Hi everyone, I was an active member here a few years ago, and for one reason and another have had a long break, but I'm back, and hoping for some reassurance!

I have done a very stupid thing. My daughter plays the recorder, flute and piano, and has been preparing for her Grade 2 recorder (TG) for the past couple of months. I realised today that I have chosen two pieces from Group A (from different books), none from Group B and one from Group C. Obviously she was meant to do one of each. The exam is next Thursday!! I've spoken to the area rep, who said she either needs to change one of her pieces, or can proceed and have her case referred to the Head Examiner, who does have the power to disqualify her. Neither of us wants this, and after floods of tears tonight, we've picked a new piece for her to learn as quickly as she can. However, she LOVES both of her Group A pieces and is so upset she can't do them both. We are going to do one of them at her school concert instead, but I was hoping someone might have happy experiences of changing pieces at the last minute. Are we mad to try? Would it be more sensible to defer (she doesn't want to, but is really too young to decide that for herself).

I can't believe this has happened. I've been teaching since 1994, entering students since 1998 and have probably clocked up about 300 exams by now, and I've never done such a thing before. I feel so bad, but really want to fix things for her. She is consistently scoring full marks for aural and sight reading, but the piece she plays least well is her Group C, and that one has to stay. I think I might have cost her a merit or distinction.

I realised with a week to go before my recorder player's Grade 8 exam that she had prepared the first and second movements of a Telemann sonata and she should have been playing the first and last movements (in my defence, both were marked Vivace). She decided to learn the last movement, which thankfully was easier than the second, and ended up with 21/22 for that piece, and 91% overall. I still joke that my mistake cost her a mark, but I was very relieved.

In hindsight, it was a good thing to have happened because it meant that she didn't over-practise the rest of her programme as she was so busy learning the new movement. Only time will tell if the same is true of your daughter, but I wanted to reassure you that many of us have made similar slips in the past, and that they do not always lead to disaster.

The very best of luck to both of you for the exam.

Maybe you could speak to the area rep and ask if she can play all 4 pieces? Then if the case goes to the Head Examiner and the Head Examiner says no that piece cannot be presented then at least rather than being disqualified she will get the mark for the newly prepared piece. That gives them the option of allowing the allocation of marks for the incorrect piece or allocating marks for the correct piece rather than allocating marks for the incorrect piece or getting nothing at all. They might have to give her an extra few minutes, but for a grade 2 it's not going to throw the timetable into horrendous disarray if she plays an extra piece. Maybe nobody has considered that option since as you say they have told you either change the piece or play the wrong one and cross your fingers, this way combines both options.

Thank you for your reply andante_in_c - I recognise your name from before I'm glad all turned out well for your pupil in the end. My daughter got 84 for Grade 1 in December and I was expecting about the same again. She is very upset, but won't let me blame myself. I told her it's certainly not anyone else's fault! I think it arose because she played a piece from 'The Really Easy Recorder Book' for list B last time, and I obviously must have assumed the piece she's doing from the same book was list B again. She is not worried about learning the new piece (she sight read it quite well in the car earlier) or about failing... just devastated about not playing her two favourites to the examiner! She has a big concert coming up next month though, so she can play the other piece then.

Thanks for showing me a different perspective, RoseRodent - I wouldn't have thought of that. I can certainly ask! And you're right - the pieces are about 90 seconds long.

I think you have little choice but to try and learn a new piece - only you know how your daughter will take to trying to learn a new piece very quickly. The alternative of potentially being disqualified by the examiner isn't encouraging for her and would be even more disappointing than not being able to play one of the pieces she loves. Can you find a piece that she likes which doesn't feel like a huge ordeal for her to learn. She might find the challenge of learning a new piece exciting and she may well enjoy playing something different. There have often been cases on the forum where people have changed pieces and learned something quickly in a couple of weeks for an exam and it has turned out to be their best piece.

It's a good thing that she can play one of her A pieces for the exam and the other for the school concert so both get to be performed. That way she doesn't feel that she has spent time learning one of them for little purpose - not to say that a piece has been worked on and learned for nothing but it can be disappointing not to perform a piece when you've been expecting to play it in a particular situation.

Good luck! I hope it works out for you both and isn't too stressful...

Louise - I got her to sight read the new one earlier, and it would have achieved a pass, so as long as we can make it expressive, it should be fine. In fact, it makes for a better programme. I pointed out to her that she'd been playing three quite fast pieces, and it might be nice to have a slower one. She replied "yes, and all three were in major keys and this one is in the minor" so it might be a good contrast. The only thing we need to decide now is which List A piece to drop. She plays them both well, but I want her to do the one she's likely to really bring to life and score higher in.

Here she is playing them both.

The Merry-go-round

or

Butterfly Bounce

Sounds like she's well on her way.

Those are the two List A pieces she'd prepared - do you think she plays one better?

We had a go at Pavana for List B tonight and I think she'll get it in time. I'll let everyone know!

I'm not a teacher, elliewelly, but I think she plays the Merry-Go-Round slightly better. Why not let your daughter choose which she plays?

