Just wondering if anybody else is doing it? Up to grade 5 the books helped break all the sections down and made it so much easier but now I've spent hours reading the AB Guides and am still getting nowhere. Considering getting the massive harmony book to help. Advice?

Some people find Harmony in Practice very useful. Personally I didn't - much too heavy going and slow. If you do use it get the answer book as well. I found the ABRSM Big 6 book much more user-friendly. I too found grade 6 hard to tackle - it's a very big step up from grade 5, but I got a merit pass after 3 months' work. The harmony was the main problem - I can hear it in my head but can't get the right thing down on paper!

Although it is pretty dense, I do think the big harmony book is good - it explains things and gives you plenty of practice. Agree that you should get the answer book too. It will take you beyond grade 6 if you do all of it. Good preparation for 7 and 8 too.

The best advice is to get a teacher for the higher grades. I scraped through G6 on my own with much effort but then got a teacher for G7 and it was all made easy for me.

I would agree, but it's notoriously difficult to find a teacher for the higher grades. It's also expensive, as theory is very time consuming. I checked out answers for the harmony questions with my piano teacher, but I must admit that I resented the time taken out of my lessons, even though it was my choice to do so - I'd much rather be playing! Ideally a theory class would be the answer, but they seem to be as rare as hen's teeth too. For adults, Benslow Music Trust run a course called Harmony for Beginners 2, which is for those with a basic knowledge of harmony and claims to be helpful for those preparing for theory grades 6 to 8. It runs from 21-23 August 2009, but isn't listed on the website yet.

I've found the ABC Book of Theory the most easy for the basics so far, and then I fill in the details using some other books. I've got a teacher which helps. If you get stuck on specific questions, you could try asking on here, particularly if you haven't got a teacher

Thank you I'll have a lok at some of these books and finding a teacher cos I would really like to take this exam. Thanks again x