How difficult are the tests compared to, per se, grade eight piano? I am considering studying for a diploma in performing, but I am curious about how much more challenging the test is compared to grade eight. Are the examiners more critical in grading? Has anybody had any experiences with this? Thanks.

Well, first up it's a "quick study" which of course differs to grade 8 sightreading in that you can play through the piece for a number of minutes (rather than just reading it for 30s or so) and try it out without censure from the examiners..

I think all you can do is compare, say the standard grade 8 sightreading specimen book with a selection of today's grade 6 repertoire and make that judgement for yourself (as you know, Dip quick studies are supposedly grade 6 standard pieces)

I always find it hard to compare quick study/sight reading pieces with graded repertoire.. they are written to be particularly awkward.. changes of rhythm, key, dynamic, material etc. which any normal composed piece of the Classical/Romantic period would not exhibit...

Grading is more critical IMHO, but then again that reflects the exam as a whole.. These are "professional level" qualifications.

Good luck!

The two are quite different, in terms of approach and what is expected more so than how difficult the piece is to read. The sight reading for the DipABRSM is a two-page grade 6 standard piece, more likely than not in a romantic style; the grade 8 sight reading is only a page long, but not that much easier in terms of reading it. I'd say, pretty much, if one can read the notes in the grade 8 sight reading, one will be able to read the notes in DipABRSM sight reading without too much extra work.

However, the difference lies in the fact that one has 5 minutes to study the piece rather than 1 minute. This means one is expected to not only read the piece competently, but is expected to perform it. One has to study properly any tricky passages (as best one can in the time allowed) and consider how to play the piece expressively, within the 5 minutes practice time available.

In my DipABRSM when I was presented with the piece I skimmed over it for the bars where there were lots of notes/big appegiated leaps/many accidentals, and worked on those first. I then ran through the piece once, worked on any fluffs I made in that run through and experimented with how to intepret various bars and the effect it would have in the remaining time.

I think the best advice I could give would be to get a stack of grade 6 romantic pieces (the AB makes books of them) and do lots of mock 5-minute quick studies. It helps to have practised a technique for being able to perform the piece reasonably well in 5 minutes - getting a feel for what bars need the most work without wasting time playing it all through needlessly, for example.

For me the main difference was how much detail they managed to pack into the two pages - they're testing how much of this detail you can pick up on. For example, I had 3 or 4 tempo changes, detailed articulation markings as well as a whole range of Italian terms, so it's helpful if you know these. The Grade 8 sightreading is usually much more similar throughout, whereas the quick study aims to test a variety of different skills. Have a look at the mark scheme for an idea of what's required. To get a distinction in quick study the performance must also be musical as well as taking all these printed details into account.