Music Examination Systems in Canada

An overview of the music conservatories used in Canada and the music examination boards, including RCM, ConCan and CNCM.

Music examinations have played an intrinsic role in Canadian music education since Confederation. Music teachers, music students and their parents can benefit from learning more about the various curricula available so as to adopt a system that complements the teachers’ vision and the students’ goals.

The Royal Conservatory of Music – Canada’s Oldest Music Examining Board

The Royal Conservatory of Music of Toronto (RCM) was established in 1886. Notable alumni include 15-time Grammy Award winner David Foster, former Governor General Adrienne Clarkson and jazz legend Oscar Peterson.

Preparatory to Grade 10 practical examinations are available for all brass, percussion (including piano), strings and woodwind instruments, as well as accordion, speech arts and voice. Exams are offered for all levels of music theory and musicianship.

Associate Teacher/Performer (ARCT) and Licentiate (LRCM) certification are available. High school accreditation is granted for Grades 6 – 8.

Examinations can be taken worldwide in December/January, April, May/June or August. In the US, RCM Examinations is known as the National Music Certificate Program.

For practical exams, students prepare four to seven contrasting pieces from different musical periods (Baroque, Classical, Romantic, Impressionism/Late-Romantic and Modern Classical). They are also tested on aural, sight reading, rhythm and technical proficiency.

Traditional and Contemporary Music Examinations Through Conservatory Canada

Conservatory Canada (ConCan) is a merger between two regional conservatories that stemmed from amalgamations of older systems:the Western Ontario Conservatory of Music (founded in 1891) and the Western Board of Music (established in 1934).

Grade 1 – 10 Traditional practical examinations are offered for all brass instruments, clarinet, classical guitar, flute, organ, piano, saxophone, teacher development, violin, viola, violoncello and voice. Associate Teacher/Performer (ACCM) and Licentiate Teacher/Licentiate Performer (LCCM) certification are available. ConCan also offers music examinations for Levels 1 – 10 in piano, guitar and voice through its Contemporary Idioms syllabus.

Examinations are held throughout Canada in February, June and August. Partial examinations are available for the higher grades. Music theory exams are available for all levels.

Conservatory Canada offers recital assessment, teacher development and mini-lessons with the examiner. Students can apply their examination marks for high school credits in music.

Music students prepare six to eight contrasting pieces, from Baroque to 21st Century Classical for Traditional examinations. They prepare four contrasting pieces for Contemporary Idioms, ranging from ragtime to rock. They are also graded on improvisation and lead sheet playing.

For both formats, students must perform a supplemental piece. They can select one song from the other program, improvise or perform their own composition. Technical tests also assess fluency of chords, as well as jazz scales, church modes, whole tone, pentatonic and octatonic scales (much more than just traditional major/minor scales). Bonus marks are awarded if one piece is performed with a CD back-track or live jazz musicians. Aural, sight reading, harmonization, rhythm, transposition and musical knowledge are also graded.

Comprehensive Exams Through the Canadian National Conservatory of Music (CNCM)

CNCM was founded in 2002. Introductory Level – Grade 10 practical exams are offered for piano and voice (strings program in development). Certification is available in Early Childhood Music Education, Pedagogy, Associateship in Music (A. Mus.), Licentiate in Music (Lic. CNCM) and Fellowship.

Students can take a Performance Exam, where they perform a full recital programme for the examiner, family and friends (other components are tested separately). Alternately, students can take a Workshop Examination, in which all requirements are performed privately for an examiner. The parents and the teacher can attend the interactive workshop.

Students can do a “theme examination”, such as an all-Disney recital or a Canadian composer programme. As with all music examinations, solo performance is graded. However, it is possible to perform a collaborative work, such as a piano duet or a jazz combo in a theme examination.

Students must prepare at least seven works and one encore. Aural, vocalization, sight reading, harmonization, rhythm, transposition, improvisation and musical knowledge are also assessed.

