Music GCSE Practical

[JBassist]

A couple of months agos i got a B grade For performing new born on the bass for a practical exam and was wondering what song i would do to get an A next time

examiners are quite inpresed by slapping and tapping so that could come in handy


and btw im not in the year that has just finished their gcses im in the year that has done half of them

[fatgoogle]

IMo and when i did my Junior cert(the irish equivalent) and i found they were really after a well played piece that was well performed over something complicated and difficult that you might struggle with, cause theyll notice. I did two pieces on trumpet and 2 on bass, and i got more marks on the pieces that were better performed.

So maybe you made a noticeable mistake in your piece or maybe the written test let you down.

[EssentialTension]

[quote name='JBassist' post='583766' date='Aug 28 2009, 04:58 PM']A couple of months agos i got a B grade For performing new born on the bass for a practical exam and was wondering what song i would do to get an A next time

examiners are quite inpresed by slapping and tapping so that could come in handy


and btw im not in the year that has just finished their gcses im in the year that has done half of them[/quote]
I don't think the examiners will be impressed by slapping or tapping as such. They will award higher marks for showing a greater range of skills as long as those skills are performed at an appropriate level.

I guess that if you are playing bass only then use of more than one style of bass playing may well help with your mark. My son did the same practical exam and got a very high mark - he was playing guitar, harmonica, and singing a Neil Young song, so fairly straightforward but showing a variety of skills.

But my main advice would be listen to your teachers, they are the experts in what the examination requires.

[JBassist]

cheers guys

[Stan_da_man]

I got an A by playing a very simple piece - I showed I could play through scales, pentatonics and arpeggios.

[Tusknia]

Have you done your group practical yet?

[Soloshchenko]

While I class myself as an English teacher, I take a few music lessons in high school and help out with the practical moderating of the more rock orientated musicians in school. Although it is subjective I would suggest that New Born wouldn't have got you an A as while fairly challenging, it isn't that difficult. I imagine you played it very well to get the B though.

Can I just suggest something from experience? Do a Chili Peppers song, a tricky one from Bloodsugar. Play it well and any moderator will be seriously hard faced not to give you an A.

Good luck.

[danthewelshy]

I've just got my GCSE result for Music and got full marks in the practical side. Just play a grade 3 piece and play it perfect, there is no way they can not give you full marks if you play everything exactly as it is on the sheet you provide them to show what you are playing.

[Wil]

I did mine in 2001 and got an A by just playing guitar and singing Banana Co by Radiohead. Not the most complex thing in the world.

[TDM]

[quote name='danthewelshy' post='584002' date='Aug 28 2009, 08:20 PM']I've just got my GCSE result for Music and got full marks in the practical side. Just play a grade 3 piece and play it perfect, there is no way they can not give you full marks if you play everything exactly as it is on the sheet you provide them to show what you are playing.[/quote]


+1 to this. I got full marks on the solo performance by playing a grade 6 piano piece. A couple of my friends did grade 4/5 pieces and got the same marks as me so as long as it's grade 3+ and you nail it you will do well.

Ask your teacher what the exam board awards marks for. They should provide a list of "hoops" that you have to jump through to get marks. For example I think one of the requirements for wind instrument playing was the ability to play high notes So if you picked a piece with one high note in it, you'd get the mark.

I don't know what you have to do for bass specifically, as I played piano for both my group and solo performances. But this is me playing my GCSE piece:
[url="http://dl.getdropbox.com/u/867382/joekang%2Beinsamerwanderer.mp3"]http://dl.getdropbox.com/u/867382/joekang%...merwanderer.mp3[/url]

Edited August 28, 2009 by thedonutman

[iamapirate]

I did sir duke and (not sure about specifics) overall, including test and everything got a B. but that was very rushed! I'd reccommend something like jamiroquai - not all examiners like rock music and muse, etc. I find that there is not a single soul on the planet that does not like funk.

[Kev]

play Soul to Squeeze. Nail it and you should get an A

[Mike]

I help teach some of the Music GCSE course. I always sit in and watch and help mark the performances. Don't try to play anything that's a real struggle - we want to hear what you know, not what you're working on. A more simple piece, executed cleanly with good timing is far better than a slappy tappy number with showoff potential. It's about being musical, remember!