[nishdish]

My exam is in the last week of june so i have about 5-6 weeks to go.
My pieces and aural are fine but the problem is scales and sight reading so does anyone have any tips? or is it just to do loads of practice haha

[oyyoyy]

start slow, speed up. what i found that helps is to do every scale you need without stopping [though this is easier in grade 6 and above as you need to play every scale, so you can go up in semitones] i would stay start of with 2 quavers a second, and make each scale note a quaver, and double it as many times as you can, so your scale speed increases. it also improves your hand stamina, which would help you play your pieces as well. as for sight reading, i guess you just have to practice- one thing to remember is that if you make a mistake, dont go back to correct, as you will ruin the 'flow' of the piece. also, ALWAYS remember what accidentals come up in the piece- when you get that 30s time to look at it, make note of the key sig and accidentals.hope that helps

[Alpharius]

What was said above. Start slowly, make sure your hitting every note perfect, and gradually speed it up.

That, and practice, practice, practice! Nothing beats repetitive practice.

[nishdish]

Thanks for the advice I'll just keep practicing then

[TheBambiHeart]

When I do sight reading I don't tend to pay TOO much attention to the tempo markings. Sure, it's important but I feel it's more important to play the right notes in the right rhythm So, if you can play it fast go for it but it's better to play it slightly slower than really fast and all over the place

[Veni Vidi Fugi]

What really helps is knowing where the keys are without looking at them. Means you can worry about reading rather than finding the damn keys!

[Nooshkabob]

Yup practise is key. When you aren't actually practising you can always test yourself on key signatures. You'll get to a stage where you don't even need to know them, you just automatically recognise the patterns of the keys. Using the metronome is essential because you want the sound to be even. Try making it pp to start then building to ff as you approach the top octave, and then diminuendo back to the start. Examiners like phrasing in scales and you can always try jazzing them up when practising to make them more interesting - crossed hands, eyes shut, 2 octaves apart etc.
Another thing to get the sound really even is practise doing a dotted rhythm, swinging the notes. When you then play it straight it should be easier.
Stamina is important, if you're being asked lots of scales you don't want your hands to get tired. Every day just pick a few random scales to go through. Once you've nailed them you'll be really glad because it's so essential to technique! And on the matter of technique, make sure you don't let your wrists drop or it'll sound uneven, especially when passing the thumb under
As for sight reading, don't be afraid of going slow if you'll play it more accurately. Every day pick a short exercise and give it a go. In the 30 secs before remember to look at key signature, time signature, dynamics, articulation, any tricky bits, accidentals... You should be able to sight read two grades below your current standard.
Don't panic about it though, you'll pull through with good pieces and aural! Good luck!

[nishdish]

Thanks for the great advice I'm feeling pretty confident about the exam tomorrow now


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[Dinosaurus_Rex]

I know this was a while back, but how did it go and did you pass?