This is for anyone out who took Grade 7 or higher on guitar. I have three issues.

1. I'm working through the G7 scales, aiming for MM=146 as per the ABRSM Scales and Arpeggios for Guitar book. That tempo seems pretty achievable for the scales, perhaps a bit slower for the arpeggios. One thing that is bothering me is the double-stop scales. I'm currently practicing those at MM=90, which seems a way off from the above figure. Considering how difficult it to play scales in thirds or Octaves, I wonder if the tempo requirements are much slower than that for normal scales?
2. For something like G major in thirds, do I play with RH fingering IM, or PI/PM alternating? The octaves are fine because they are PI/PM alternating.
3. For scales the requirement is "any regular combination of i.m.a". This could mean IMA, IMAM, AMI etc. etc?

Anyone got any advice or experience to share?

Thanks,

S

1. There are many unresolved questions about the guitar scales - hopefully all will get clearer with the new syllabus. Personally I wouldn't worry too much about the relative speeds, since you are likely to find different kinds of pattern like to go at different speeds. So long as you know the harder patterns as well as the easier, and have worked on them equally, if you have a 'normal' technical ability you should find they will have OK speeds overall.
2. If fingering is not specified for a particular pattern, I don't think anybody can blame you for doing what you find easiest.
3. The famous "any regular combination" - yes in principle it does mean what you say. If you can do them all - and for Grade 7 that's pretty steep - then you will have benefitted greatly from the work you put in. If you can't, reflect that your examiner probably has little if any idea what those letters mean, probably can't see your fingers and couldn't see clearly the pattern you do anyway if its reasonably fast.

So in summary, do all you can to get the different patterns on a par, do the RH patterns as much as possible, but don't get in a stew over it: general confidence of response, fluency, eveness of tone and volume over shifts etc, are at least as important.

And good luck...

Stefano

I feel reassured I was on the right track!

Thanks for the well written response Stefano.