Tips for Exam Preparation

If you are thinking of doing the exams, I've just got a few tips for you from an examiner's perspective.

Be Prepared

The first tip is to be as prepared as you can possibly be.

• It can feel a little bit stressful to walk into a room and play pieces that you've performed in your bedroom or to your friends, in front of a complete stranger.
• Just remember that the examiner wants you to do as well as you can possibly do, they're not there to catch you out.

Mental Preparation

From your perspective, here are some ways to make sure you're extra prepared for the pressure you might feel on exam day:

• Perform for Family and Friends: Consider performing your pieces in front of your parents at home or your friends as a little warm-up exam.
• Mock Exams: You can run a mock exam with your teacher under exam-style conditions. This will help you mentally prepare for how the examination setting differs from playing alone at home.

Technical Exercises

Another way to prepare is with your technical exercises:

• Rather than just learning them up to the required exam tempo, push yourself a little further.
• For example, if the required tempo is 100 bpm, aim to play them at 120 bpm. This way, when you go into the exam, you'll have that little bit of confidence, knowing that you can play these exercises at a higher tempo, even if you feel additional pressure on the day.

Conclusion

These are two simple things you can do to help your exam go a little bit smoother on the day. Good luck!