^ yep, that!

Thanks Cyrilla (and indeed Bag) for all your efforts!

Just done my Grade 5 clarinet exam. I was so scared & could feel my heart thumping and my mouth was so dry!
I played several wrong notes, despite being able to play the pieces perfectly at home!
Good Luck to everyone still waiting to take exams!

(I posted this in the wrong thread!)

Good luck for your result maisie!

It'd be much easier if you could video yourself playing and send that in instead, wouldn't it

I did my Grade 5 (piano exam) last Friday and received the results yesterday. I got 137/150 and am feeling on top of the world. The reason why I am happy is not only because I got the much-sought-after Distinction at 52 but because I felt (unusually) confident during the exam. I tripped up on a few mordents in the Haendel piece and made minor errors in the scales but for the first time, I felt I was able to control what I was doing. I was anxious, had butterflies in my stomach, etc. but this was not half as bad as in the previous 2 exams (Grade 3 in 2007, Grade 4 in 2008).
Part of this comes from studying about 2 to 3 hours every day but I used to do the same last year and the year before as well. I believe my self-confidence was (and is being) boosted by my new teacher, who I have had since January this year. The lessons are long and intensive and she exposes me to many "stressful" situations during her classes (playing the piece, then playing bits of it, then playing it again, then working on dynamics, phrasing, then isolating bits to work on in detail etc. etc.). When the moment comes to play in front of the examiner, it is as if I've already taken the exam quite a few times. In addition, I usually prepare the pieces and the scales well in advance so by the time I take the exam I have usually been playing them for about one year and this helps a lot. Take the tip.
Now I'm working on Grade 6 (List A: Scarlatti is ready and I am currently working on Mozart; B: Beethoven and List C Satie) and would like to resume preparing Grade 6 theory, which seems quite a tall order! I'll give it a try though and see.

Many congratulations Juan Carlos!

Bravo! Juan Carlos. That's a fantastic result which rewards lots of practice!

Excellent news Juan Carlos,
and congratulations/good luck to all who have taken or taking exams this session, everyone is a winner in my book.
I've just returned earlier this afternoon from my Grade 6 Clarinet and it'll be another nervous few weeks waiting for the result...

It all depends on how generous the examiner was towards a 50yr old who was so hot, bothered and shaking with nerves on the day.

Still ever onwards and upwards...

Regards, Peter.

Like my Grade 5 (102) it'll be very close indeed, watch this space...

If you let me know what room number it is I can probably find out....

Hrm I remember going in to the building, turning left, going up the stairs and the exam room was the first one on the right, two doors, one behind the other (presumably for noise reduction). It's all a bit hazy now

Perhaps the piano isn't anything "special" but at least to my ears it sounded really nice, and it was good to have something I liked the sound of to play in an exam

That nervous 50 year old sounds just like me!
Why do we put ourselves through this?
Maisie

Can't remember, I'm afraid. It's upstairs...

They all have names and I can't remember either... it's OK, 'll probably end up there again in November...

Aah, it must have been one of the rooms that have been refurbished then. I normally have lessons on the 2nd floor where the rooms are grottier and still have numbers (I imagine the names relate to people who donated funds to the refurbishment).

I'll be there next Thursday, I'll check then...

I was there on Monday - but on the second floor...

W

Did my Grade 3 piano this afternoon.
All 4 major scales OK. 3 of 4 minors OK, fluffed the other.
Contrary OK. Fluff in chromatic..........never done that before.
3 of 4 arpeggios OK, could not get back down in A major
List A and B OK, small fluff in TopCat.
Sight reading..........
Aural..........he said yes that's it to all my answers.
Passed? Probably, but not a distinction, or a merit this time.
Bev.
PS. Now I can start on the duet that Gerald wants to play with me.

That sounds like great news, Bev. Let's hope so .

(Top Cat - it wasn't that same tricky bar you played for me was it? In a way I hope not, as I would feel guilty. A bit )

The duet is called Arioso and you can choose whether you play primo or secundo, I don't mind. I used to play it with my sons when they were learning the piano .

No, it wasn't that bit Again I hadn't done it before. Nerves.

Sound like you did ok.

Well done Bev, that sounds like a good exam.

Don't worry about getting stuck at the top of A major. I had a similar experience in my grade 7 recorder where I got stuck at the top of a G# minor arpeggio. It only cost me one mark overall

Well done Bev! A small fluff in a piece called Top Cat sounds ideal to me.

That sounds like you've done fine Bev. Best of luck for the result.

It was a ginger, whiskery, fluffy furry fluff.
Thanks everyone,

Yeah good luck! What A and B pieces did you choose?

I can't imagine fluffing TopCat now, I've played it so many damned times! The Study in F might be a challenge come exam time but I love it

Well done, Bev.

Sounds fine Bev! well done. It doesn't seem five minutes since you were wondering which pieces ...

