Is it possible to go above grade 8 if I started in year 7?

[nook508]

Hey all. I'm in year 11 now and am having some doubts about whether I can progress considering I did not play in my development stage. I did take guitar lessons from ages 5-10, which may help somewhat but I'm not sure. What I can play and my skill level should have improved recently, considering I have started 'practicing' – likely not good practice – a few hours a day but I don't know how to actually feel the improvement or know it's there. My repertoire as of yet includes (in order of learning):

The Friska of Hungarian Rhapsody no. 6
Chopin's Minute Waltz
Chopin's Ballade no. 3
Liszt's Liebestraume no. 3

These are all I have learnt in full in the past year, which is a good step from copying synthesia videos on youtube, but I am not feeling as if I am improving and am not sure if it is even possible considering the fact. I do currently have a teacher of LMusA level who I feel is helping with specific things, but I do not know exactly what a good piano teacher does. Any tips or advice, especially from people who may have done the same? Thanks 

[ranjit]

Basically, yes. There are a lot of really good piano students who have gone on to do doctorates, who started at 12 or so. It is not possible for everyone, but nothing is guaranteed honestly. Try to get the best teacher you can and you will progress really well.

[klavieronin]

I took up the piano at age 16 (never played a musical instrument before then). For 4 years after high school I did little beside practise, going to lessons, listening to music, and reading everything I could get my hands on about playing the piano. (I also kept a part time job in order to pay for lessons books CDs etc.) At the end of those 4 years I had my AMusA and passed my university audition. It's definitely possible but not easy. I had to be pretty single minded about it to make up for lost time.

[nook508]

I took up the piano at age 16 (never played a musical instrument before then). For 4 years after high school I did little beside practise, going to lessons, listening to music, and reading everything I could get my hands on about playing the piano. (I also kept a part time job in order to pay for lessons books CDs etc.) At the end of those 4 years I had my AMusA and passed my university audition. It's definitely possible but not easy. I had to be pretty single minded about it to make up for lost time.

How did you fare with nerves when doing recitals/performing? Most people I know of who are comfortable with that have been performing since they were 2 and a half haha

[klavieronin]

How did you fare with nerves when doing recitals/performing? Most people I know of who are comfortable with that have been performing since they were 2 and a half haha

Terrible in the beginning! My nerves were so bad I couldn't keep the pedal down because my leg was shaking so much. But where I was learning had fairly frequent recitals which my teacher always insisted I perform at. It was always a pretty friendly and casual environment though so I was was lucky in that regard.

[thorn]

There's so many other factors besides age, but child prodigies are good at getting the general public's attention and they're good income/advertisements for junior conservatoires/individual teachers so... 

I started piano at 15 and got accepted to a conservatoire at 21. I was determined not to 'settle' just for the sake of going to uni at 18, so I took some time out from education to focus on piano.

For your recital/performing question, I found casual performances lovely and supportive. I joined a local piano group so there was a friendly community around me. I tried competing in local UK music festivals but they were absolutely terrible- so critical, spiteful, competitive etc.