Huntingdonshire Music School Association

If you’re thinking about either enrolling one of the family or yourself at the Music College it’s probably best to come and see what we do first.

The Music College does run specific open days but but any Saturday morning during college term time (09:00 to 13:00) provides an opportunity to wander in and see what’s going on. Ask at the reception by the entrance for the Director, Gary Sieling [ the effervescent one with professional music qualifications after his name and a cycling proficiency to boot], or if you you know what instrument or band interests you someone can guide you.

Types of Enrolment

There are 2 basic types of enrolment, which depend on where you have tuition:-

• full - this is where you have tuition at the Music College and take part in the full music package (tuition + theory + group work (when OK))
• associate - this is suitable if you already have lessons elsewhere but want to make use of the theory or ensembles

In either case you’ll want to get in contact with the college.

You can enrol at any time during a term (not just at the beginning) and fees will be adjusted accordingly.

Prospectus

You can download a prospectus which has more information about the Music College, including fees and an application/enrolment form:-

• 2007 - 2008 prospectus (Adobe Acrobat 7 file, 12 pages, 1 Mbyte)

If you need to get hold of the free Adobe Acrobat reader in order to read the file you can do so using this link.

Saturday Mornings

Here we try to illustrate what goes on on a typical Saturday morning at the Huntingdonshire Music School.

The activities are split into the following categories:-

• lessons. These happen throughout the morning with pupils dipping into and out of theory and/or group playing to take their lesson. Not everyone takes lessons.
• theory tuition. Where you learn the theory (that makes sense of the black sqiggles on the page) and, if appropriate, prepare for exams. Not everyone takes exams.
• group playing. Getting together in groups to practice, usually for a concert at the school or externally. Sometimes we do daft things, like turning the music upside down and seeing what it sounds like ...
• socialising / eating / drinking. Catching up with the gossip, in the cafe when we have quieter moments. Some even practice their pieces for the benefit ( ) of everyone else.

Theory Tuition

Theory is important when learning an instrument. It is so much easier to read and understand music if you understand the basic building blocks.

Theory classes are organised by Grade. This aligns with the Associated Board of the Royal School of Music (ABRSM) examination grades. In terms of difficulty we start at Grade 1 and finish at Grade 8 (the hardest). You do not have to take exams and anyone can take theory lessons.

There are two types of theory tuition:-

• written. This is covered by a range of set books, by teacher-derived quizzes, tests, games and learning aids. Often a piano or other instrument may be used to help illustrate theory principles, or practice such as key signatures, scales, chords or timing. Practice theory exam papers are available for those taking theory and practical exams or those who want to see how far they’ve reached.
• aural. This aims to make the student better at listening to and analysing music. Since music exams include aural tests, as well as playing, students taking exams are encouraged to also take aural lessons where they get practice at the different types of listening skills looked for in an exam. For early grades these are covered in the last 15 minutes of a theory lesson. For Grades 4 and beyond these can take anything up to an hour (on top of the normal written theory lesson).

Group Playing (Bands, Ensembles & Orchestras)

One of the strengths of the Huntingdonshire Music school is the number and variety of groups provided for folks to play in. You don’t have to learn an instrument to play. You might take lessons privately elsewhere and want to learn the skills of playing as a member of a larger team (albeit in loose formation at times!). This sort of experience is very hard to get and almost impossible to get as an adult (most things are geared up towards the little dots, youngsters and teenagers (a decidely different species ). Not only that, but it’s convenient, sociable and you can join as many as you want.

We are also looking at forming new ensembles, particularly choral/singing and perhaps blending music technology with classical instruments.

A typical Saturday morning timetable for the various ensembles, bands and orchestras is shown in the following diagram. It is hectic!

Any student can take exams. The normal process is that your teacher will tell you when they think that you are ready to take an exam. You then get an entry form from reception, the teacher signs it and you then hand it in with the entry fee before the closing date for entries. Exams are normally taken at the end of each of the 3 terms. The closing date for entries falls at the end of the first week of each term. Once entered you’ll get confirmation of the time and date of the exam by post.

The college deals with the following exam boards:-

• The Associated Board of the Royal School of Music (ABRSM) - used for most practical instrument exams and theory exams
• The London College of Music - used particularly for percussion and keyboard exams
• The Guildhall School of Music and Drama

Practical Exam Format

A practical exam lasts from just over ten minutes, at Grade 1, to possibly 30 minutes at Grade 8.

A Typical Exam has Parts requiring You to Play and Aural Tests of Your Listening Powers

It typically consists of the following parts:-

• playing scales. The examiner will choose some from the set that are specified for your instrument and grade.
• playing of 3 pieces (which you will have chosen and practised - endlessly - in the months beforehand)
• playing a piece provided by the examiner to test sight reading
• aural tests. These usually involve listening to a piece and describing it in musical terms that you’ve covered in theory lessons, listening to a piece played twice but with rhythmic and/or melodic differences and identifying what the differences were, and singing - either repeating a phrase played by the examiner or sight-singing (at higher grades)

Theory Exams

It is possible to take practical exams without theory up until Grade 5. In order to be able to take Grade 6 or higher you first have to have passed the Grade 5 theory exam. The good news is that there is no theory exam needed beyond this at Grades 6 to 8. The bad news is that the Grade 5 theory exam includes everything you’ve learnt from Grades 1 to 5 inclusive.

The Music College provides, if you want to, the ability to take theory exams at any level. We usually use the ABRSM board. Practice papers are available and can be bought from reception.

Using Music Exam Results for University and College Entrance

It is possible to use the results of ABRSM practical and theory examinations to count towards the total number of points needed by the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS). [[ucas.htm]] More information is available….