BerkshireMum!! I remember you giving me such helpful advice about my diploma, when I had to change accompanist while pregnant with DD2. She is now four!

I think DD1 plays the Merry-go-round better too. I've left it up to her, and told her if she still can't decide in a couple of days, she can ask me to decide for her.

Can I just say that your daughter is ?ber cute! I think the second one is better, just needs work on a few sections.

Soooo cute!

What a gorgeous little girl! I loved her performances! my heart melted!

At that age, probably best to let her chose herself, and put more emphasis on the concert performance than on the exam mark.
Good luck Kate!

Thank you both! She is a cutie, but so very grown up that I forget she's 6 every day. I'll let you know what piece she picks. She's so sweet, at bedtime she was telling me how grateful she was that I'd discovered the mistake, which was clearly my mistake to begin with. I'll definitely tell everyone how she does too.

We both much prefer concerts to exams. But she is really competitive (mainly with herself!) and insists she wants to take every single grade! She has done her piano Prep Test and had three flute lessons.

They're both super, but for me Butterfly Bounce just comes out on top.

Best of luck for the exam, whichever one she plays

I thought Butterfly bounce was much better.

ETA: Another reply sneaked in while I was writing. Well there you go, conflicting opinions already!

I found the Merry Go Round to be more musically responsive and more ensemble with the piano, the Butterfly Bounce very technical but without that extra something. Without seeing the music there were a couple of points it was unclear whether it was syncopated or lost the pulse or had a written rubato or something - the examiner would obviously know, but with it not being crystal clear to a listener unfamiliar with the piece maybe that indicates it could go that little bit further to be more clearly on the beat or fully off the beat. The other one was very clear, given the necessary time and inclination I could listen to it and write the score that goes with it. But I am no examiner! And, of course, we all have good moments and bad with any piece.

Both sound like really good passes, I'm not familiar enough with Trinity to know what other options there are, presumably the same 3 bands as AB.

LOL! I have asked a couple of friends to have a look too, and we have an even split, so I will leave it up to her. She is going to pass, and at her age I just want her to be happy.

She learned Merry-go-round last year (well before we thought about Grade 2) and has already performed it in school assembly. Butterfly Bounce is newer and harder - she LOVES it, but yes there are rhythmic problems with what are meant to be triplets, and she gets them wrong about 50% of the time, like she did here. This was a bog standard practice yesterday which I uploaded for my relatives (and her little fan club of Year 3 boys from my school! ) - and we have just got back from holiday so it wasn't her best ever. I didn't do 15 takes until she played them perfectly or anything. She is getting 10/10 for sight reading and aural pretty consistently and practised the new piece four times tonight, including twice with the piano, so I am going to act very relaxed now. Even though I'm not!

Thanks for your opinions!

Good to see you posting again, elliewelly. Hope things are generally well with you.

Back on topic, I'd go for Butterfly Bounce : though both are good.

My pupils always seem to get high marks for Merry-go-round just by playing it accurately (ie no particular thought about expression, dynamics etc) so I would go for that one.

My mother once accompanied a girl for a violin exam and in the run-through a few days before noticed that she had not learnt the right combination of pieces, so the poor girl had to learn a different piece without even a lesson with her teacher - and still did OK in the exam. I also heard of a someone who taught the wrong Grade 8 piece (same composer, wrong work) and only realised when there wasn't time to change it, so hoped the examiner wouldn't notice - and he didn't. So you're not alone - everyone makes mistakes sometimes.

Good luck to you both

Don't try THAT at home!

Seriously elliewellie, sounds to me like your daughter will not have lost anything at all by this episode and will gain all the more admiration by everyone, not just for pulling a third piece out of the hat but by her brilliant attitude all the way through. Be very proud of her, she sounds like an absolute treasure!

Very nice playing of two lovely pieces, elliewelly, and can see why your daughter would like to play both. I really enjoyed watching her play them but I think I would go for Butterfly Bounce.

Another vote for Butterfly Bounce here!

I changed an exam piece for one of my pupils last night with 8 days to go until the exam. Basically it had fallen apart badly and I thought we had a better chance of resurrecting another piece previously learned than persisting with the one that was much loved and practised but sadly mangled.... Apparently there were tears at home afterwards, argh, but better that than tears over a botched exam.

Merry-Go-Round for me - very characterful and good timing.

Good luck to your daughter, she seems a delight!

Hmm, 7 for Merry-go-round and 6 for Butterfly Bounce (including my own 2 cents worth, and two votes for Merry-go-round from friends). I have told her she can choose. Back later!

How did it go in the end, Scooby Doo?

Don't know, it was only yesterday and the exam is next week! Eek...

She is soooo cute!

Sorry Scooby, I have just read it properly! I was in a hurry earlier.

Kate wants to play Merry-go-round and is at a pass level with her new piece. Phew! Thanks for all your comment. I'll let you know her result.

