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Recording for your music exams/auditions – A quick guide 

It has been quite some time since my last post. Thank you everyone for your comments and support and I hope that everyone is safe and well as we start to live with COVID-19! 

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the music industry has been greatly affected. Live performances/face-to-face music lessons were not allowed for a period of time and scheduled music exams had to be cancelled or postponed. It was a challenging period for our industry. Most music lessons had to be moved online and soon after, music exams had to be done via recorded submissions instead of the usual live exams and recitals. Glad to know that live music exams are resuming here in Singapore!

While preparing students for their recorded submissions, I have noticed that we could have done certain things better. Quite a number of students have realised that their first take is usually the most musical one, but it may not be the most accurate version. It then starts to go downhill as they start to get tired and the pieces become more overplayed… Therefore it is better to be as prepared as possible so that you can preferably get a good take on the first (or first few) tries. 

For my students, I realised that they could have practised more thoroughly, practise in front of the camera, and for my violin students, to be more familiar with the piano part. For the rest of you, these are some things to take note of when you have to do recordings in future. 

Practising more thoroughly 

I understand that all of us have our own obligations and commitments outside of music-making. However, I have to emphasise that if you have to do recordings, then you have to prepare your part thoroughly! Do enough slow practising to get the notes accurately, sort out all technical issues, and remember to play with phrasing/dynamics/expression etc., so that all the details are under your fingertips. Know your part (and other parts, if any) inside out. Make sure that you are also able to play your pieces at performance tempo comfortably! Most of the time, the more prepared you are, the less that your nerves will get the better of you. 

You may also revisit my previous posts on practising here and here. 

Practising in front of the camera 

This is the step that some students conveniently skip, and they learn a really hard lesson once the camera rolls, simply because they find that they are unable to play in front of the camera! Similar to how we practise for performances by doing dry runs in front of friends/family, we can also do this for recordings by running the entire programme and recording it on our own, before the actual recording session. 

Trust me, it feels different when the camera rolls. Depending on how effective your practising was, this will reveal the spots that you are not entirely comfortable with, or even the parts that you thought were alright, were now not, when in front of the camera. This means back to the practice room, focus more on those parts, and repeat the process until you can perform under pressure!  

More familiarity with the piano part  

This point applies mainly to my violin students who have to perform with the piano. For the rest of you too, if you play other instruments such as cello, flute etc. or if you have to play in an ensemble/orchestra. 

Although we usually refer to the piano part as piano accompaniment, do treat your pianist as an equal partner! When you play music with someone else, it is already considered chamber music. Therefore, it is important that you know what exactly is written in the piano part, recognise how your part fits in, and how both instruments can work together to perform the work. 

And again, have enough rehearsals with your pianist to get used to playing together. Do check for intonation and balance along the way as well. Remember to rehearse in front of the camera if possible (see previous point)! 

To conclude, do be as prepared as possible before your recording sessions, learn your parts well, and remember to run your programmes in front of the camera! All the best! 

As always, do leave a comment to let me know your thoughts and subscribe to the blog for future updates! 

~Vanessa  

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Graded Music Exams – how they can benefit or limit you

Graded music exams are a common goal among students and they give students something to work toward. After all, it is normal for us to want affirmation and recognition of our playing standards, as well as to see how far we’ve progressed on our musical journeys. Besides, certificates from music exam boards such as ABRSM or Trinity are internationally recognised. In Singapore, kids who have attained higher grades can add these certificates to their portfolio to make them more competitive for direct school admissions. 

The benefits of graded music exams

To be fair, these exams serve as good checkpoints along the way as students have to meet certain requirements for repertoire, scales, sight reading, and aural work (but due to covid, only repertoire work is needed now). These get more demanding as students work their way up the grades. They are really good motivators to get us to practise too! However, the exams can be a double-edged sword, if they are used as a means to an end… I’d like to emphasise that learning music is a lifelong journey and always be clear of your purpose in taking the exams, and how these exams play a part along the journey. 

A word of caution if you are too focused on graded music exams – it can limit your musical exposure 

Ideally, we should always be working on a mix of scales, etudes, exercises, and repertoire so that techniques are constantly built and maintained – for us to ultimately serve the music. However, I’ve seen cases where students were so focused on the exams that they only learn and practise three exam pieces in a year, plus whatever scales they were going to be tested on for the exam. Although it is one thing to be prepared for the exams, I believe that we still need to work on different things to add more variety to our musical palette – there is so much material out there to be explored than just confining yourself to the exam syllabus. I’ll go even further to say that Grades 1-8 serve as an introduction to classical music if you decide to engage in more in-depth studies. 

The importance of basics in playing a musical instrument – how they measure up in relation to graded music exams

Perhaps, the misconception of equating higher grades to better playing standards is the most dangerous of all. Someone who has attained a higher grade should be better than someone else who hasn’t passed that grade, right? Doesn’t that make sense? Well, yes and no. Of course, all things being equal, that is correct – the person who has passed the higher grade will be of a higher standard. However, that’s not always the case especially when people start to just compare based on grades attained. It depends on how well grounded one’s playing fundamentals are. Thus, it is possible for someone at a lower grade to sound better than someone at a higher grade who plays more advanced pieces. Think of the paper chase and rat race in a wider context. 

Does progressing up the grades mean that you are a better musician?

It is also getting more common from my side to hear so and so passing grade X in Y number of years (some sort like setting a new record), or people asking whether it is possible for them to pass grade X in Y number of years. There’s no right or wrong here. It’s perfectly normal as everyone has different expectations and goals. But no matter what musical goals people have, I’d still be telling them not to lose sight of the ultimate goal of making good music. It is always more important not to rush to a destination, but to develop proper playing habits and a strong foundation along the way. That saves students a lot of effort in future when they do not have to redo the more basic stuff, and it gives them more room to focus on playing musically! Furthermore, it is more of a joy to hear “simpler” pieces played well than to hear students whack through repertoire that is way too advanced for them. There is just no way to make good music if one is struggling to play the right notes… 

Conclusion

To conclude, graded music exams are good checkpoints along our musical journey. Always try to maintain a balance between exam preparation and practising a mix of technical work and repertoire. Remember that learning music is a lifelong journey and enjoy the process! 

As always, do leave a comment to let me know your thoughts, and if you have any topics that you’ll like me to write about. Do subscribe to the blog and stay tuned to future posts! 

~Vanessa