Total Score = 94 (out of possible 100)
First Class Honors with Distinction

Average Grade 4 Score in Winter Exam Session = 76

% of Students Scoring in 90-100 Range = 2%[/b]

Happy dance, happy dance!!!

Ok, I'll stop gloating, now.

Ok I'll go first.
Go ahead and gloat. You certainly worked very hard.

Holy cow! That's great! Mazel tov! Congratulations!

Now you can stop being modest when we say how great you sounded at the party.

I'm very happy for you. You worked hard and were rewarded justly.

you're just incredible!

Kudos to you!

That's really great Linda! Woohoo!!! You can't see me but I'm doing my happy dance for you (think Steve Martin).

Yes Linda, you are just in grade 4 but the response you gave was always above that level.

Oh no, I'm getting happy feet!

Linda, that's wonderful!!! Congratulations!

Would you mind telling a little bit about the grade test? Who adminsters the test? How is it conducted? What did you play? Do the grades start at one and work up? What's the highest grade? (Japan has grades that start at 13 and work down, with 1 being the highest)

Congrats Linda! That's really good. I took a look at your practice log, you've certainly keep yourself busy:

16545 total minutes logged = 275.75 hours = 11.5
days of practice since March 17th!

You even had some days with 7+ hours of practice!


Looks like all your hard work paid off though and you are certainly a better pianist because of it. BTW, what %age of your pieces do you memorize? I am just wondering because I still sightread everything I play with the sole of exception of the "Minuet in G".

~pianocliff

Thanks, everyone! It's nice to have the support from my fellow Adult Beginners - and to be able to show the whiz kids that we, too, can kick butt.

My teacher still considers me to be a "late beginner." Working very hard to move up into the "early intermediate" range. Must practice, practice, practice!

ShiroKuro, this was my RCM exam. The program begins with an Introductory Level (Pre-Gr. 1) and works its way up to Gr. 10. Beyond Gr.10, there is an exam to earn an Associate of the Royal Conservatory of Toronto (ARCT) diploma. Actually, there are 2 ARCT diplomas available: a Performer's ARCT and a Teacher's ARCT.

The RCM recently launched a new Piano Pedagogy Certificate Program, which I think is an alternate route to the Teacher's ARCT (but I'm not positive).

Thanks, again, everyone. I appreciate your support!

Congrats Ms. Linda -- it's a great feeling isn't it? And an inspiration to all of us who are learning new things.

I memorize most of my pieces so that I can concentrate on what I'm doing musically rather than busying myself with reading the score.

However, there are only a few pieces that I actively try to retain once my teacher and I have finished working on them. I think at the early stages, it's more about acquiring skills than it is about acquiring a repertoire (at least IMHO). As I learn more advanced pieces, I'll probably work on retaining a larger repertoire.

Thanks for the kind words!

Thanks, Grane! Actually, I find your accomplishments to be inspirational. Best wishes for a great performance at the Steinway event on the 24th!!!

Linda...way to go on your exam!!!...you go girl!!!...those exams aren't easy...you deserve to be proud!!!...what was your favourite piece?...congratulations!!!

Thanks, chrissy! Of the pieces that I played, my favorite was Melartin's Sonatina - although it's not the piece that I played the best. Go figure!

Are you taking the exams also? What pieces are you studying?

Congratulations Linda on passing your exams. Your level of achievement is impressive. It shows what hard work and dedication can do for you. It is definitely an inspiration to us all. Thanks for sharing.

Peggy

Way to go Linda! You're braver than me!

Thanks, Peggy and teachum!

I think there must be a fine line between the brave and the fool-hardy!

Dear Linda in PA,

Congratulations! This is a very fine achievement indeed. I hope you continue all the way to ARCT and more.

I enjoyed meeting you at the Washington, DC party last fortnight. And I guess that at the next one we'll have to ask you to be our Guest Artist!

Best regards,


Peter

Thanks, chrissy! Of the pieces that I played, my favorite was Melartin's Sonatina - although it's not the piece that I played the best. Go figure!

Are you taking the exams also? What pieces are you studying?

Hi Linda...yes i do take rcm exams...i'm presently working on grade 8...it's been a real challenge for me to get this far but i keep plugging away...i dug out my grade 4 books but darn! Melartin's sonatina was not listed...my favourite grade 4 piece was Monkeys in the tree...my marks are not nearly as high as yours!...those exams make me so nervous

Peter:[/b] I also enjoyed meeting you and all of the wonderful PW members in the DC area! I'm looking forward to the next gathering with great anticipation. I appreciate the vote of confidence, but unless we're going to postpone that next party for another 10-15 years, I don't think I'll be the featured Guest Artist!!!

chrissy:[/b] Congratulations on making it to grade 8! I can't imagine how I'm going to get there. If I start looking too far down the road, I get overwhelmed - there is always so much more to learn. Good for you that you've kept plugging away at each grade level - it's a good example for me to follow. Have you read Michael Colgrass' book My Lessons with Kumi? I use some of the exercises in that book to help me mentally prepare for the exams and other public performances. I have good results with those exercises.

