Whether it’s piano, flute, clarinet - any instrument, and regardless of whether it’s ABRSM, Trinity, LCM - any exam board; taking a performance exam can be nerve-wracking! However, a bout of nerves isn’t necessarily a bad thing and there are ways to deal with nerves so that it doesn’t interfere with your performance. I chat about some obvious coping mechanisms and some not so obvious to help you make the best of your performance exam - you might even enjoy it!

With ABRSM Music Theory exams looming it’s easy to become overwhelmed, but good preparation is the solution. If you know that you’re fully prepared then there’s no need to get stressed and you can actually enjoy the fruit of your hard work with a great exam result. After decades of experience in entering pupils for exams I give you revision tips and explain how to be fully prepared for your music theory exam, to help you to work towards your best exam mark.

From Scala Radio, Classic FM and Radio 3 to Radio 2 and all the local stations we have plenty of musical variety to choose from. And then we have Amazon music, Spotify and iTunes - the list goes on. I myself am a fan of creating my own playlists. My choices are extremely varied and I can swap between Meatloaf and Mozart depending upon my mood. I have a look at whats on my different playlists and what dictates my choices. Music is for pleasure and we are never short of options.

I love singing in a choir! It’s a great way to meet with other musicians and enjoy being part of a live musical performances. Music isn’t just about working hard and practising. Of course, it is important that we keep practising to hone our skills, but we do this because we love music and we should enjoy it. Music is for pleasure too! As a member of Ceramic City Choir I get the chance to be part of all sorts of live performances with full orchestras, as well as piano and orang accompaniment. It’s great to sing some of the familiar favourites but it’s been great to try some new and unusual repertoire too - there’s always something new to learn.

Ceramic City Choir Website