LTCL

[nyiregyhazi]

Just wondering- how the hell do you gauge the standard expected for an LTCL diploma? I've taught ATCL to a couple of students before, but I have very little idea as to what I'm supposed to compare to, to get a reasonable idea of what a borderline pass would sound like compared to a borderline fail, for example.  Obviously, at the upper end you need merely picture a superbly accomplished professional pianist- so it's around the boundaries that interest me. I have a new student who has done an ATCL and is looking to start going towards the LTCL. It goes without saying that you're basically just going to strive to teach them to play as well as you possibly can (rather than set your sights on a border-line pass), but it would be useful to have some kind of yardstick for what they expect.

[qoogla_55]

I have done my ATCL and LTCL in 2 years. It really seems that LTCL is so much harder as I did pretty well for my ATCL BUT just managed a borderline pass for the LTCL. The mark difference was like 10+ marks. I believe the standard of my playing was consistent though I have to agree that the LTCL repertoire is harder.  Furthermore, LTCL requires more stamina since the exam duration is longer. Also, I prepared for LTCL immediately after ATCL. It is possible I could have scored better if I had more time for LTCL since I was very busy with schoolwork during that period of time.

And same... I have a teacher who has never taught anyone with LTCL at all despite his years of experience. I asked him the same question: "Can I pass?" But, he cannot give me an answer. I guess you are in the same boat as many other teachers as there are not many who venture beyond ATCL.

[symphonicdance]

I passed my LTCL through self-learning, though not having very high score (yet, not marginal).  I did not play really well at the exam, because due to traffic jam, I was almost late.  I played with a few silly mistakes, but I didn't stop whatsoever, and kept going.  I didn't rent the exam piano prior to the exam, and it was an exploration for me at the beginning.

It was about a year after I did my AT (with teacher).  I short-listed about 10 pieces at the beginning, and finalised the programme (4 piece) 6 months before the LT exam.  There exists a noticeable difference between the standards of AT and LT, but not a cliff.  I think one of the important success factor is to pick the pieces smartly.

Having said that, I believe that if the candidate wants to get distinction, then there's a thousand more to work on.

[pytheamateur]

Here's a video of a pianist who has a Distinction in LTCL.  She got the qualification before she played this piece.  I'm not saying she was at her best in the video, and she did not play this particular piece for the exam (it is a Grade 8 piece), but it should give you some idea.  You can check out her other videos too.  She is quite well known in the amateur pianists circle and writes a popular blog on piano and arts.

[sabtan]

I do follow Frances Wilson's blog. While that video may not be her best, but her later Soundcloud recordings of her repertoire are quite good.

I'd say you must aim to play the LTCL pieces as if you are about to give a proper concert/ recital if you want to get good marks.
Proper intonations, very clear finger work, must be able to portray the essence of the composer's pieces etc

[pytheamateur]

Another video.  This is the actual LTCL run-through so I suppose it is much closer to the exam standard (Distinction).

[pytheamateur]

By another pianist.  Don't know what the result was, but sounded quite decent to me.

[pytheamateur]

This one is not as good.

[pytheamateur]

You can compare her Tempest to the one played by the pianist above.

[pytheamateur]

Just for comparison, this is FTCL standard.  The person passed.  Don't know what score she got.
The moral of the story is that all these exams are probably more a vanity thing for amateur pianists.  You can get a distinction in FTCL and still be light years away from making a living as a concert pianist.

[28843253]

Although this is a question only tangentially related to this post, what benefits does doing a LTCL give you after an ATCL? The costs are quite steep and most teaching jobs only seem to require the ATCL anyway.

[pytheamateur]

Although this is a question only tangentially related to this post, what benefits does doing a LTCL give you after an ATCL? The costs are quite steep and most teaching jobs only seem to require the ATCL anyway.

Hardly useful for a performing career.  For teaching at schools, I suppose you'd have an advantage over someone with ATCL.  If you teaching privately, you can charge more (if you can afford it of course). And finally it can boost your ego.

[sabtan]

Not many will do the performance diplomas like LTCL or FTCL just for the sake of having an advantage in teaching. It'll help of course, but you do it more for personal satisfaction.

The standard of the LTCL is supposed to be the level of an undergraduate final year conservatory student.

[symphonicdance]

I passed my FT by self-learning in 2014.  For FT, there is no indication on the final score on the examiners' comments.  The pass/fail indication is only "approved"/"disapproved".  I think it's rather a personal achievement.  I'm miles away from being a professional concert pianist.  I can teach well though, ha ha ha...

[symphonicdance]

Observing a few friends who did Trinity exams in the last few years, I feel that the marking standard got more stringent since 2H 2014.