic. Sight-reading had quite a lot of right notes, but also a good smattering of wrong ones and no dynamics. Aural tests: I am good at sight-singing, except not today. There were right bits and wrong bits throughout, and the cadence I was asked to identify could have been anything for all I knew!

So much for trying to do it without beta-blockers. I think I can safely say that was my last ever practical exam.

Please shove up on the bench there and pass down the cakes and wine.

*shoves up*
*passes along wine and cakes*
*....and chocolate*

Well done for getting through it! Just roll with the emotional bit today. I found that the afternoon of the exam I was really tearful because of the release of tension, the disappointment that things hadn't gone as expected and the nervous energy from it all. It is perfectly normal, it is also perfectly normal to focus on the bits that went wrong. I found that in the next few days it was easier to gain a more balanced view and identify more things that worked. The examiner will not penalise you at all for your accompanists wrong notes, and if he doesn't know the piece may not have been so aware of your creativity. Sounds like most scales were right (I still got 19 in my flute G7 despite having complete memory block over a couple and at least one other false start!), sight reading sounds like a pass, aural tests if some was right you won't have lost too many marks there!

I know it can be very hard when you don't feel you have done what you were capable of but the fact that you faced your nerves and took the exam and got through the whole thing is FANTASTIC! There is no courage involved in doing something we are not afraid of...so pat yourself on the back and do something nice this afternoon.

that's lovely!
Cakes and wine all round.

My exam is tomorrow, and this morning I got a nasty electric shock at work from a piece of equipment. My left arm is still buzzing and it's left me feeling all shakey and emotional. I suffer anxiety attacks as it is....do bananas really work? I know I'll get palpitations and shakes as usual. I'll be back here tomorrow evening on Misterioso's bench sharing the cake and wine!

Well done to all of you already sat the exam. And fingers crossed for good results.

All the best for those awaiting to sit their exam.

If Misterioso has cake and wine, a girl needs these things too whilst she waits for her results, remember she failed in the summer.

*pours jod a glass of wine, and starts cutting into the next cake*

don't worry Kate, ...there will be some left for you tomorrow.

Good luck for tomorrow, hope it goes well and you are recovered from your shock soon...doesn't sound very nice at all, I hope you've been checked out properly by docs.

I don't know if bananas work in reducing nerves or not, I had one anyway....I tend to feel a bit ill, and get shaky hands, if my blood sugar drops, (especially if I'm nervous) so I think it helped stabilise that if nothing else!

I am sorry you feel the exam didn't go well Misterioso, please don't beat yourself up. I hope your marks turn out to be much better than you are thinking they'll be at the moment.

Good luck for tomorrow katemorrisviolin, hope your arm is ok.

I was thinking of doing Gr 5 flute next Spring or Summer, but I know that nerves would get the better or me and my mind would go blank. I think you are both very brave and wish you and everyone taking a practical all the very best.

If everyone could save me a space on the bench, large wine and a large slice of chocolate cake that would be great. I'll be joining you on Monday. Oh my .... nervous or what!

looks like I'll need to get some more supplies in over the weekend.

Good luck for Monday.

Thanks, flobiano, for your supportive comments. It's very much appreciated. I have pinned a list to the fridge of the marks I would have given me for the various sections, and it works out as a bare (very bare) pass. Since the examiner is a mere mortal (at least, I think she was!) the marking must, by its very nature, be subjective to some extent, so it really depends on how generously or otherwise she was marking. We shall see.

This afternoon I had a slightly shaky G2 violin doing her exam. I arrived at the exam centre minus the accompaniments, and had to make a hasty dash back to collect them. (Speed limits? What are they? ) Her pieces were good, but supporting tests have always been a bit weak, and sightreading is best not mentioned.

Totally frazzled now. And also rather depressed.


Good luck, katemorrisviolin - hope it goes well. And hope you've recovered from the electric shock. I think the jury's out on the bananas. I don't think it helped me, but I only had one. Look forward to seeing you tomorrow!

Yes, we'll save some for you. Good luck for Monday, Bella-drum!

So sorry to hear of your experience
I'm sure from what you've said you will have passed - I'm sure the examiner would have been on your side as they all are.
If it helps to share.....
Grade 5 Cello a couple of weeks ago:
shiny wooden floor, chair too low.
Struggled through the pieces, in places were not too bad
Scales: F major left me wondering how all my open strings could be out of tune, then it dawned that they weren't, sadly my fingers were
Downhill from there on. Think I may just pass, but there is nothing I can do except wait

Enjoy the relaxing evenings of not having to practice quite so much and chill a little!
Enjoy the wine - I would bake you a cake, but can't cook......

Is there still room on the bench?



Really, really good luck!
Hope the shock has worn off by tomorrow.
Get a good night's rest



Totally understand - best of luck with the results



Best of luck - sending you positive vibes from this end

Can't really add to what flobiano has said. All the best for a successful result : there seems to be lots to commend there.

exam!

Feeling anxious for Misterioso, celloman and others who have recently had exams and don't feel they did themselves justice. Hoping for the best for all of you.
Good luck to kmv and Bella-drum.

Don't eat all the cake, Ill be needing some in about 3 weeks.

*plonks down on bench, cuts a large slice of cake*

Thankyou folks for the positive vibes and good luck messages. I stupidly left my banana and day clothes at home so had to do my exam in my nurses uniform and feeling a bit hungry. My lovely accompanist said it might get me a couple of extra marks!
Just as I'd suspected, I got nervous as usual so had the most appauling tone on the slower of the three pieces. Oh it was painful...having the world's worst poker face probably didn't help either. Still, the rest went ok in spite of having the shakes. Exams are never as good as rehearsal. Too many variables one can't control. My lesson learnt: choose exam pieces that are loud and fast, even if it means not presenting a balanced programme.

Good luck everyone with results and exams still to come. Keep posting!

Sounds like it went pretty well overall...WELL DONE! Enjoy the relief of having it out of the way. I wonder if the poker face is part of the examiners' training....

Good luck to dotted quaver too.

I've got to the point where my results could possibly be available (I know some people have had them back in 10 days before), and even though I know, logically, that it is very unlikely that I will get mine till the end of next week I can't stop myself checking about 4 times a day.

I am not very patient...

Doesn't sound like a bad exam at all

Hopefully you'll get a nice mark too

Thanks! It's like golf though, eh, you always come away thinking "Oh grrr, I'm better than that. Next time I'll nail it".


I should think we're all the same!
Exam face piece one:
piece two:
piece three:
accompanying tests
leaving the room

Well done, katemorris, on getting through it despite the lack of banana et al. If you feel it largely went ok, it will have done! You are right about too many variables, though. No matter how well prepared one is ( and I felt better prepared for this than G5) everything can seem different under pressure. My lesson is also learnt: choose slow pieces wherever possible, and never mind the balanced programme!

Enjoy the cake!

Dotted quaver - hope it went well.

Thanks. It's tomorrow

All the best, dotted quaver

Good luck dotted quaver. Bring something to distract you like a book or ipod for those moments when you're there, warmed up and ready to go, but you still have a little wait.
And don't forget your banana!