Just to say how happy i am. I posted a while back enquiring about what peices to play at the advisory audition. Well the story from there goes like this: I passed the advisory audition and got through to the final audition which was the following week. I then received news i had got through the final audition and was asked for a two day stay for further assessment. And i have just received news today that i will be joining the school in January (oh my god so soon) It was such a nice school when i went to stay and im so happy to be going there next month. I love the way they have practice sessions and it is a generally very laid back atmosphere. The quality of teaching is incredible aswell. Im so looking forward to it and was so shocked and happy to get in.
On other news i am going on to grade 8 next (i know alot of you will be critical of what im about to tell you judging by a few posts i have previously read) the last grade i did was grade 5 last year when i was 14 (i was 15 in october) I just havn't really been bothered with grades since then. It would be nice to get grade 8 and i am in no hurry to acheive it. I just dont want to do grade 6 and 7, i don't really see the importance of grades other than that they give you a level and are quite good for your CV etc. I can play a few grade 6 & 7 peices anyway. I completely understand how big a jump it is from grade 7 to 8 let alone 5 to 8! But i have been working through the scales and having a look at the difficulty in the aural tests (grade 8 aurals - ouch!) I can also play the C3 Prokofiev - Gavotte in the new grade 8 syllabus. And can play the first two pages of the A3 Scarlatti. I got 137 in grade 5 and since then i have been working on broadening my repertoire, i can play flight of the bumblebee and babayaga from pictures at an exhibition, those are probably the peices im most proud of. I hope to broaden my repertoire a lot when i go to the music school. Just wondering if you had any advice on my situation.

PS (Sorry if this post has any mistakes - i broke my wrist yesterday which means i am having to type with one hand which is incredibly frustrating! Its a bit of a bummer because i won't be able to practice for the next 10 days. And it is my left writing hand so i can't do any theory exercises to compensate )

Congratulations on the music school, and comiserations on the broken wrist.

Only thing I'd advise at this stage is to not overdo playing even when your wrist is mended - give it plenty of time to recover its strength.

Of course that means you'll have to focus on left hand technique for a bit....

Well done, an sorry to hear about your wrist. As KatyJay says dont rush things and play too much too soon.
Way back in the 60's I did grade 6 (also at about age 14), then missed out 7 and 8, and did ALCM just after my 16th birthday. On organ I just missed out Grade 7.
So I agree it isnt necessary to do all the grades, though although you might be able to play the harder pieces, can you cope the the more technical parts ? I was certainly always dodgy on scales, but did well in aurals and sight reading (transposition also on organ). But then I blew the aurals on Grade 8 organ and it cost me a distinction. In the end I shunned trying to do music as a career, I often wonder how my life would have turned out if I had continued instead of doing chemistry.
Good luck for the future!

Well done for getting in! It sounds like you will enjoy it! Be careful of the wrist - it is tempting to start practising again as soon as possible, but maybe you would be better leaving it just a little while longer to let it heal properly - you don't want to cause any damage and then have to take even more time out of playing!
I don't think people will be critical of you doing grade 8 - you passed grade 5 with a very good mark and it sounds like you are getting to that standard anyway - so go for it! Choose some pieces you like and just enjoy learning them - as you said, you are in no rush, so you may as well enjoy it! Maybe you could have a go at several of the pieces rather than just 3 of them so that you have experience of a wider range of music at that level? But obviously this would take up more time and you might not really like any of the other pieces! And just carry on broadening your repertoire....I'm sure they will give you more advice and support when you join this new school in January!

Yes i have been working on a wider variety of peices on the grade 8 syllabus. I love every C peice: from the Alberga (C1) to chopin's nocturne (C10?) all the way to Rach's prelude (the last C peice). I love every single one of the C peices! So i am keen to learn a few of those. And the A and B peices are wonderful too. I would love to have played Haydn's Allegro (B2) but my teacher thought it looked a little too difficult. So i think i will probably do the Clementi Allegro con Spirito (B1) which is also a lovely peice. I have just managed to tackle the cluster tremolos in the Scarlatti peice (A3). But on the beginning of the 3rd page of the peice(bb. 54-55) im finding those strange trills in 3rds difficult - i just cant keep the 3rds together. Talking of 3rds, i also find the chromatic legato 3rds with one hand difficult - the fingering is quite awkward. Apart from that im finding the scales OK.

Just to add to that, does anyone know of St Marys Music School in Edinburgh? Its on Grosvenor Cresent in Palmerston Place. This is the music school that i will be moving to. Its nice because i used to live in Edinburgh so i have loads of friends up there. Its strange to be moving back. Hopefully my wrist will be back to normal by the time i get there

Yup, I know quite a few people who go there (all of whom are lovely by the way ). What year will you be in? Well done on getting in, and I hope you enjoy it! And good luck with the wrist.

I will be in S4. I love the way all the years hang around with each other, there isnt any divide between the years. And all the people seem really nice. Ooh im getting excited just talking about it! What school do you go to? I used to live in Edinburgh - i went to James Gillespies High School, so i already know people up there

Well done for getting in!

Well done, I still remember the day I was rejected by the Auckland University of Music....