Music Medals for Piano

Music Medals for Piano – Teacher Questionnaire:

Many thanks for taking the time to explore our draft ideas and materials for Piano Music Medals. I hope you and your students have enjoyed the experience!

Music Medals have been available in the UK for strings, woodwind and brass instruments for many years. They develop performance ability and all-round musicianship skills. Copper and Bronze are ideal for beginners and provide stepping stones towards Grade 1. Silver is broadly placed at the Grade 1 level of technical demand. The Medals provide evidence of progress, an accredited suite of qualifications and affordable music for beginners. Medals offer:

· motivation – fun pieces to learn and medals to collect!
· flexibility – assessments take place in normal lesson time
· value for money – reasonably priced publications and assessments

We are at the early stages of considering how the model of three components - Ensemble, Solo and Option – could work for pianists. Your input to this process is an important part of the next stage of development, so I very much hope you will be able to give us your reactions in as much detail as possible.

Please find a set of 20 questions to respond to. The final question gives you the opportunity to mention anything else which would be helpful for us to know about your experiences as a teacher using these materials and thinking about what would work best for you and your students.

Many thanks for your valuable contribution, which is much appreciated.

Best wishes,

Nigel Scaife: Syllabus Director, ABRSM

Would you use the Music Medals materials with your pupils during one-to-one lessons?

Which factors would influence someone to choose a Music Medal rather than a Prep Test or a Grade 1 exam?

Are there any other features that you would like to see included in the Music Medals assessment?

Do you feel that having five levels for Medals is appropriate?

Is direct alignment of levels between Music Medals and Prep test/graded exams necessary? If so, why?

Would direct alignment of Bronze with Prep test, and Silver with Grade 1 be useful?

What would influence your decision to continue with the Music Medals progression route above Silver level?

Are the technical requirements for each level of the solo repertoire appropriate? (Please consider aspects such as pitch range, hand positions, keys, rhythm etc. at each level.)

Did you and/or your pupils use the backing-tracks? How did that work and do you have any feedback relating to the backing-tracks?