Hi there. My son's doing his ATCL Piano Recital and I've no idea who will be page turning. In the rules it says no teacher or family member can do it. Why ever not and do people really stick to this? Who have others used or do you battle on with turns on your own?

Sara

Perhaps someone at Trinity has watched La Tourneuse de Pages?

How about another musical friend, or someone who can see a nod of the head and can be trusted to remember to turn.

What's that? Some music-loving axe murderer?

How about another musical friend, or someone who can see a nod of the head and can be trusted to remember to turn.

Thanks Pianocellosax boy, but the only one doing music A level with him will be back in Hong Kong by then and I don't know of anyone else suitable and sensible enough.

Sara

Where does it say in the rules about a teacher nor family member can do it? I can't find it.

If this rule wasn't in place, who would be turning for him?

I think I'd be tempted just to ignore it and claim that the person turning pages is merely a friend, if possible. I remember that rule being in place for one of my dips, but my teacher went up to London with me and turned pages. We weren't asked who he was.

Accompanists, accompaniments and page turners
Music for solo instrument/voice and accompaniment must be performed with accompaniment. It is the candidate’s
responsibility to provide the accompanist, who will be allowed in the examination room only whilst accompanying.
Accompanists may only remain in the examination room if an unaccompanied concert study is both preceded by and followed
by an accompanied item.Where idiomatic, accompaniment may be provided by an alternative instrument—for example guitar
or harpsichord, provided that prior arrangements have been made. Recorded accompaniments of any kind are not allowed at
diploma level. Candidates for piano accompanying diplomas are required to provide their own soloist(s), who must be of an
appropriate standard.
In cases where limited use of photocopies is not practicable, a page-turner (who cannot be the teacher or a close relative of the
candidate) is allowed in the examination room in performance examinations for Solo Piano,Organ, Electronic Organ and
Harpsichord.The page-turner may remain in the examination room only whilst fulfilling this function.Where unavoidable,
accompanists may also make use of a page-turner, who, again, should not be the teacher of the candidate.The examiner may
not be asked to act as a page-turner. Page-turners may assist with Organ (not Electronic Organ) registration changes only where
appropriate pre-set combination pistons are not available, whether adjustable or fixed; if there is any doubt in this matter, the
precise technical specification of the instrument must be approved in writing by Trinity before an entry is made.
Normally no other person is permitted to be present in the examination room. Special arrangements apply in cases where
interpreters or facilitators for disabled candidates may be necessary. Such arrangements must be agreed with Trinity in advance.
Candidates’ attention is drawn to notices about instruments at the start of the Organ, Electronic Organ, Recorder and Percussion
listings. Candidates for diploma examinations are expected to set up (where appropriate) and tune their instruments
themselves. Candidates must complete basic tuning before entering the examination room.Trinity accepts no responsibility for
any defect which may develop or become apparent in an instrument during the course of the examination.This includes
electronic equipment, when used.
Accompanists and page turners are advised to read the section on presentation, regarding attire and stagecraft.



This is the bit about page turners. I was planning to do the turns myself, but we do look alot alike and if someone asked me who I was...well...

Not quite, but heading in that direction; see http://www.cinematical.com/2006/05/19/cann...euse-des-pages/

Sara, let me know when and where the exam is, as I'm happy to add ATCL to my list of page-turning qualifications if I'm free. This does assume, of course, that you aren't my long-lost cousin or something

What a great idea! I hope you're going to go for the Fellowship eventually.

She has the prerequisite Licentiate already.

Thank goodness the restrictions don't extend as far as banning relatives of the accompanist for page turning: I had a husband and wife team assisting me for my last exam.

One point - I've now done four exams, two grades(one AB, one Trinity) and two diplomata with Trinity, and in all of them they allowed the accompanist (and on the last occasion the accompanist's wife) to sit in through all the pieces. I had set my recitals with accompanied pieces first and last each time, and more than one piece between - and at the diploma level they said in any case that since I was performing a recital, it would be treated as one. It minimises the shuffling in and out, and also is rather comforting to have someone familiar sitting in .

Hi Deborah

I've sent you a PM.

The film sounds rather good...


Sara

It's excellent, if a little disconcerting. Goes to show people aren't always as they seem...

I came into this thread expecting some excellent book recommendations

I don't suppose you even thought about the fact that this is a MUSIC (specifically diplomas) forum...

Hello

Re page turning and the TG ATCL diploma. The Trinity syllabus dated 2005 does indeed state no teacher or close relative can turn pages (pg 11) HOWEVER the new syllabus from 2009 makes no mention of this (ridiculous in my opinion) criteria. The section on page turners can be found in the 2009 syllabus on page 12 point 7.6.

"most page turns can and shold be managed by limited use of photocpies

Where this is not practicable a page-turner is allowed to turn pages for the solois ... or for the accompanist"

As it is often the teacher or a parent who accompanies a younger pianist to these diplomas it does seem strange to have previously exempted them from page turning. The whole exam plus travel to the centre can take a couple of hours - why bring someone else along just to turn pages!!

Actually I turned the pages for my son several years ago. I never knew there was a restriction - it was clear I was the parent but nobody said anything.

Good luck to your son

Thanks for that, Margaret. You are a genius! As he's entering under the old syllabus, it hadn't occured to me to read through the rules for 2009 onwards, but those are the ones to follow you're right.

Excellent

Sara

Hi again

Well he did the ATCL Recital yesterday and it didn't go too well. The Scarlatti Sonata had a major stop and he had to start the page again. I suppose that's it then, it all seems so unfair after 2 years work to just come undone. It wasn't even a hard bit.

Sara

Hi Sara Smith

Sorry to hear that there was an oops in the Scarlatti. But if that's the only thing that went adrift, I suspect he'll have done better than you're currently thinking.

Anyway, fingers crossed the result comes out ok despite this.

Let's hope the examiners will be kinder than you expect. Nil desperandum! How long until you hear the result?

Thanks for the support, Katyjay and Berkshire Mum. I didn't do the page turning in the end, we asked his school music teacher whom he gets on well with. I think the rest of the programme went pretty well. The opening Bach was good then the Scarlatti had the awful stop followed by Beethoven which had one noticable mistake in a left hand leap but carried on and finally the Debussy which was his best.

I'm not sure how long the dreaded results take. It says up to 6 weeks so it'll probably arrive when we're on holiday and be sitting on the mat menacingly when we come in. Perhaps we should take a permanent holiday!

Sara

Good luck for the results! Hopefully the examiner won't be too harsh if all the other pieces were good.