Hi everyone,

I while ago I posted asking whether you should play the repeats in the pieces for grade 5. The answer I got was no - only in the first few grades such as 1,2 and 3 should you bother with repeats. I also looked this up in the exam requirments and found it wasn't a requirment for grade 5.

My teacher, however, is insistant that I play the repeats for the exam. This is making me uneasy as I have told him this isn't required. I know this sounds like a minor issue, but I have only sat one exam in my entire life - grade 1 classical guitar -and I want to make sure I'm totally prepared for taking my grade 5 classical guitar. My teacher hasn't put anyone through and exam in years, and I'm starting to question how much of what he knows is up to date.

Can you be marked down for playing repeats an exam where it isn't a requirment?

Please help!

LG

If it is an AB exam you could try showing your teacher a copy of 'These Music Exams' by Clara Taylor (the chief examiner). The bit about not doing repeats is on page 21.

A recent issue of the AB Libretto magazine also lists the top ten questions about music exams, which includes this question about repeats. It is on page 9. You could try showing that to him as well.

By doing repeats you risk irritating the examiner, as it makes the exam take longer and therefore more likely to make the exams after it run late. I don't think you would actually get marked down though.

Good luck with your exam.

In general, if I disagree with my teacher then I practice it her way until the piece is performance ready. I then make up my mind which way I prefer. I sometimes change my mind and like it best the way my teacher recommended.

In relation to the exam, you could practice it both with and without repeats, then ask the examiner when you arrive. But what do I know; I haven't taken an exam in years! I hope one of our more knowledgeable forumites comes to your rescue soon.

Which piece is it?

I would stick to the advice given in the exam guidelines, and avoid playing the repeats.
I don't think it's a big deal, but it may give a harsh examiner an excuse to knock a mark off - and especially so if you slip up in the repeat section, which you shouldn't have been playing any way!

It does not matter what Grade you are taking, but if the repeats are more than a few bars, AB states to omit them. However, if it is only a few bars, and by repeating it with a slight variation (may be ornamentation or dynamics or articulation appropriate for the style), it may enhance the performance of the piece. I have done this before without any problems.

The problem is that you don't agree with your teacher... Is your teacher entering you for the exam or are you? The teacher must have read the regulation for that particular exams.

Good point, I don't want to make a mistake and mess up on the repeat if I shouldn't have been playing it in the first place!
The piece is from list A, Sarabande by Ernst Gottieb Baron - I don't know whether you've hear of it, there are two repeats one 12 bars in, the other 21 bars in. Though the piece is to be played at a reasonable tempo, I think to repeat 12 bars seems quiet long, but then 21 one bars seems way too long! Am I right in thinking this?

I don't know how to approch my teacher on the subject again, I've already brought it up a few times before playing the piece in lesson. I think I'll just have to do as you said JudithJ, and just practise it both ways, then I can just ask the examiner how I should play it. To me though it sounds better played though only once as it can be played with more expression, the second time round seems piontless for an exam.

If you play the repeats you will probably annoy the examiner which is never a good thing.....i dunno my teacher and i usually agree......

The strange thing is, usually my teacher and me agree too! It's only really this point that we differ on.

You could turn up with 'These Music Exams' and say you've been reading it to get an idea about how the exams work and you just happened to notice the bit about repeats.

I'd advise you, as people already have, to take in a copy of 'These Music Exams' (print the relevant page from the Internet if you can't easily get to a music shop with it in) and if you like, show them the page from Libretto that someone mentioned earlier. If you do this in a polite manner, I'm sure that your teacher won't object.

As others have said you will not lose marks explicitly for playing the repeat, although obviously if you play something wrongly the second time that could cost you some marks (having said that playing the repeats in the exam could equally allow you to show that you can do something if you play it incorrectly the first time). The examiner may, however, stop you playing your piece before the end if you play the repeats (they're allowed to do that if you're running over time) which isn't something you'd want.

The general advice is not to play the repeats in the exam, and I'd advise that you don't play them. If,you do decide to go down the route of playing the repeats for your teacher and then not doing in the exam, make sure you do practise without the repeats in quite a bit, due to nerves even seemingly little things can 'throw you off' on the day, so it's helpful to be used to playing in the way you intend to for the exam . The ideal, of course, is to talk to your teacher about it.