I just had a question that may seem a little elementary, but I wanted to make sure, as a newbie to ABRSM.
When exam time comes, are scales required to have a cadence at the end?

No. (bit of a blunt answer!). i've never done them, and i've never heard of anyone else who does. i do them at home sometimes, because im bored, but never in a exam.

The only place I've seen cadences at the end of scales is in Hanon.

No, they're not necessary. Like Robodoc said, I've only seen them in Hanon - better to just play the scales than add on the cadence and get it wrong, which would probably lose you marks, when there are no bonus marks to gain anyway (I think).

~Wobby~

sorry..... but what is a 'cadence'???
(newbie here, playing at grade 2 to 3 at the moment)
thankssss
Jo

Hmm, you'll have to consult Grade V Theory for that!

I can't remember the exact terminology, and it's hard to explain for me, but it's kind of a way of ending a theme. The most common is the Perfect Cadence, which is Chord V to Chord I. It kind of makes the part sound complete, allowing for the start of a new part, or acting as a transition between the two...

That probably sounds really confusing - maybe somebody that has done Theory recently will be able to explain it better!

~Wobby~

Cadences are just how phrases end. Perfect is the fifth degree (or chord, or note) of the scale to the first. In music a perfect cadence is usually defined as: V-I (meaning five to one). Other cadences are Plagal (IV-I), Imperfect (anything-V) and interrupted (V-VI).

You can also refer to the degrees of the scale with their technical terms. In C major:

C - Tonic
D - Supertonic
E - Mediant
F - Sub dominant
G - Dominant
A - Sub mediant
B - Leading

All you should do is to play them as laid out in the scale book. Easy! You don't add anything. Good luck with the teaching.

so if you played the scale with a 'cadence' at the end, would it mean that if for example you played Cmajor, then when ending it (i.e. when you press C) you should then go on to press the G?? and would it be the G above or below the C you ended with? sorry to be such a pain

You would add chords to form a cadence on the last two notes in the scale in this case. In C major you would use the chord of G as you play D and the chord C to harmonise the final C of the scale. That would give you the chord progression of V to I, forming a perfect cadence. Remember that you do not play cadences in scales for AS piano exams though.

Thank you Petrat, I will ask my teacher to show me this. Yep, do know I don't play them in exam, thanks again

Thanks all! Some other exam boards require the cadence at the end (in Canada). I recently moved to the US from Canada, and so I went with ABRSM for one of my piano students. So far, I've had much success in this forum and found the website to be a great resource. Now, all I have to do is help my student pass the exam!