Hi, I have just began my piano lessons. woohoo!! Do you think it is possible 2 reach a grade 3 in 2 years. or even a grade 5 lol.

Yes, I'd say it's perfectly possible- if you practise and work hard!

Didn't you just imply in another thread that you can play Claire de Lune?

In answer to your question, yes grade 3 is quite possible and depending on your previous experience and aptitude you may well be able to get to grade 3 properly (by this I mean without rushing and leaving gaps in your knowledge) in two years.

Grade 5: you'd probably be rushing and leaving gaps in your knowledge to get this far, even if you already play another instrument; but if you're happy to say 'oh I just can't do sightreading' and not bother then you can probably make it at get a pass (maybe do even better) but if you want to progress and be genuinely good at playing the piano when you get to the higher grades then I wouldn't recommend it.

hi, yes i can play a bit of clare de lune, i have bin teachin myself 4 a year now on my own. Thankyou for your comments. I hope i do well, lol.

I have to agree with AP.

It's taken me 4.5 years and I've just passed GIII this summer.

I know everyone is different with learning. But I have played quite a few pieces of Beethoven and Chopin as well as exam work which has built up my repertoire and experience.

I wouldn't be able to play as well as I can now if I wouldn't have played other stuff.

Anyone can play just exam pieces and pass, even up to G8, but you wouldn't be a G8 pianist.

Hope this helps

Fiona

Thanks, but if u practise, i think it is possible.

Um ...Fiona....what do you mean by exam pieces? Thats music too.....compositions by great composers and minor composers.

In fact the "exam pieces" are more balanced giving you a wide repertoire to chose from. So you can explore even the lesser known composers/compositions.

Indeed there's nothing wrong with exam pieces: they're good pieces and no different to any other pieces. They have the advantage that you know they're of an appropriate level and are quite varied.

What we're saying is it's possible to learn three pieces of any standard to pass an exam (no disrespect to anyone who enjoys going at such a speed to just scrape a pass exams) but the standard to just scrape a pass with the pieces is, in my opinion, really rather low. I'm not being arrogant here, I don't even consider it a skill, but I'm fairly confident that when I started playing the piano I could have learnt three grade 8 pieces and worked hard on scales (and nothing else) gone in to a grade 8 exam and scraped a pass within 18 months just attempting sightreading as best I could and doing some aural practice. However I would not have been as good at playing the piano as I am now (or as I was 18 months after I'd started): I would, however, have had grade 8 but that would mean absolutely nothing to me. I would have to go right back to the start and learn properly to be a real pianist, as would everyone else doing this.

If you reach grade 8 having only ever played 3 pieces (or 24 just doing exams and nothing else from grade 1) there is not even a possibility that you are a grade 8 pianist all you have is a piece of paper and that's it. Grade 8 sightreading for example would be impossible if you'd only ever seen 24 pieces in your entire life (especially as most of them would be way beyond your sightreading ability). There's nothing wrong with exam pieces, they're good but you need more practice than three pieces at each grade to become a good pianist.

You can't be fooled by the fact that you can learn 'hard' pieces, anyone can and particularly with beginners you can't hear what's wrong with them until your musical ear has developed, you may think that a piece is perfect but your teacher (or anyone musical) could probably find about 100 problems with it...

If you want to be a good pianist start at the beginning and work your way up through the grades with wide repertoire; if you just want a piece of paper enter grade 8 next year.

QUOTE (Rupayan @ Oct 17 2004, 06:04 PM)

Um ...Fiona....what do you mean by exam pieces? Thats music too.....compositions by great composers and minor composers. In fact the "exam pieces" are more balanced giving you a wide repertoire to chose from. So you can explore even the lesser known composers/compositions.

I just meant generally. Exam pieces or otherwise.

The pieces extra to my exam work was stuff I loved and gave me a challenge.

Nothing wrong with exam pieces, just a bit of variation.

I've sort of done it, my teacher says I'm grade 5 although I've yet to take any exams. I will do grade 5 at some point thought, it depends whether or not I get into the Junior RNCM.

QUOTE (AnotherPianist @ Oct 17 2004, 06:43 PM)

Indeed there's nothing wrong with exam pieces: they're good pieces and no different to any other pieces.  They have the advantage that you know they're of an appropriate level and are quite varied. What we're saying is it's possible to learn three pieces of any standard to pass an exam (no disrespect to anyone who enjoys going at such a speed to just scrape a pass exams) but the standard to just scrape a pass with the pieces is, in my opinion, really rather low.  I'm not being arrogant here, I don't even consider it a skill, but I'm fairly confident that when I started playing the piano I could have learnt three grade 8 pieces and worked hard on scales (and nothing else) gone in to a grade 8 exam and scraped a pass within 18 months just attempting sightreading as best I could and doing some aural practice.  However I would not have been as good at playing the piano as I am now (or as I was 18 months after I'd started): I would, however, have had grade 8 but that would mean absolutely nothing to me.  I would have to go right back to the start and learn properly to be a real pianist, as would everyone else doing this. If you reach grade 8 having only ever played 3 pieces (or 24 just doing exams and nothing else from grade 1) there is not even a possibility that you are a grade 8 pianist all you have is a piece of paper and that's it.  Grade 8 sightreading for example would be impossible if you'd only ever seen 24 pieces in your entire life (especially as most of them would be way beyond your sightreading ability).  There's nothing wrong with exam pieces, they're good but you need more practice than three pieces at each grade to become a good pianist. You can't be fooled by the fact that you can learn 'hard' pieces, anyone can and particularly with beginners you can't hear what's wrong with them until your musical ear has developed, you may think that a piece is perfect but your teacher (or anyone musical) could probably find about 100 problems with it... If you want to be a good pianist start at the beginning and work your way up through the grades with wide repertoire; if you just want a piece of paper enter grade 8 next year.

I would like to add that a true Grade 8 musician should be able to play ANYTHING on the Grade 8 repertoire list, and pass.
In the same way as a true Grade 7 musician should be able to play ANYTHING on the Grade 7 list, and pass. etc etc

Not to belittle peoples' achievements in any way whatsoever. But something to consider...

Mike

I would like to say a grade 8 piantist SHOULD be able to play any piece on the repertoire list but sometimes thats not entirely possible- for me I have small hands, i can only reach an octave and some of those pieces are not impossible but incredibly hard for me to achieve. So my piano teacher chose pieces with not many stretchs.

And I believe it is possible to reach grade 3 in 2 years. I had been playing keyboard for 2 years- did a intro exam then switched to piano and did grade 2 in my second year then grade 4 and 5 the following year- so anything's possible if u work hard and believe in yourself (as corny as that sounds!)

It must be possible!! because I'm one of them!

piano lady,

i reach grade 5 in 1 year!

of course you can do it!

My teacher said it it possible 2.