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Learning music benefits us in so many ways that studying for grade exams might be viewed as incidental; yes, it is a handy option that is open to us, but certainly there is more to life than testing. However, it is also true that grade exams can richly support a student in their development, which we would wholeheartedly encourage.
When weighing up whether to start work on music exams, timing is an important factor. For most of us, at some time or other we will really benefit, but for beginners there is little value in rushing into grade work. Far more important is to develop a love for making music, and acquire that key ingredient, the practice habit.
I try never to see any music grade as an end in itself. Certainly, it is a measure of something; that you did some work, that you made some progress, that you developed a certain amount of self discipline. But for grades to be meaningful, you need a sense of mission, because most of all they are about the work you do along the way, which can be work of real quality if you are committed and actually enjoying it.
Of course, everything may not go right first time, but sometimes life’s most memorable lessons derive from experiences where things do not initially go to plan. As we learn how to respond to set backs, they can be highly educational, and a student on a mission to prove to something to him or her-self after an earlier disappointment may take far more from the whole experience than another who coasts to high marks.
Ultimately, many of our students get real satisfaction from grade work, but from my perspective play and practice should generally lead, and exams follow, rather than the other way around. That way, you can set a really high performance level naturally, and your exam results should reflect this.
Tuesday 17th September brought a visit to historic music shop Gough and Davy in Hull to try out a new piano from Casio that I have been hearing a lot about. The GP 300 digital piano is described as a ‘hybrid’, as it goes further than before to bridge the gap between digital and acoustic grand pianos, which exists in part due to the difference in keyboard action.
Casio’s new piano uses a keyboard mechanism designed by noted acoustic piano maker, Bechstein, and it’s safe to say it improves the digital piano experience beyond measure. Without detailing all of the differences i noticed in the hour or so I spent playing the GP 300, this piano made an excellent impression. Three main piano sounds are on offer, including Berlin, Hamburg and Vienna Grands, plus variations, all beautifully detailed. One striking difference was the feel of the keyboard action, which just seems so much easier to play than expected, amounting to something of a revelation. You can even get a look at the keyboard hammer action, and enjoy the sound experience still further, when you lift up the lid.
My day out in Hull proved to be more than worthwhile, and indeed I was so impressed and delighted by the GP300 that I have ordered not one, not two but three for the studios of the Northern Music Academy. We take delivery soon.
Work is now well under way to replace the previous Northern Music Academy website with one which is fresh, informative, topical and maybe even inspirational; oh, and definitely easier to manage.
Created by media specialist Tommy Rawle, the new website has been built to serve the needs of both current and prospective music students and their families. Find out more about the teachers, their backgrounds, our education philosophy, or simply check regular opening hours.
We consider ourselves fortunate to work in specialist music education. Sharing what we know about music is a joy, and a privilege. Learning to make music is such an enriching, life affirming activity, and for the budding musician may best be enjoyed minus the constraints and limitations that are often imposed by the state education system.
For many of us, music lessons may be the only private education we can ever really afford. Here at the Northern Music Academy, we fully appreciate this, and we are wholly committed to making this count.
Born from an idea conceived way back in 1987, the Music Academy began life as a Yamaha Music School in January 1989. Though brand new, it set the record in it’s opening weekend for the most successful ever single recruitment event of any Yamaha Music School in the UK, with almost 200 new recruits over three days, in addition to over sixty students who were already studying with joint founder and principal, Darrell Priestley. In it’s earliest days, specialist keyboard education for a wide range of ages was the main offering, with a particular focus on ear training as a means of developing fluent performance skills.
Setting out to bring something genuinely new and affordable to the good people of Pontefract and the surrounding area, Darrell and his wife Eileen, with the support of Yamaha, together transformed music education in the region, and soon found students were flocking from further afield to learn music in a fresh and innovative environment. Concerts were a mainstay, both locally and even nationally, with events held at venues from Pontefract Town Hall and Castleford Civic Centre, to Sheffield City Hall and Queen Elizabeth Hall on London’s South Bank. Over a number of years, many Academy students took part in annual concerts at Birmingham’s illustrious Symphony Hall, generating wonderful memories for their families and supporters who made the journey to cheer them on.
By the late 1990’s, after the music school had evolved significantly from it’s keyboard and organ roots to offer a more complete range of lesson options, it was felt that it should stand alone, and so the name was changed to Northern Music Academy to reflect the wider offering. What had not changed was the level of commitment to providing excellence, and the ethos of a family oriented learning environment. Darrell and Eileen have always believed in the importance of family, and that is reflected throughout the fabric of the unique business they have created. Their own children were raised in and around the Academy, and have music in their veins; indeed, their daughter, Jessica, qualified in music and education and teaches at the Academy today.
The years 1999 to 2009 brought a period of taking music even further afield, with music tours to a number of European countries, generating fabulous memories for the students and their families who took part. These days, concerts tend to be local, but still enormously important and rewarding experiences for everyone involved. Plus, we retain the focus on music exams that has been a feature since the earliest days, right back in 1989.