I'm doing my Grade 1 Flute in a couple of weeks but do not have an accompanist. Is this a massive problem? (i.e. will I turn up to the exam and find they won't allow me to do it?) I'm not worried about playing the pieces without the piano part as they work well enough by themselves.
Any help would be much appreciated
CheekyPea
xx

You may find that you are not allowed to play. A student of mine turned up without an accompanist last summer (I was stuck on a train during the floods) and was not allowed to play. As this was already a rescheduled appointment (and the last opportunity she had), it meant that she missed her exam altogether...

W

If it's Associated Board you must have an accompanist. If it's Trinity Guildhall you can use a recorded accompaniment for Grade 1.

Your best bet would be to ring (or get your teacher to ring) the exam centre and ask the rep who accompanies candidates there. There are often one or two people who accompany for several teachers if the teacher isn't a pianist.

Which pieces are you playing, out of interest?

Hi
I have just accompanied 5 flautists in their grade 1 - 3 exams. The accompanying parts are really quite easy and I would have said a capable grade 5 - 6 could do them. Do you know anyone who learns the piano? Maybe your flute teacher can suggest someone or you can look up Accompanists on the UK piano website.

I am pretty sure they won't let you take the exam without an accompanist if it is an AB exam

Well, this post Grade 7 pianist has been sweating blood over some of them.

Sorry, you have no option but to get yourself an accompanist. Playing with the accompaniment is all part of learning to perform the pieces properly. Your teacher should have talked to you about this....or maybe you are self-taught?

I'm essentially self-taught. I'm doing this exam to raise money for charity - a group of us at uni learnt each other's instruments and have got sponsored for it- but it was not that well organised; I've had 1 lesson and was away on the set exam date. I'm therefore doing it at home but am now the opposite side of the country from uni and people there who could have accompanied me.



I'll be honest, I haven't actually chosen my pieces yet, as the Grade 1 book only arrived through the post yesterday! I have sight-read all of them with relative ease though so was just going to choose the ones where the piano accompaniment was the lightest. I'm hoping I'll be fine though (I'm Grade 8 in other instruments so the scales/aurals/sightreading I don't think will be a problem)

In that case, I'd choose Greensleeves, which has a very easy accompaniment, and probably Vielle Chanson (haven't played the accomp for this, but it looks reasonable). If you can get hold of Time Pieces Book 1, the Kabelevsky Prelude is another very easy accomp. I'd avoid Hot Chilli; I've played this for three exams so far over two terms and still get bits wrong. Then anyone who plays piano a bit, especially if they are first study something else will be able to have a go. You must have an accompanist, though, there is no option to play unaccompanied.

Try and find an accompanist who is already accompanying candidates at your exam centre because they might charge less than an accompanist who has to make a special journey to the centre. And they might already know the pieces you choose.

You could maybe contact the HLR (Honorary Local Rep) to see if they know any accompanists or could put you in touch with someone else who would know an accompanist. The telephone numbers for the HLRs are listed on the ABRSM web site:

http://www.abrsm.org/?page=regions/uk/eng/reps.html

Accompanists' charges may include reviewing the pieces, travel and accompanying on the day - the costs may vary quite a bit so it would be worth while asking around. I think most candidates would have a rehearsal with the accompanist in advance of the exam (but I might be wrong on this), and obviously that would be chargeable as well.

Contact the local rep and explain to them your dilema - exactly as you put it above, and especially that you are, in effect doing a charity 'grade 1 challenge' .

Ask, very politely, if they know who the teachers are for candidates taking their exams just before and/or just after you and whether they "might be able to suggest someone that might be able to help".

I've never covered for anyone in this situation but did once accompany another teacher's pupil in an emergency when the other teacher did not arrive at the exam centre (car broke down, before the days of mobile phones).

Alternatively, could any of your old school friends or teachers help out?

I've just noticed that on the musicteachers.co.uk web site, you can search for "accompanists" as well as for "teachers"


Edit: To search by "accompanist" you have to go to the Search page, they don't give you this facility on the Home page

Whereabouts are you based, CheekyPea? There might be a Forummer who's able to help.