Hi everyone

I've just been on holiday for a week & just thought I'd let you all know that I finally got my results for my grade 6 exam! My teacher phoned me on my mobile on Tuesday evening & told me that she'd just been sent an email to say that my results were ready to view online & I got a distinction!!! I could not believe it as I honestly didn't think I'd do that well. I didn't get the breakdown of marks but the next morning my teacher phoned again & said that my certificate had just arrived in the post so she could let me know how I'd done in each section.

I got:

Piece A: 27/30
Piece B: 29/30
Piece C: 28/30
Scales: 18/21
Sightreading: 17/21
Aural: 12/18

I was so pleased that I'd got high marks for my pieces as that's my strong point in exams & as long as I'd done OK on those I knew I'd be happy. I was surprised that I only dropped one mark in the B piece as in that piece there was lots of pedal & it was very hard to control because the piano that I played on in the exam had pedals that were really high up so I had to hold my leg up in the air when I took it off! It also made a creaking noise every time I used it so most of the time I was trying to keep that as quiet as possible! I made a few silly slip-ups in my scales but they were at the beginning so it must have just been nerves I think but 18/21 is still good so I'm not that worried. I definitely wasn't expecting 17 for my sightreading but I guess I did better than I thought I did! The aurals....well what can I say?! They did let me down but I knew I wasn't going to get a good mark for them anyway so it didn't come as a shock to me. My teacher told me that the examiner said that tests C & D were well answered but I was a little unsure in the first two tests which are the singing parts. I've never been a confident singer so I knew I probably wouldn't get it right but I gave it my best shot! Next time I'm going to ask my teacher to start doing aural practise with me way before the exam as we usually only start doing them a few weeks before & I think I need more time to practise.

So, at 131 I only just scraped a distinction but a distinction's a distinction whatever mark you get so I'm very pleased!

Anyway I think I've rambled on long enough for one post, I just thought I'd post my results as a few of you asked me to let you know how I'd done when I'd got them.

Lisa xxx

Well done!

Car Expert

Well done Lisa

Well done!

Congratulations, that is a really good score

Well done!

Congratulations . Glad it was worth the wait .

Absolutley fantastic, I'd be delighted if I get results like those, well done! Like AP said, well worth the wait!

Thanks everyone & you're right AP, they were well worth the wait! They came in the post on Wednesday so that would make it 3 weeks since the exam - I've never had to wait that long before, it was agonising!

Lisa xxx

That's wonderful - very well done!

Well done Lisa!

Well done, that's a really great mark!!

Congratulations Lisa, that's brilliant, with impressive marks for your pieces!

Lisa, I was so pleased when I saw your thread, and went on to read it straight away...Wow, what great marks! CONGRATULATIONS to you!!! You must be so happy.

Well done Lisa!

Congratulations! That's excellent

Well done!! I've been waiting for you to post your results, and I knew you were going to do well!

Wow! WELL DONE! *bakes big cake... you deserve it*

That's great, congratulations!!!

Congratulations! You should be really happy and proud of yourself- any mark that is a pass is good in itself so to have a distinction is fantastic!

Well Done

Hannaxxx

Well done

The above that you wrote sounded like a rap.
*giggles*
Congratulations to your distinction!

Thats really good !!!! Well done

Why not start working on aural stuff now? a few minutes every lesson till your next exam, plus your own practice in the meantime, will give you a real head start when you decide to enter for another exam

That's a good idea Sarah, thanks! We don't normally work on aural stuff unless it's for an exam but I suppose it would help me in the long run if I did spend a little time practising them during each lesson.

Lisa xxx

Even a few minutes each lesson will add up to a lot of practice over time, and you'll be grateful for the work you have put in when you come to do exams!

I think you said it was the singing bits you struggle with? Concentrate on those for a while till your confidence increases. You don't have to do examples from the books - anything which requires you to sing back, or to sight-sing, will help, however simply you start. Start with stuff you can do - eg for sight-singing, maybe singing triads, or singing in step, or find some solfege materials and start by singing descending minor thirds. Then move on as you gain confidence - rather than throwing yourself into practising grade 7 aurals! You need to start where you are comfortable so you can gain confidence and do it step by step, by the time you do another exam it will all seem a lot easier if you have taken it at a comfortable pace rather than jumping straight in at a high level where you lack confidence and struggle.