Thanks, again, Peter and chrissy! [/b]

Hi Linda...thanks for your note...no, i haven't read "my lessons with kumi"...but thanks for the advice...i'm sure a book like that would help me...my teacher says i should be proud of myself that i've reached grade 8 ...believe me,when i was at your level i NEVER thought i'd make it this far...only in my dreams...but here i am and you can do it too!

congratulations! i am an adult RETURN! i played for three years when i was young, and after a 20 year break, i came back full force! i took my daughter to a piano lesson, and was messmerized by the sound i heard from her teacher. i was instantly hooked. i don't know why i ever gave it up. i have been playing for a year now, and am playing clementi, beethoven, and my most recent (like within the last 2 months, i started with the chopin nocturnes. i LOVE chopin! i can play 1 entire nocturne and the first page of 2 others!!! i can't just stick with one song! anyway, i just joined piano world..wow, it's great! i was especially excited to see they had an adult beginner's forum...

anyway, congratulations to you...i know the effort it takes to get where you are now!

excuse my ignorance, but what are the grade levels?
what books are you using? what songs are in grade 8?
i have no idea what grade level i am, i just play what i want (within my limits) that doesn't leave much available. i would like to play from a "level book, like i did when i was a child. my teacher who is VERY good, says we can just go through the classical books i have, and play throught the ones i want to learn....he is a believer in what I want to learn, or what anyone wants to learn, can eventually be achieved, he won't put levels on anything. he doesn't want to put limits on anyone...that can be a good thing, but i would love to WORK UP TO a piece...then maybe the pieces i want to learn won't be seem so hard to learn. anyway, any grade book suggestions?

Hi, totallyclassics:

Welcome to Piano World. We have a great[/b] group of adult beginners, (and many who are no longer beginners - but still great!). Some of the members, here, have also returned to their piano studies after a significant interruption. Others started their piano journey as adults.

It sounds like you are doing great - Chopin Nocturnes after just 1 year back at the keyboard! How is your daughter doing with the piano? It's great that both of you are taking lessons. On one of these threads, someone wrote "The family that plays together, stays together!" I'd like to think there is some truth to that.

Regarding grade levels, I'm following the RCM curriculum (one of the standard Canadian programs of music instruction). The curriculum covers grades 1 through 10. There is also a preliminary (pre-grade 1) level and a post-grade 10 for an associate's certificate.

Another commonly referenced curriculum is the ABRSM (this is a standard UK program of music instruction). I believe the curriculum addresses a range of musical development that is equivalent to the RCM program, but the ABRSM divides it up into grades 1 through 8.

So, depending upon which program or source is doing the grading, the same piece could be classified differently. Also, these programs make no attempt to "grade" all of the piano literature. Rather, the syllabus for a particular grade level indicates which pieces (from a limited list of pieces in each stylistic period) are acceptable for purposes of the exam.

Some of the RCM exam pieces are available in the Celebration Series - albums of short piano pieces. Frederick Harris is the publisher. There are actually two sets of Celebration Seriesalbums - one is a set of studies, the other is a set of repertoire pieces. I've enjoyed working with these albums thus far.

If you send me a message with the titles of some pieces in which you are interested, I'll look to see if they are included in any of the RCM grade levels. No guarantees that they will be included, but if they are, I can let you know in which grade level they are referenced.

Again, welcome to Piano World!

Linda,

Could you expound on how the RCM curriculum is taught? For example, what books are used? Where can they be found?

I looked at the ABRSM tests--I would love to get on a program that would be that methodical, focusing on some more technical aspects (scales, arpeggios, some theory) in addition to playing/sight reading.

Thanks.

Linda,

Congratulations!. I am sorry I did not see this thread until just now. I know you work very hard at piano and I hope to get the chance to hear you play one day.

Best wishes,
Steve

Linda,

Do you find that in preparing for exams you only work on 2 or 3 pieces for a very long time?? I'm following a grade 4 curriculum (sort of) but not taking exams..

Boxer,

I guess Linda is off line for a while. She is using the Celebration Series from Frederick Harris Music. I have been using it as well and I think it is great. Make sure you order the CD with the literature. Hopefully when Linda gets back she will expound.

http://www.frederickharrismusic.com/fhmcUS/Frederick.jsp

Have fun,
Steve