Ahhh!! I have grade 8 singing in just over a week and I'm so stuck on the aural.
I've signed up to hofenote and i really don't understand

1.Get those chords! -A3 where you have to identify the progression of four chords. What are the roman numerals for?? and I don't get it at all!!! what am i meant to be doing!!

2. Modulation- C1 How can you identify the modulation, i feel like im guessing

I'm so scared!!! I'm going to fail!!!

I CAN'T sightread either, to save my LIFE!! and i get really REALLY bad nerves. I need to do really well on aural to make up for the inevitable fail on the sightreading!! I'm already panicking Majorly!!! and next week i'm away ona biology field trip from Monday-Friday so i only have time for ONE MORE LESSON!!! i've never seen a grade 8 singing sightreading example and i can't even do grade 1!!!!!! and I never realised that you had to talk about a piece!!! Just found it on hofnote!!! Is there a list of vocab you need to know?? I did GCSE music so i know a bit but a list would be useful!! Please PLEASE help!!!

a very flustered and panicky,
Keeponsinging

there's an easy trick for the modulation - if you hum the root of the first chord (usually the tonic) all the way through them playing the piece, the interval between the final chord and your held note will tell you the modulation eg. 2nd = supertonic minor, 5th = dominant etc

Number 1.. CALM DOWN!!

Okay, for the chords, can you identify the cadence? That will give you the last chords straight away, then there are various standard approaches to cadences which you can use to make an educated guess at the others

Perfect Cadence - V I, usually approached from IIb or IV
Imperfect Cadence - I V,

Someone with a better memory should be able to fill in the gaps - I left my harmony book at school, but will have it on Monday if no one has replied by then

ivb-V in a minor key (Phrygian/imperfect cadence) characterized by the falling semitone in the bass
Ic-V bass note stays the same though might jump up or down an octave
V-VI interrupted cadence
Ib-Vc-I bass notes fall by step

how is there a falling semitone in ivb-V? so in a minor Dm/F - G?
wouldn't a falling semitone in the bass imply some sort of VI-V? or a neopolitan (sp?)?

for example A minor chord 1V=D F A
V=E G sharp B

therefore chord IV in 1st inversion puts the F in the bass which falls by semitone to E

I think you need to have a serious chat with your teacher - what is he/she doing putting you in for grade 8 when you are so clearly struggling with several areas of the exam? Are you seriously saying that you have not practised sight-reading or aural with your teacher?

The Roman numerals are just one form of chord notation. If you're not used to them, use whichever form you normally use. The examiner won't care what system you use, as long as you can make it clear what you mean.



Make sure you can get whether it's major or minor. Once you can do that, concentrate on listening for a new sharp or flat. If you can manage both of those, you've got several of the possibilities covered, which at worst narrows down the options you're guessing from.


Well, you've already passed two grade 6 exams, so you've done the sight-singing for the aural tests of those, plus the grade 6 singing sight-singing already and you're already used to sight-reading new songs.
The aural sight-singing should be easier than the actual sight-singing test, so you don't need to worry about it. For a singer, the sight-singing bit of the aural is pretty much a freebie.



Just remember the sort of questions you could get asked for your grade 6 aural (and lower grades) and talk about the same sort of things.


You must've done well at both grade 6 exams for your teachers to be letting you skip straight to grade 8, so I don't think you need to panic about it. You'll be fine.

T.

Did your teacher really enter you and then fail to help you to prepare properly? I would either stop worrying and go for it and do your best to attempt every section or else withdraw from the exam until you have had a real chance to work at these things on a regular basis. Failing is never a pleasant experience and nor is being out of your depth in an exam situation. Above all stop panicking and have a serious talk with your teacher about it as soon as possible. Telephone him or her this evening if you can. It may well be that you are just worrying unnecessarily and are actually well prepared to cope with it all.

I found grade 8 aural difficult too. What you need is practice. As I play violin and not keyboard I couldn't play chords and listen to them, but I used software to practice (Earmaster).

There are free online programs, e.g http://www.good-ear.com/

Hope it goes well. And remember it is only one part of the exam.

No, my teacher has taught me aural, we just didn't do section D! and i have practiced sight reading, just havn't seen an actual ABRSM example! She is a good teacher, i'm just v. bad at this stuff!

I'm not great at it either, but remember, its not worth that many marks...

For modulations, presumably, you can tell major and minor, so thats a good start start. Modulations to the dominant feel like "the sun is coming out" and to the sub dominant like it is going behind a cloud. I think there is also a bit of a feeling of tension in the sub dom.