Last week, I learned how to play the piano. This may sound strange, as my bio clearly states that I’ve been playing piano for 47 years.
What do we do when pushy parents insist on an exam being undertaken when they don’t leave enough time in a child’s day for the practice to be done?
All sorts of things can go wrong in a performance. A cockroach can scuttle across your pedalling foot (this has happened to me). The music may fall off the stand (this has happened to me)….
In Part 1 and Part 2 of this blog series I talked about how to get students to sing, the main goals to aim for in aural skill preparation, and tips on each component of aural tests in an exam. Here in Part 3 I’ll deal with melodic
In Part 1 of this blog I talked about ways to get students to sing more confidently, as well as the three ‘essentials’ for good aural training: Singing, Practising and Memorising. Now, let’s look into some of the sections of the exam more closely.
A while ago I wrote a booklet containing tips, tricks and techniques which can be useful for those who find the aural aspect of music a bit more challenging. This booklet was only available for a very short time, and only as a promotional giveaway. So I thought it might be an idea to reproduce […]
Although it feels like going against the culture, it’s absolutely, positively FINE not to do exams. Here are five good reasons NOT to do an exam.
With the recent announcement by the AMEB that the May Written series will be abolished, leaving candidates with only one option per year for sitting a ‘traditional’ face to face written exam, it seems that online exams are being embraced with such force that they may be the ONLY option available to students in the […]
There are some brand new worksheets for AMEB Theory Grades 1 and 3 that have just been posted on the BlitzBooks website. ‘Writing Triads with Accidentals’ – (Theory Grade 3) In the more recent Grade 3 AMEB examinations, the skill of writing triads has been tested with accidentals rather than with key signatures. This is […]
With the May written exam series fast approaching, here is a series of tips that will help students and parents prepare for the big day… 1. Revise regularly We all know that knowledge quickly gained is knowledge quickly lost. Use these last four weeks to do steady revision each day – don’t try to cram […]