I once did a similar thing with a grade 4 clarinet pupil but didnt realise until she came out of the exam AFTERWARDS saying the examiner had spotted she played a piece from the wrong section but he would let it pass! Quite embarrassing to happen in front of other parents! In a way I'm glad I didnt realise the mistake until too late!!

I think you should let her choose. She is doing very well for a 6 year old and both performances made me smile (in a good way!)

Kate wanted to make another video, of her new piece, and I'm actually finding it to be quite a useful teaching tool, because she can then see for herself which bits need to be corrected. Here is Pavana - La Monina. She's been learning it for five days and missed yesterday because we went out for the day. We have four more days to sort out the ending!

Kate chose 'The Merry-go-round' for her Group A piece, and is also playing Csakan Schule, Study in Red, and a little exercise. She is going to do 'Butterfly Bounce' for her school concert!

Best of luck to her!

What a lovely piece! One can imagine its being a real recorder piece in Tudor times. I think she plays it very well - no hint of the "dashing away" which many children her age display on recorder. Those slow pieces are really difficult for younger children, but your daughter makes it sound great - really stately, as a pavane should be.

Lots of luck to your daughter for the exam. I'm sure she will do really well if she plays like that.

Kate's music exam was this morning, along with all my school pupils (and everyone else's!) The results were handed to the Head of Music at the end of the day.

She was spectacular this morning - far, far better than on her YouTube videos, and her first piece was totally flawless (the Merry-go-round one) - a fast pace, NO mistakes, lots of good phrasing, loud and soft notes, etc and a really well controlled ending. I was beside myself with excitement at the end of it... and she got really good comments for it... and 15/22.

The new piece (the Pavane) that she started last week was also better than on her video, but with a tiny rhythm slip just before the end. It was elegant and calm. 16/22.

Csakan Schule generally had a few slips, but not today. 20/22.

Her study and exercise was the area she said was "OK" as opposed to "exilent" or "fantastick" after I asked her to write me a little summary after the exam (I was busy all morning and only heard the two pieces I played for). 11/14, which is what we were expecting.

Sight reading - is always perfect, and he said it was good with all the slurs observed. So why she got 8/10 is anyone's guess.

Aural - we had to work hard on this, and have got her up from a 7 to a 10/10 in practice. 8/10 today, so not too bad.

Total 78 - comfortably a merit, but nowhere near the distinction I was expecting based on how she played.

Kate has done so well, and is delighted, and unaware that I also had a nasty surprise with all my other candidates. They were significantly better than my last group of Initial/ Grade 1/ Grade 2s, and everyone passed, but all scored much lower than the last (weaker) set I entered.

As the marks are nowhere near what I normally get, and the comments don't match the marks, I am thinking of appealing for the first time ever. I need to find out if any of my colleagues feel the same way.

Onwards and upwards (she might not be missing out Grade 3 now though).

Congratulations to Kate! It sounds as if she is very happy with her results, which is the main thing. Obviously starting a new piece not long before the exam didn't do any harm.

Well done Kate, but what a shame about the examiner

Well done Kate! I loved watching your videos by the way. She looks confident and like she's having loads of fun. I hope she continues to enjoy her music.

Thanks, everyone!

My colleagues agree with me, and we are going to appeal. It's not so much her result which worries me (although I heard her and thought it was easily a distinction performance) but ALL of mine were so much lower than in their previous grade, and in their mock exam which I conducted using TG's assessment criteria. A potential distinction pupil only got a pass, all my potential merits got a pass, and the boy who deserved a secure pass got the pass mark!

I normally defend examiners to the hilt, and think parents who complain about harsh markers are often just having a moan. Recently, someone on a different board was complaining about a Grade 1 AB pupil with really good scales being given 18/21 because they "lacked shape". I pulled out the marking criteria and explained to them that 18/21 is EXACTLY what should have been awarded, and explained why. It's really rare to get a big shock like this, and I usually agree with their judgment when someone does badly.

Lots of others were examined, with a wide range of marks. On balance, they were slightly lower than our school's used to. I just don't think he understood about the range of dynamics and expression that's possible on the recorder, and for once these marks truly are unfair. Kate is completely oblivious, and I know she has done well to pass Grade 2 with merit at her age. However, she so blatently deserved more (she could have sat Grade 3 really) that I owe it to her to appeal as well.

Super well done!

Didn't realise you got marks straight back for Trinity, that's a huge bonus of doing their exams as opposed to the long wait for results that you can have with some boards. Is that only because it was a visit?

This varies from centre to centre.
With only one day of examining it's possible.
One of our local reps used to phone with just the bare result once exams were over for the day (only one day a session) but seems not to do so now. The exams are always on a Saturday and results are posted out usually on the Monday.
Another centre which has a week's examining takes longer as results are not sent out until the end of the session.

The down side is that it can take at least two months to get certificates.... rather too long a gap for youngsters who might want to have them presented at school. By the time the certificate arrive you've almost forgotten what it's for.

We had a few days of exams at my school, and today was the last day, so we were given the scores. My boss has the mark sheets, except Kate's, because she was an external candidate entered by me.