I've got my Grade 8 Piano Exam coming up on December 1st, but am not secure on a few things on the syllabus. I have all three pieces playable (if it interests anyone, they are A1, B2 and C2 in the 2015-16 Syllabus), but there are sticking points in each piece that I stumble on every time I play, even after hours of practice, especially in the Fugue for A1 and final page of B2. Also, my singing for the aural is not the best, (I have vocal dysphonia, but only mildly), scales are ok however. Sight Reading though... where to start?! Literally. I cannot coherently play any piece of the Grade 8 sight reading specimens, it takes me a good 8 minutes to play a piece, especially if its in an odd key. Has anyone got any tips on how to get the most out of the 30 seconds preview you get when you're given the sight reading, or how to get better in the month or so I've got left?
For reference, I passed my Grade 1 with distinction ages ago, then took Grade 2, passed with 118, then jumped to Grade 5, passed with 116, then jumped to Grade 7, scraped a pass. So, as you can see, not the best track record. Sight Reading was failed in every one of the exams, I get around 10 marks each time. I just want to pass this last exam, so I can leave grades behind and focus upon playing whatever I want in future, so I'm not worried about getting distinction or anything. However, with this, I feel I'll be really close to the pass/fail boundary, and just would like any tips you guys have so I can boost my practice in these last few weeks to get me over the line. Thanks!