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Poll

ABRSM?

Heard of ABRSM but dont know what it is
2 (66.7%)
Know the grades 1-8 of ABRSM but not familiar with dips
1 (33.3%)
Have taught the ABRSM syllabuses to students alongside other exam boards
0 (0%)
I am experienced at teaching ABRSM grades and diplomas
0 (0%)
I teach and or examine exclusively the ABRSM exams
0 (0%)

Total Members Voted: 3



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Topic: Guiding Students for LRSM programmes  (Read 1930 times)

Offline pianowelsh

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Guiding Students for LRSM programmes
on: July 21, 2005, 10:33:21 AM
Hi all you teachers out there. I would love to tap into your experience on selecting well balanced programmes for moderately advanced students at the LRSM level. for those of you who have no experience of the ABRSM exams this is a recital of circa 40-45mins at the level of Chopin Sherzi and Ballades, Ravel Ondine Chopin and Liszt studies (exclu Mazzepa and Feux Follet). The 40-45 mins must include any breaks you want to put in. How would you approach this kind of exam/recital - in particular in relation to the balancing of difficult and easier pieces and in terms of stylistic contrasts and even key schemes? at this level i think i am correct in saying you have to choose off their lists (extensive) but are allowed one third of the platform time off list.   Their lists are on the abrsm website.

Thanks for your offers!  ;D ENJOY

Offline ako

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Re: Guiding Students for LRSM programmes
Reply #1 on: July 22, 2005, 10:45:35 PM
I am preparing for the LRSM singing exams and it has been hard for my teacher and me to pick songs that satisfy the time requirement and present a variety of styles/techniques that bring out my strong suits. We revised my program several times in the course of 6-8 months. By the time that I take my exams in 2006, I would have been working on my program (from the initial one to the final one) for 1.5 years. That said, I think you and your student can take some time to work on the program and try different pieces before settling on the program.

If I were to take the LRSM in piano, I would balance some longer pieces (sonatas, partitas, ballades, scherzi, etc.) with some shorter pieces. Ginastera's Argentine Dances are not that difficult and they are really fun to play and listen to. Since you can choose to play as few as 1 out of the 3 in the suite, it can be a good choice if you need to play with the time a little bit. In the same sense, Debussy's pieces listed can also be used for both stylistic and time values. My suggestion is that pick something that your student is good at, e.g. your student is very expressive/passionate, s/he does impressionism real well, good with individual voices, etc. and pick something that will show off those qualities. Next, work on picking pieces that will go together and satify the time requirement. One note, the adjudicators do not like programs that are "monotonous" and "disjuncted" where the pieces do not go well together or sound too similar. I know someone who failed the Dip in singing because of bad programming choice (among other things).

Good luck!

 

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