I recently sent one of my violin pupils off to order a book of Scales and Arpeggios. I specified Book 1 (Grades 1-5), and gave him the telephone number of a well-known and very good mail order company I use quite a lot. Today, he turned up for his lesson with FIVE scale books, one for each grade!! He had phoned the company only to be told that they no longer do Grades 1-5 in one book.

To me this seems like lunacy - and is probably a good bit more expensive than purchasing the lot all in one go. I looked at the Grade 1 book and wasn't impressed. This lad has a problem with slurred scales, and they don't print slurred scales in the book!

WHY, WHY, WHY??!!

Edit: Is it true? (Please tell me it isn't!)

It is true. They changed it a few years ago - when the latest syllabus came out I think, to a book per grade. I assume it's so that the AB make more profits on scale books. I think this was the same time that they stopped including the handy checklist, with practice tick boxes at the back of the pieces book. That was annoying too.

I've kept hold of one of each of the old books to lend out. Not ideal!

Oh - and for grades 1 & 2, I use Fiddle Time Scales Book 1 - which does print the scales slurred, as well as laying out the scales & arpeggios in varying ways to aid the struggling scale-learner. FT Scales book 2 is OK for the higher grades, but you do need to check that all the requirements are covered.

I have always 'relied' on these books in the past, but now I do wonder.....are they really necessary? I have realised you can learn scales without the book very easily indeed (with some help from the teacher....at times of need).
Do many people find it too difficult without the book?
(sorry just reflecting that's all )

but yes, to go back on topic, they now have one book for each grade.....

I find it quite easy to learn scales without it written down so long as you have a good teacher. They teach you the finger patterns for the various types of scale at your grade and then you simply start on the tonic note and go up and down the required number of octaves.

However, I do think I need the wretched c major scale in thirds written down!

Wouldn't a good teacher also want you to learn the key signatures and notes in the scales tyou are learning to play?

I've never taught exam scales using a book for violin or piano.
I guess they might be helpful if you are teaching yourself though?

Keep an eyeout in charity shops I have a '72 edition of the scales for grade 1-5 (I am not taking exams so it is ok that they are not quite the right ones inline with current syllabus)

The only advantages I can think of for splitting them up are that it might be less daunting since not quite so many in the book, and you get the achievement of 'moving onto' the next book!

I found this out recently as well! I remember there being one book for Grades 1-5 and another for 6-8 when I was learning (way back when).

I've taken the decision that my students won't have to fork out for each and every one and have bought a copy of the one's I currently need which I'm lending out until they're learnt properly. At that point I shall "confiscate" the book and expect them to practise from memory. So far it seems to be working. I'm also intending to do a scales rota rather like someone else posted for piano scales so that I know that they're all practised over a 5-7 day period.

I agree Misterioso, that the Grade 1 book seems particularly poor value for money - as is Grade 2. Two books for scales as they once were is much better, particularly now that the exam books and fees are so expensive as well. It's a large outlay for many parents.

I bought myself grade one scales book it was only £1 on amazon. When it arived and I opened it all I could do was laugh at the two pages it contained.

I have since copied the scales grade 1 through 5 from a book my teacher lent me.

There is a simple solution to this. Get the pen and paper out, or use your computer and draw the scales, photocopy them and hand the copies out to your students my teacher has done this many times for me. Perhaps even give your students a sheet of paper with just the staff lines on and get them to put the notes on. It can't do any harm.

I'm kind of with Alan on this one. I wound up getting the Royal College of Music scales book as it seemed to have all the scales I would ever need then was told to go and get the proper scales book and was mystified as to the advantage of this as the fingerings (if I recall correctly) although specified slightly differently in each one were both logical and in an exam (if I recall the regulations correctly) as long as there are logical fingerings then they won't knock any marks off as long as you play the scale correctly.

If I can bring a similar case in from the guitar world, a lot of classical guitarists swear by the "Segovia" scales which specify a definite fingering for all scales.

I've never understood this.

My reasoning goes thus.

I understand all the key signatures (the circle of fifths doesn't take that long to learn).

I understand the structure of a scale (major being tone, tone, semitone, tone, tone, tone, semitone, Minor etc.).

I understand that the strings of a violin are a fifth apart.

The above being a given, I should then (with practice) be able to play a scale in multiple ways. As an example, I might choose to play a two octave D major shifting up on the A string (violin here) and then back down on the E string, shifting up on the D string (if I'm feeling adventurous) and playing the majority in third position before coming down on E, A or D (if I feel that I'm the Violin master that day) or even playing the whole thing on the D string (one day.... One day....).

Add in that the slurs between the notes should be specifiable (I've heard of practicing one note to a bow, then two, then three, etc.).

All the above being true, all scales should be playable with any bowing as if you were coming across a scale passage in a piece of music (which may not use the ABRSM fingering or for which the ABRSM fingering may not be the best solution).

What need of a scale book?

Cheers,

Matt.

Hmmm, a bit frustrating as they still publish for other instruments (e.g. Piano complete scales manual) and these are a lot cheaper over several grades.

However a quick check on EBay shows the volume you wanted still available second hand ...

Fiddle Time Scales for my lot for grades 1 and 2, after that I actually prefer the new format as the typeface is much clearer than the old books and more room for teacher annotations. Not only that, having everything for the grade in one book means that there is no opportunity for 'forgetting' the scales they really don't like.

That said, I'm increasingly using TG for many reasons - and one is their much more musical approach for both scales and aural. The number of scales at intermediate grades and higher , for the exams, is a little less but right from the start there are different bowings to learn and develop too. TG's scale book is ALL grades in one book, with a 'chapter' and all requirements for that grade printed out. More outlay to start with for parents but excellent value, as usually by the time mine get to about grade 3 they are working quite consistently and do not tend to give up easily.

Slurred bowings - I mark the slurs in with coloured crayon only after the 'separate' scale or arpeggio has been learnt fairly fluently, and don't find too many problems with slurring for the pupils who practice the moves.

Just a thought - aural requirements changed some time ago, too - might be worth checking that your material is up to date.

Thanks for the suggestion (Minstrel and KTViola) re Fiddle Time Scales. I do actually have a copy of this book, so it will really be working for its living now!

Sadly, TG exams are not really an option for me (not many teachers here using it, location, etc) but it could be well worth getting hold of the book for loaning out. I don't teach scales from the book, but use it for consolidation purposes when the pupil is working at home alone between lessons, and suddenly realises they have forgotten it.

I have Specimen Aural Test books which cover the change of syllabus in 1993, and the modifications to Grades 4 and 5 in 1995. I don't think it's changed again since then.......?