Hi everyone,

I'm going to do grade 2 violin this term and wondered if anyone else here is working towards this? I've been playing the violin for a few years now but am basically self-taught so I have never ever looked at scales and things I thought it would do me good to do another grade 2 exam as I was soooooo nervous in my grade 2 oboe exam and don't want to attempt a higher oboe grade before I conquer my exam nerves a bit, so my oboe teacher has agreed to give me violin lessons too!

Anyway, it'd be great to hear from anyone else doing Grade 2, so we can compare notes on pieces etc

T xxx

Hi

I am also self-taught, been playing for around a year now and I am currently considering doing grade 2 violin, but with Trinity. I know the pieces and the scales. However, I have also looked at the AB pieces for grade 2 for some sight reading, which ones do you like to play?

If I took the exam with the AB I would chose:

A2: Menuet in G
B1: Simple Gifts or B2: Russischer Marsch
C2: Wind Up - I think this piece really represents its title to the full, it really does feel like you are winding something up whilst you are playing

I actually enjoy playing the whole book, it's a lot of fun! What other pieces do you like to play? I have more graded books as well as some play along with the cd books which are also a lot fun

Joy

I knew I'd find you here JJ!!

I'm more or less in the same boat as JJ. I'm self taught with a few critical comments from a Violin Teacher friend and I'm currently up to Grade 4.
The Grade 2 pieces are fun and I've played them all along with most of the other pieces in the 50 second hand books I acquired this year! My advice is play,play, play...as much as you can, whenever you can etc etc but also have those 3 pieces that you want to Master too. Dont expect a great sound or technique too soon though, that will come in time. There's no substitute for practice but try to do it in 15-20 minute sessions to avoid hand pains. I was in agony the first few weeks of playing as a beginner because I used to practice for up to 2 hours at a time....ouch!! Mind you, those were the days when JJ and I were heavily competing with each other weren't we JJ?

Gae

Hi,

Thanks for your replies! I am really keen on the following pieces:

A2: Menuet in G
B1: Simple Gifts (but I like the Russicher March a lot too)
C1: Napolean Crossing the Alps

- I like the C1 piece because I used to play in an Irish band and this is a traditional hornpipe

The scales are coming along OK, luckily they are similar to the ones I did for Oboe Grade 2, but I'm finding it difficult to do the bow patterns correctly. I've bought the Aural Training in Practice CD for grades 1-3 as this was my downfall with the oboe exam! I really want to give this my best shot, not least because I can play to a higher standard than this really so will look a bit foolish if I mess it up. I'm not really a beginner as such, because I had about 5-6 months worth of lessons at school 13 years ago and have been playing ever since (although I can't concentrate on it too long as I have had a lot of surgery on my back, so it hurts!!). So, I have developed a nice-ish vibrato in that time and I can play much more difficult pieces. It wouldn't really be fair to compare myself to other people doing grade 2 as I will have been working on my tone for a lot longer than they have, but as far as scales and theory etc go I am still at that level because I've never formally been taught, and I do have a lot of bad habits from years of just teaching myself!

I'm playing the violin in tomorrow's Forum Users Concert so will be able to see what the other violinists think of my playing

Cheers,

T xxx

Competiting .... .... of course, when's that guitar being delivered then Gae?! Got my teach yourself book out as we speak!

Joy

I'm not taking Grade 2 but I wish you good luck and all the best for the exam!