Music examinations are held throughout Canada in February, May/June and August. Partial exams are available. Music theory testing is offered for all levels. CNCM has applied for Prior Learning Assessment and Recognition to grant high school accreditation.

Some Canadian music teachers and students follow a British curriculum. Two popular conservatories are the London College of Music and Media (LCM) and the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music (ABRSM).

Each music conservatory has something to offer; therefore it is impossible to say that one is “the best”. Music teachers contemplate several factors when deciding which system(s) to use, from their teaching philosophies and approach to their students’ skills, aptitude, interest and commitment level. These grading systems and curricula offer music teachers and students a broad spectrum in music education.

Sources:

Canadian National Conservatory of Music. Canadian National Conservatory of Music Piano Syllabus. Markham: Mayfair Montgomery Publishing, 2002.

Conservatory Canada. Conservatory Canada Piano Syllabus, 1999 Edition. Waterloo: Waterloo Music, 1999.

The Royal Conservatory of Music. he Royal Conservatory of Music Official Examination Syllabus, 2008 edition. Mississauga: The Frederick Harris Music Co. Ltd., 2008.

Official Syllabi of The Royal Conservatory of Music: Popular Selection List, 2011 Edition - An Addendum to the Piano Syllabus, 2008 Edition

(2011 Edition). By The Carnegie Hall Royal Conservatory Achievement Program. For Piano. This edition: 2011. Piano. Official Syllabi of The Royal Conservatory of Music. Level 1-9 (Level 1-9). Book. 36 pages. Published by The Frederick Harris Music Company (FH.S34)

...more info

Piano Exam Tips - Speedlinking

Yes, it's that time again: time for teachers and students to really buckle down and refine all the required elements on their upcoming exam. Here are some websites with tips for preparing for your piano examination:

http://www.wikihow.com/Do-Well-on-a-Piano-Exam http://www.ukpianos.co.uk/piano-exams-a-guide-to-preparation.html http://www.ehow.com/how_2239058_ace-piano-exam.html http://ezinearticles.com/?Tips-For-Preparing-For-Your-Piano-Exam&id=505598

(c) 2010 by Musespeak(tm), Calgary, AB, Canada.

Post-Examination musings

I had a terrible dream the other night that I got an 83% on my Conservatory Canada Level 7 Contemporary Idioms examination. Normally, I'd be happy with an 83, which is First Class Honors. However, having turned music into a profession, I was aiming for higher. I also wanted to beat my highest exam mark from my youth, an 88% on my Grade 8 RCM practical, which I got on my second attempt.

[Note to students: Get a good night's rest the night before an exam and don't spend it staying up all night to read a juicy novel or else you wind up botching your exam and need to re-take it.]

I digress. I was therefore delighted to log into ConCan's site and find that I scored 88.7% (on my one and only attempt). Now I'm itching to see my exam comments.

So, how was it, you ask?

What a surreal experience. It didn't feel like an examination at all. It was far more relaxed than my RCMexaminations in my youth.I vacillated from feeling calm, almost lackadaisical to thinking, "Oh my God! This is my exam. For real. Eek." It felt more like a lesson with a very relaxed examiner. As for the improvising section, I was just jamming along with another teacher.

I felt pretty confident in my technical elements, although my hands weren't completely in sync on my first mode (B Aeolian). Growing up, this was one of my weakest areas so I was determined to show that I've matured.

The same goes for ear, rhythm, sight-reading and keyboard harmony. Gone are the days when I was a panicking mess over two lines of sight reading, stumbling and pausing all the way through. It's amazing what a difference a slow, steady tempo makes, as well as counting out loud!

The repertoire went generally well. A few tiny slips in Gershwin's I Got Rhythm and a few more oddities in Vince Guaraldi's What Child is This? Hey, I was just glad my tempo was there for both. Mantecawent quite well as did Thriller Rag.

