Music examination

Last updated

Music examinations are a method of formally assessing the accomplishments of pupils learning musical instruments.

Contents

Trinity College London was the first organization to offer examinations in music to external students in 1877. Trinity College London conducts around 850,000 assessments [1] per year worldwide. The Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music conducts around 650,000 assessments per year in 93 countries. [2]

Eligibility

Many students who enter the music exams have taken a course of music lessons with a private tutor, although some are self-taught. Often this is a way for children to receive music training over and above what is provided at their usual place of learning, although private lessons are also popular with adults who turn to music later in life.

Although there are music examinations available to school and university students alongside other regular qualifications and assessments, there are also a number of independent bodies who solely provide assessments which are open to all.

Content and structure

Music exams are set in both theory and practical aspects. The theory examinations are taken by pupils of all instruments and typically cover areas such as musical notation, harmony and composition. The practical exams concentrate on a particular instrument (i.e., piano, guitar, flute) and style of music (i.e., classical, jazz, popular). They cover elements such as playing set pieces, technical work including scales, sight reading, aural, musical knowledge and improvisation. [3]

In the United Kingdom, graded music exams are offered at grades 1 to 8, [3] with Grade 1 being the entry level, and Grade 8 being the standard required for entry to higher study in a music college. Some exam boards offer additional levels, before Grade 1 and/or after Grade 8. Different music exam boards may have different grade levels for instruments and music theory.

There are also music exams which do not follow the graded system, but have other designations. For instance, the Royal School of Church Music's Voice for Life training scheme designates levels by color (White, Light Blue, Dark Blue, Red, Silver, Gold) and awards by metal (Bronze Award, Silver Award, Gold Award).

Recognition

Some qualifications are recognised by regulatory bodies, such as Ofqual, [4] whereas others are not.

Some qualifications are recognised, in the admissions process for colleges and universities, as demonstrating the musical ability of the student. The UCAS Tariff awards points for certain graded music exams. [5]

Examination results or credits may or may not be transferable from one exam board to the other.

Examination boards

Reputable[ clarification needed ] music examination boards include:

These examination boards offer exams in music theory as well as in musical performance.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">GCSE</span> British public examinations, generally taken aged 15-16

The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a range of subjects taken in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, having been introduced in September 1986 and its first exams taken in 1988. State schools in Scotland use the Scottish Qualifications Certificate instead. However, private schools in Scotland often choose to follow the English GCSE system.

In the Scottish secondary education system, the Higher is one of the national school-leaving certificate exams and university entrance qualifications of the Scottish Qualifications Certificate (SQC) offered by the Scottish Qualifications Authority. It superseded the old Higher Grade on the Scottish Certificate of Education (SCE). Both are normally referred to simply as "Highers".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">AQA</span> British examination board and registered charity

AQA Education, trading as AQA, is an awarding body in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. It compiles specifications and holds examinations in various subjects at GCSE, AS and A Level and offers vocational qualifications. AQA is a registered charity and independent of the government. However, its qualifications and exam syllabi are regulated by the Government of the United Kingdom, which is the regulator for the public examinations system in England and Wales.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edexcel</span> British multinational education and examination body owned by Pearson

Edexcel is a British multinational education and examination body formed in 1996 and wholly owned by Pearson plc since 2005. It is the only privately owned examination board in the United Kingdom. Its name is a portmanteau term combining the words education and excellence.

The Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing (ISTD) is an international dance teaching and examination board based in London, England. The registered educational charity, which was established on 25 July 1904 as the Imperial Society of Dance Teachers, provides training and examinations in a range of dance styles and certified dance teacher courses. The ISTD is recognised by the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority and the Council for Dance Education and Training and is also a member of the British Dance Council. It hosts various competitions in many different formats including Modern Ballroom, Latin American, Classical Ballet and Tap Dance as well as contemporary styles like Disco Freestyle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Academy of Dance</span> UK examination board for dance education

The Royal Academy of Dance (RAD) is a UK-based examination board specialising in dance education and training, with an emphasis on classical ballet. The RAD was founded in London, England in 1920 as the Association of Teachers of Operatic Dancing, and was granted a Royal Charter in 1935. Queen Camilla is patron of the RAD, and Darcey Bussell was elected to serve as president in 2012, succeeding Antoinette Sibley who served for 21 years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oxford, Cambridge and RSA Examinations</span> British examination board

Oxford, Cambridge and RSA Examinations (OCR) is an examination board that sets examinations and awards qualifications. It is one of England, Wales and Northern Ireland's five main examination boards.

The ABRSM is an examination board and registered charity based in the United Kingdom. ABRSM is one of five examination boards accredited by Ofqual to award graded exams and diploma qualifications in music within the UK's National Qualifications Framework. 'The Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music' was established in 1889 and rebranded as ABRSM in 2009. The clarifying strapline "the exam board of the Royal Schools of Music" was introduced in 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">International General Certificate of Secondary Education</span> English language based academic qualification

The International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) is an English language based secondary qualification similar to the GCSE and is recognised in the United Kingdom as being equivalent to the GCSE for the purposes of recognising prior attainment. It was developed by Cambridge Assessment International Education. The examination boards Edexcel, Learning Resource Network (LRN), and Oxford AQA also offer their own versions of International GCSEs. Students normally begin studying the syllabus at the beginning of Year 10 and take the test at the end of Year 11. However, in some international schools, students can begin studying the syllabus at the beginning of Year 9 and take the test at the end of Year 10.

