Huntingdonshire Music School Association

Having an impending ABRSM tuba Grade 4 exam looming I thought it might make sense to see what means of playing with accompaniment were available to me (short of kidnapping a piano player). I’d heard that somewhere there might be some download options available. Unfortunately for me, or rather anyone with a tuba, I didn’t find anything to help me. I did, however, find that the ABRSM does itself now have a ‘download shop’.

The ABRSM Audio Download Shop (http://www.abrsm.org/audioshop) provides the ability to download the piano part for Grades 1 - to 8 for the piano (!) [2009-2012], violin [2008 - 2011], clarinet [2008-2013] and flute [2008-2013]. Individual downloads are GBP 0.79 (79 pence) each or there’s an offer of 1 from each of the A, B and C lists (i.e. your complete exam) for GBP 1.95 available once per grade. Pretty cheap and a lot less hassle than trying to persuade the computer to create a backing track.

From the ABRSM site:

An expanding range

Launched in 2008 with recordings of ABRSM’s Piano syllabus (2009 & 2010), the download service has already proved highly popular with pianists. It now includes almost every piece from ABRSM syllabuses for Violin (2008–2011), Flute and Clarinet (both 2008–2013).

Amongst the huge range of repertoire, violinists will find Howard Blake’s jovial Dance of the Snowmen (from the famous animated film) at Grade 5, and can make new discoveries, such as the charming Sentimental Romance by Wilhelm Stenhammar (sometimes known as ‘the Swedish Elgar’) at Grade 8.

Individual movements from Koechlin’s 14 pieces were reintroduced to the Flute syllabus in 2008, and flautists at Grades 1, 2, 4 and 5 can enjoy these beautiful pieces. Grade 3 clarinettists can discover the highly effective transfer of Mendelssohn’s Song without Words. The Arabesque by Germaine Tailleferre (the only female member of the early 20th-century French group of composers, Les Six) is a wonderful find at Grade 7.

New features and offers

The preview facility allows all users to try out 10 seconds of any track before making the decision to purchase. Recordings of pieces set at Grades 1–5 are priced at 79 pence each, and those at Grades 6–8 are 99 pence each.

For the price of what is normally a single track, those purchasing Violin, Flute or Clarinet exam repertoire will actually receive two tracks: the exemplar recording of solo instrument with piano accompaniment, and a bonus track that includes just the piano accompaniment alone, for playalong practice.

This doesn’t help anyone on any other instrument, including the tuba. Are there any other sites out there than can provide accompaniment downloads for ABRSM (or Guildhall) exams?

Huntingdonshire Music School Association work to raise funding for bursaries for Music School students.  We are fortunate in having a number of benefactors, including the Huntingdon Freemen’s Charity.

Each year we encourage students, and parents/guardians of students under 18, to apply for a bursary.  This is usually the cost of one term’s tuition.  However, we cannot guarantee that funds will always be available.  Each application is treated in the strictest confidence and the details are only know to the Chairman and the Treasurer of the association, and the Director of the Music School.  Application forms are available from the office and we advise students of the details for each year, via the internal music school Leger Lines newsletter.

Please note that some of these benefactors apply restrictions on access to a bursary, for example based on age or home address e.g. for Freemen’s bursaries.  For students who do not fall within the access requirements we are also consider the availability of Association funds to provide bursaries.

From the ABRSM:

Minor changes made to ABRSM aural tests

24 June 2010

The aural tests that are part of all practical ABRSM graded music exams will be slightly altered from 2011.

There will be one different test at Grade 1, and a small number of minor modifications across the grades that streamline the requirements following feedback from teachers and examiners.

Examples of the new tests will be made available online, and new support materials for teachers and candidates will be published from July 2010. ABRSM exams taken in 2010 will continue to use the existing aural tests, and the revised tests come into use on 1 January 2011.

Reviewing the tests
The aural tests syllabus has been reviewed in detail, with a small number of areas identified for revision to allow the tests to run more smoothly and become more approachable for the candidate.

The test descriptions and examiner rubrics (the form of words used in the exam) have been re-evaluated to make sure that they are as clear and unambiguous as possible. Particular attention has been given to making the rubrics as clear as possible for candidates whose first language is not English.

The new 1C Test
At Grade 1, it was felt that a slightly different 1C Test would provide a better starting point and more even progression to Grades 2 and 3. At present, candidates are asked to identify a change in the rhythm of a two-bar phrase. The experience of our examiners, combined with feedback received from teachers, is that identifying the change is problematic for a proportion of candidates, particularly the very young, even when they have clearly heard the difference.

From 2011, the 1C Test will ask candidates to simply identify whether a change of pitch affecting one note occurs near the beginning or near the end of a two-bar phrase. This is a more approachable way of assessing the aural skill, and provides a better step towards similar tests at Grades 2 and 3. A practice set of new 1C Tests can be found online at www.abrsm.org/aural.

Other minor modifications
There are a few further minor modifications that will have relatively little or no noticeable impact on candidates, as they simply streamline the requirements. These small changes to Tests 4C, 5C(i), 6C, 6D(i), 7C(ii), 7D(i), 8A(iii) and 8C are listed online at www.abrsm.org/aural.

Support material for teachers and students
Five volumes of Specimen Aural Tests will be published in July 2010. These resources cover all eight grades, and include a wide range of tests, syllabus descriptions of each activity and answers to tests (where appropriate). They will also feature the examiner rubrics, allowing teachers and students to prepare thoroughly for the exam experience.

Each volume will be available with or without CD recordings of all tests, which are designed for use in lessons and for students to use for personal practice at home.

To coincide with the publication of Specimen Aural Tests, a single set of mock tests for each grade will be made available as free audio downloads at www.abrsm.org/mockauraltests from July 2010. This resource is intended to provide practical introductory support by mirroring how a student would encounter the tests in their ABRSM exam.

In January 2011, three volumes of Aural Training in Practice will be published, with entirely new text and musical examples. These will include an �??overview�?? that sets out the educational and musical purpose of each test; a summary of the requirements for each grade; teaching hints and strategies for each test; and a set of practice exercises with answers to enable students to gain confidence with the activities.

Ref: http://www.abrsm.org/?page=press/pressReleases/item.html&id=643

There is also an ABRSM podcast that you can listen to which provides more information.