Hello there,

How much of a step up is grade 8 oboe from grade 7 oboe? I kinda want to go straight on and take grade 8, but that feels more like a "jumping through hoops" excercise rather than real musicianship. Is there anything I could play which would be rewarding meanwhile?
Also, what are the grade 8 pieces like? I have a copy of the Haydn one, which looks quite nice, but I know nothing of everything else.

Thank you!

Would it not be the same difference in any instrument? Grade 8 is no easy task! It demands VERY high levels of musicianship.

Regarding the repertoire, the Poulenc Oboe Sonata is a fun piece to play, but the 2nd movement is unbelievably fast, I can't keep up (piano part that is) the Mozart and Marcello are fun pieces to play! Vivaldi and Telemann is always good!

IrisH - LoonY

I don't play oboe, but if you want to get grade 8 over and done with, you could put in for the exam, work solidly on the pieces and then do all the musiciany things afterwards. The fact that you're aware of missing out something by skipping grade, shows that you're the sort of person who's likely to catch up later. Others might diasgree, but it really depends on how much work you're prepared to do, and whether you need to get it done for a college/university application

I'm not an oboist, and I really would ask an oboist for opinions on pieces, because although you can say you like a piece from playing piano accompaniments, there is no way you can judge difficulty. There are some dead easy piano accompaniments which are absolute he-ll to play on clarinet. (I play clarinet, that's why I'm using it as an example)

Cool, thanks for the advice ... I think I'll try about 6 of the grade 8 pieces to kill 2 birds with 1 stone; learn the pieces, increase the repertoire, AND have a couple of back ups if I start to dislike my pieces!

I needed 2 year between grade 7 and 8 flute. Even then I failed 8 the first time and had to retake it in the next session. I think that at grade 8 they are looking for a lot more musical maturity as opposed to technical ability, than they are at the lower grades. This was certainly my experience.

Have you played the Schumann Romances for Oboe? Can't remember which grade they appear on.

David

Grade 7 and Diploma

IrisH - LoonY

Yeah, the Schumann pieces are nice, but one helluva blow.

From Grade 7 to 8 there is a bit of a jump but at grade 8 the examiner will be looking for, your tone, intonation, phrasing, articulation,etc. Also you will be expected to be able to do vibrato when appropriate as well.

Grade 8 is fairly hard for the oboe as you have to have good stamina because obviously you don't want your lip to go especially when reaching high notes. One thing they might mark you down is if you go too sharp as this always a factor when playing high notes on an oboe. Need to be careful not to become sharp otherwise an examine will mark you down on intonation.