The Licentiate in Music, Australia (LMusA) is a diploma awarded by examination to outstanding candidates in the fields of musical performance, music theory and musicianship by the Australian Music Examinations Board (AMEB). Other music examination boards in Australia do have a Licentiate level diploma under other names, including Australian and New Zealand Cultural Arts (ANZCA) Music Examinations Licentiate Performer Diploma ANZCA (L.Dip.A).

Trinity College London ESOL is an international English Language examinations board delivering assessments in English language learning and teaching and has been offering English language examinations since 1938. Trinity College London's exams are taken by over 850,000 candidates in over 60 countries each year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trinity College London</span> British exam board

Trinity College London (TCL) is an examination board based in London, United Kingdom which offers graded and diploma qualifications across a range of disciplines in the performing arts and English language learning and teaching. Trinity College London has examined over 850,000 candidates in more than 60 countries worldwide. It is a registered charity in England, Wales and Scotland, and its Patron is HRH The Duke of Kent.

Examination boards in the United Kingdom are the examination boards responsible for setting and awarding secondary education level qualifications, such as GCSEs, Standard Grades, A Levels, Highers and vocational qualifications, to students in the United Kingdom.

The A level, is a main school leaving qualification of the General Certificate of Education in England, Wales, Northern Ireland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man. It is available as an alternative qualification in other countries, where it is similarly known as an A-Level.

Classical guitar pedagogy is a collection of ideas, structures and patterns that are commonly used in teaching guitar. These standards include a variety of techniques and songs that incorporate these techniques to develop a player's abilities.

Victoria College of Music and Drama is an examinations board based in London, United Kingdom, which offers independent graded exams, medals and diplomas in music, speech and drama in the UK and selected other countries such as the Republic of Ireland, Malta and Sri Lanka.

The Council for Dance, Drama and Musical Theatre (CDMT), formerly known as the Council for Dance Education and Training (CDET), is the quality assurance and membership body for the professional dance, drama and musical theatre industries in the United Kingdom. CDMT was founded in 1979.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kathleen Tattersall</span> English educationist (1942–2013)

Kathleen Tattersall was a British educationalist, specialising in examination administration. She was the leader of five examination boards in the United Kingdom before becoming the first head of exams regulator Ofqual.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom, all secondary education examinations due to be held in 2020 were cancelled. As a result, an alternative method had to be designed and implemented at short notice to determine the qualification grades to be awarded to students for that year. A standardisation algorithm was produced in June 2020 by the regulator Ofqual in England, Qualifications Wales in Wales, Scottish Qualifications Authority in Scotland, and CCEA in Northern Ireland. The algorithm was designed to combat grade inflation, and was to be used to moderate the existing but unpublished centre-assessed grades for A-Level and GCSE students. After the A-Level grades were issued, and after criticism, Ofqual, with the support of HM Government, withdrew these grades. It issued all students the Centre Assessed Grades (CAGs), which had been produced by teachers as part of the process. The same ruling was applied to the awarding of GCSE grades, just a few days before they were issued: CAG-based grades were the ones released on results day.

In 2020, Ofqual, the regulator of qualifications, exams and tests in England, produced a grades standardisation algorithm to combat grade inflation and moderate the teacher-predicted grades for A level and GCSE qualifications in that year, after examinations were cancelled as part of the response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

References

  1. ↑ "About Us". Trinity College London.
  2. ↑ "About Us". Associated Boards of the Royal Schools of Music.
  3. 1 2 "About Our Exams". Associated Boards of the Royal Schools of Music.
  4. ↑ "Ofqual". Archived from the original on 2013-03-02. Retrieved 2012-11-12.
  5. ↑ "UCAS Tariff Points". Universities and Colleges Admissions Service.
  6. ↑ "Exam Entry". ANCZA Music Examinations.
  7. ↑ "Practical Grades". Associated Boards of the Royal Schools of Music.
  8. ↑ "Performance Grades". Associated Boards of the Royal Schools of Music.
  9. ↑ "Music Theory". Associated Boards of the Royal Schools of Music.
  10. ↑ "Our Exams". London College of Music.
  11. ↑ "Certificate of Merit". Music Teachers' Association of California.
  12. ↑ "Examinations". New Zealand Music Examinations Board.
  13. ↑ "Rockschool". RSL Awards.
  14. ↑ "RSL Classical". RSL Awards.
  15. ↑ "RIAM Exams". Royal Irish Academy of Music.
  16. ↑ "The Royal Conservatory Examinations". The Royal Conservatory of Music.
  17. ↑ "Voice for Life". Royal School of Church Music.
  18. ↑ "Voice for Life". Royal School of Church Music America.
  19. ↑ "Music". Trinity College London.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.