The examiner stumped me on one of the Viva Voce questions. I didn't research jazz waltz enough so I was winging it with my answer. When he asked about Dizzy Gillespie and Manteca. I said the first thing that popped into my head, "He had big cheeks...I heard him play a while back."

It didn't help that the room had many hard surfaces. I should have compensated more for it but the excitement of the moment kicked in. So, the examiner said I was a little percussive and not melodic enough. Too technical. I've never considered myself a technical player. I've been called "expressive" and "analytical" but never "technical". Until now.

I thought I had dynamics but if anything, I suspect he'll say I needed more contrast and shaping (it's something we always say to our students, why should this time be any different?).

I had a mini-lesson afterwards which was basically like a master class. This added to the "non-exam" feel of the experience.

I felt all right about the exam. I didn't feel terrible either. I simply felt that I could have done better. That is probably what fuelled my dream the other night.

One colleague asked whether I'll prepare for the Level 8 exam. I'd have to think about it. I'm too busy trying to incorporate all these new tricks I learned into my gig repertoire.

(c) 2009 by Musespeak(tm), Calgary, AB, Canada. All rights reserved.

Music Exam Preparation Tips

With music students across the country taking exams next month, I thought it would be apropos to post some exam preparation tips. Some of these are "general exam" tips, but for the most part, they can be applied to music exams. After all, an exam is an exam, whether it is theoretical or practical.

• How to Stop Procrastinating and Other Exam Survival Tips

• Exam Advice

• 10 Suggestions to Get You Ready for Graded Music Exam

A few other things I've been constantly reminding my students are:

1. You can't cram technique: practice those scales, chords and arpeggios (and vocalises if you're a singer) and get everything faster than the listed speed. The required speed gets you a pass. If you want a higher mark, go faster (just make sure it's a tempo you can maintain, play cleanly and with good tone).

2. Spend more time on the areas that need work. For many students, it's the technical requirements or the ear and sight reading tests. For others, it's memory or "that one dreaded piece".

3. Look at the mark breakdown, spend more time on the areas that are worth more marks and also make sure that you're not giving any "easy marks" away. If you're in Conservatory Canada, that information is in the back of your piano book. If you're in RCM, check the Syllabus for your instrument at any music store (perhaps consider investing in one).

4. Practice frequency is the key. Right now, the more "airtime" your pieces and technical elements get, the more opportunities you give for everything to sink into your mental and muscle memory.

5. Perform often between now and exam day - it's the closest you can get to simulating exam performance conditions. See if your teacher can sign you up for a student recital hosted by one of the local teaching associations or schedule your own mini-recital and invite all your family and friends to hear you run through your exam repertoire.

(c)2009 by Musespeak(tm), Calgary. AB, Canada. All rights reserved.

In the Home Stretch!

At long last, my students and I are at our final week of lessons for the school year. It has been an intense year. Since I began teaching full-time in 2001, this is the largest group of students I prepared for music festivals and exams.

It's been a rewarding year. My students and I have enjoyed improvising, chording and embellishing more. My heart soared to see how many of my students persevered and did well on stage and/or in their exam(s).

It's been a frustrating year, with some students who either didn't like piano, didn't practice enough or piano just wasn't a good fit for them.

I have just completed all the year-end student reports and put together their shopping list for the summer and fall. Hopefully, my students will remember to tinkle the ivories a few times over the summer so we don't have to start from scratch in September.

I hope to work my way through Conservatory Canada's Contemporary Idioms program this summer, namely the technique. I know the scales and modes from writing them down in theory lessons. But now, I need to be able to play them fluently. I also plan to do more composing over the summer. It will be an adventure.

Everyone is looking forward to the break. And even though I've made myself available to teach in July; a part of me is hoping that no one takes me up on that offer. I have one week off before I start my summer job. August will be a true break - my first since...I really don't remember. Maestro and I are really looking forward to it!

(c) 2007 by Musespeak(tm), Calgary, AB, Canada. All rights reserved.