When you are in the room with an ABRSM examiner seven headed scary monster listening for every mistake, you might do a fluff too
Actually he was very nice and told me to keep it up

T - 4 hours (but who's counting?).

When I did my exam, I made a minor fluff in the piece I thought was impossible for me to make any mistakes on So I hear you My heart also felt like it was going to explode out of my chest...

Oh no. Only two days. In fact one day, and a bit.

Sigh. This is going to be a very musical weekend. But for the wrong reasons.

And to make it worse, when my school music teacher found out that I'm doing the exams, it turns out that she's got to be at the same venue on Sunday (probably with amazing little 5 year old grade bizillion candidates )

I have to be there early because we're giving my flute teacher a lift there a while before her candidates (including me!) start so that she can get everything ready, then mum's possibly taking me into town for a drink, but probs not.

But fingers crossed I won't bump into my teacher... That would be horrible. She'd probably go and try to listen through the door if she got the chance.

I am quite sorry to read this. My flute teacher was at the examination centre when I took my Grade 4 flute last year because she had two of her children taking exams, and all her other pupils were in the same session as me. She was so helpful and calming that I quite missed not having her present when I took my theory exam this year.

Good Luck, bobziekins

Oh no, I meant my school music teacher. As in secondary school teacher. I love having my flute teacher there, she was for my grade 3, and will be for this one.

But thanks anyway

Phew, that's good then

Hope it went well today.

Thanks yes it did (I think). Pieces were probably as good as they were likely to be though I think I could have made more of my study. Scales were quite straightforward - I felt the examiner let me off lightly (about 4 scales and 2 arps). Maybe he instantly recognised my huge talent or else thought I was a lost cause.
Sight reading not too bad, I kept it going and played most of the right notes. Dynamics, articulation, all that stuff, it's optional right? Aural OK I think.

Big thank you to rachi for accompaniment and good luck to those who still have theirs to do.

Well done Pushpull.

It sounds as though it went well - good luck!

I'm baack!

Just got back from grade 2 piano.

It was ok. I was sooo nervous though. I remember looking down as I was playing and wondering how I was actually playing anything be-cause my hands were shaking so violently, it looked like I was doing vibrato on a violin

Scales- Ok. I did the first few scales well, but as I got to the end of each scale, got excited because it was the end and mucked it up

Pieces- a bit rushed. Sort of attacked the second piece...

Sightreading- really annoyed. I played it almost perfectly in the 30 seconds which they DON'T LISTEN TO, then as soon as the real thing started, it all went wrong

Aural- hmm, alright I think. My voice was all wavery on the singback, and I kept stuttering and getting all confused on the answers.

Hopefully I will have passed.

Flute tomorrow!

I'm back too.
Not perfect but you don't generally get that do you?
Starts could have been better.
Aced sight reading and musical knowledge too I think in spite of some slightly odd questions in relation to the pieces.
Examiner had a 'which one is the candidate?' moment... but I WAS the one holding the clarinet which you'd have thought might be a clue.
Unfortunately was partly affected by the piano...... NOT the fault of the accompanist who fought valiantly with a much less than acceptable instrument. My initial though was that I shouldn't have been affected by it but on reflection I think that it's justified that I was. For it not to have made a difference I'd have to have been not completely aware of the other half of the ensemble.

There will be a complaint made.

Sounds like you've done well sbhoa

A real shame about the piano : but of course that's utterly out of your hands. A poor piano at a test centre is unacceptable, and I would be complaining too. I know rachi will do a good complaining email/letter...

Managed to get 89 which is a distinction.

My grade 5 piano student got 90.
This is the first time I've taught at that level so I'm pleased for both of us.

You would be very disappointed sbhoa if I replied with anything else but !

Many congratulations!



A great day all round! Well done sbhoa and pupil!

Have another

Many congratulations to you both!

Brilliant, well done you

Wow, well done!!

Well done to both Sbhoa and pupil!

My flute exam is on the 17th now. Had to swap my original date (10th) with a pupil who couldn't do the day my clarinet pupils were given. I'm trying to work out how best to do it on the day. I have 4 pupils and I'm accompanying 2 of them, so do I go in first and get my exam over to be in a less stressed state to accompany, but then I can't prepare my first pupil, or do I go in last?!

Regarding my flute preparation, it's once again been rubbish, but mainly due to being forced to wear a splint on my right hand for the last 13 days :-(

Good luck to everyone else taking exams.

Having an extra week hopefully will give more chance for your hand to recover...

Good luck with your preparation Appassionata

Congratulations sbhoa.

Have finished my grade 5 violing exam (thanks goodness)

Life can begin again..

Went ok, a few fluffs, hard to play when both hands are shaking.

Examinser was nice and chatted a bit which helped.

Got a shock at the length of the sight reading but the aural went ok so hopefully I've passed.

Don't really care any more, just glad it's over!