Category: Exam Music

  • Five outstanding pieces to enhance your ARSM.

    Five outstanding pieces to enhance your ARSM.

    Take advantage of the own-choice option and broaden your repertoire with these stunners! Palo Piatti: The Birds for Flute and Piano These birds are having a party! They use latin rhythms to give a feel-good factor and fly around all over the place. A lyrical Andante sees them take a rest and the ending is…

  • Five ideal books for post-beginners!

    Five ideal books for post-beginners!

    Open up a whole new world to inspire young and enthusiastic flute players with this eclectic selection of books. Zoe Booth: Dinosaurs for Solo Flute with Piano This is such a fun book for younger players! Aimed at the beginner to the slightly more experienced, the short melodies are packed with scary goodies. For example,…

  • Five charming flute pieces to play before grade 5.

    Five charming flute pieces to play before grade 5.

    It’s always good to explore new repertoire prior to taking the next exam. These gems are wonderful at any time. Emile Kronke: Five Miniatures for Flute and Piano Op 92 Here are some more delightful pieces from Emil Kronke. He writes so well for developing players, keeping the technical challenges simple but adding sumptuous harmonies…

  • Tips on ABRSM Grade 8 pieces: Poulenc Sonata 1st movement

    Tips on ABRSM Grade 8 pieces: Poulenc Sonata 1st movement

    My next few blog posts will be tips on some of my favourite pieces from the ABRSM Grade 8 repertoire lists. Even if you aren’t working towards your Grade 8, I hope these tips may provide you with some food for thought when approaching this repertoire. Poulenc Sonata for Flute and Piano 1st movement: Allegro…

  • Chaminade Concertino – Practice Tips

    Chaminade Concertino – Practice Tips

    Following on from my Taffanel blog, here is a practice guide for another great French work: Chaminade’s Concertino. This piece is played a lot, but quite often with some important details overlooked. As I say to my students, “don’t be an overlooker”! I will also give some tips for practising some of the tricky passages.…

  • Exploring the new ABRSM 2018 Flute Syllabus: Grade 8

    Exploring the new ABRSM 2018 Flute Syllabus: Grade 8

    Grade 8: The Penultimate Grade Blog snapshot – my recommendations at a glance! Muller: Concerto in E minor Op 19 John Ranish:  Sonata in A minor Nineteenth Century Italian Music for Flute and Piano Romantic Miniatures Book 2 Albeniz arr Hedges: Sevilla Paul Lewis: Serenade Populaire Edward Gregson: Aztec Dances Christopher Ball: Invocations of Pan…

  • Exploring the new ABRSM flute syllabus 2018: Grade 7

    Exploring the new ABRSM flute syllabus 2018: Grade 7

    Blog snapshot – my recommendations at a glance! Giuseppe Rabboni: Sonata No 4 in D major from Sonatas for Flute and Piano Telemann: Sonata in G major Frederick the Great: Allegro from Sonata in B flat Spitta No 76. Serini: Andantino grazioso and Allegro assai from Sonata No 1 in D major Gluck arr Boehm: …

  • Exploring the new ABRSM flute syllabus 2018: Grade 6

    Exploring the new ABRSM flute syllabus 2018: Grade 6

    Blog snapshot – my recommendations at a glance! Drouet: Allegro Moderato from Sonata in A minor (Three Little Sonatas) Giuseppe Rabboni: Sonata No 8 in C major from Sonatas for Flute and Piano Vivace:  Allegro from Concerto in D major RV783 Gaubert: Madrigal Andy Scott: And Everything is Still John Frith: Arabesque  Paul Lewis: Lullaby…

  • Exploring the new ABRSM 2018 Flute Syllabus: Grade 5

    Exploring the new ABRSM 2018 Flute Syllabus: Grade 5

    Blog snapshot – my recommendations at a glance! 300 Years of Flute Music Drouet: Rondeau from Sonata in A minor (Three Little Sonatas) Frederick the Great: Allegro assai from Sonata in A minor, Spitta No. 21 Giuseppe Rabboni: Sonata No 10 in D minor from Sonatas for Flute and Piano Sunrise, Sunset from Roll Over Bach…

  • Exploring the 2018 ABRSM Flute Syllabus: Grades 3 and 4

    Exploring the 2018 ABRSM Flute Syllabus: Grades 3 and 4

    Wonderful music abounds at these two grades and the emphasis is on original music which is great for players at this level. There are also lovely tunes to enjoy, as well as a good helping of pieces in the jazz idiom. Blog snapshot – my recommendations at a glance Grade 3 Kopellmann-Martini (ed): Classical Music…