TCL Grade 1 Keyboard Percussion

General Info

1. Candidates are encouraged to play their pieces on the instruments specified, although Glockenspiel / Xylophone / Vibraphone / Marimba will be acceptable regardless of the specification. 2. Candidates should always attempt to suit the instrument chosen to the music played. 3. The use of the vibraphone pedal or finger damping on the glockenspiel is not required. 4. Sticks must be appropriate to the instrument played, and should be in good condition. 5. At least one accompanied piece must be performed. Pieces that are published with an accompaniment may not be performed unaccompanied.

Pieces / Studies

Candidates can express their musical identity by choosing pieces and studies from our varied repertoire lists. Drum kit candidates choose two pieces with backing tracks and one unaccompanied piece, from a wide range of authentic styles including jazz, funk, show tunes, film, TV, Latin, reggae and swing. Percussionists choose from a varied selection of tuned percussion, timpani and snare drum pieces with accompanied and unaccompanied options. Candidates can further personalize their program by including an own composition.

Song List

Item	Works	Composer	Publications	Publisher	Video
1	Destination Reached	Mark Aldous & Peter Evans & Lorne Pearcey	Introducing Percussion	Trinity College London Press
2	Down to Earth	Mark Aldous & Peter Evans & Lorne Pearcey	Introducing Percussion	Trinity College London Press
3	Ballad	Mark Aldous	Tuned Percussion Solos	Mark Aldous
4	The Music Box	David Hext	Tuned In	Southern Music
5	The Windmill	David Hext	Tuned In	Southern Music
6	Sleigh Ride	Lorne Pearcey	Team Percussion	International Music Publications
7	Oranges and Lemons	Jan Faulkner	Percussion Exam Pieces & Studies Tuned Percussion: Grades 1-5	Trinity College London Press
8	This Old Man	Jan Faulkner	Percussion Exam Pieces & Studies Tuned Percussion: Grades 1-5	Trinity College London Press

Study List

Item	Works	Composer	Instrument	Publications	Publisher	Video
1	Grade 1 Major Study	Jan Faulkner	Tuned Percussion	Percussion Exam Pieces & Studies Tuned Percussion: Grades 1-5	Trinity College London Press
2	Grade 1 Minor Study	Jan Faulkner	Tuned Percussion	Percussion Exam Pieces & Studies Tuned Percussion: Grades 1-5	Trinity College London Press

Technical Works

This section of the exam supports the development of technical skills by assessing candidates’ performance in a range of technical work requirements. A range of instrument-specific technical work features in our percussion exams, including exercises, scales & arpeggios, orchestral figures and orchestral extracts.

Item	Key	Range	Speed	Sticking	Dynamics
Scales	C / F / G Major A / D / E Minor (Natural / Harmonic / Melodic) Chromatic Scale starting on C	One Octave	♩ = 70	Hand to Hand	Mezzo Forte
Arpeggios	C / F / G Major A / D / E Minor	One Octave	♩ = 70	Hand to Hand	Mezzo Forte

Sight reading

This test assesses candidates’ ability to perform a previously unseen musical extract, at a level approximately two grades lower than the exam being taken.

About the Test

After 30 seconds’ preparation time, candidates perform a previously unseen musical extract at a level lower than the exam being taken. Candidates choose whether to perform the test on keyboard percussion, snare drum or timpani.

Supporting Publications

For practice purposes, sample Sight-reading tests are published by Trinity College London Press in Graded Percussion Sight-Reading, Grades 1-8. Purchasing the book is not a requirement.

Aural

This test supports the development of candidates’ abilities in musical perception and understanding by requiring them to recognize musical features by ear (for example meter and pulse, pitch, performance characteristics). All questions are based on a single musical example played at the piano by the examiner. Candidates are asked to describe various features of the music such as dynamics, articulation, texture and style. Candidates are not required to sing.
1. Listen to the melody three times and clap the pulse on the third playing, stressing the strong beat
2. Listen to the melody once and identify the dynamics (Forte & Piano) and articulation (Staccato & Legato)
3. Listen to the first two bars of the melody once and identify the last note as higher or lower than the first note
4. Listen to the melody twice, with a change of rhythm or pitch in the second playing, identify where the change occurs

Improvisation

This test assesses candidates’ ability to improvise fluently, coherently and creatively in response to a musical stimulus. Candidates can choose between three types of improvisation stimulus: stylistic, harmonic or motivic.

Stylistic stimulus

This option requires candidates to improvise on their instrument over a notated accompaniment played by the examiner at the piano.

• Candidates are given a stimulus which includes the notated piano part and chord symbols. The stimulus begins with a two-bar introduction played by the examiner alone, followed by a further section over which

candidates must improvise for a specified number of repeats.

• The examiner plays the stimulus twice for candidates’ reference, without repeats.
• Candidates are then given 30 seconds’ preparation time, during which they may prepare for their improvisation aloud.
• The test then follows. The examiner plays the stimulus again, and candidates join in after the introduction, improvising for the specified number of repeats. Candidates should aim to improvise in a way that complements the musical style of the stimulus.

Motivic stimulus

This option requires candidates to improvise solo in response to a short melodic fragment.

• Candidates are given a notated melodic fragment, which the examiner plays twice on the piano for candidates’ reference.
• Candidates are then given 30 seconds’ preparation time, during which they may prepare for their improvisation aloud.
• The test then follows. Candidates should aim to improvise within the specified duration range and may begin by quoting the stimulus directly, developing their improvisation from there. However, they are not required to quote the stimulus directly, and may instead develop their improvisation from ideas taken from the stimulus such as a small group of notes or an interval. Responses must use the given time signature.

Harmonic stimulus

This option requires candidates to improvise solo in response to a chord sequence.

• Candidates are given a notated chord sequence, including chord symbols, which the examiner plays twice on the piano for candidates’ reference.
• Candidates are then given 30 seconds’ preparation time, during which they may prepare for their improvisation aloud.
• The test then follows. Candidates should improvise for the specified number of repeats, following the chord sequence. Responses should contain melodic / rhythmic interest.

Musical knowledge

This test encourages learners to understand the wider musical context of the pieces they play, as well as their knowledge of notation and their instrument. Examiners ask carefully graded questions based on candidates’ chosen pieces. Questions refer to the solo line only, and not the accompaniment. In the exam, candidates choose which piece they would like to be asked about first. Examiners then choose a second piece for the remaining questions. Candidates’ musical scores should be free of annotations which might aid their responses. Examiners usually point to the relevant part of the score when asking questions. Candidates can use American terms (eighth note, half note, etc) as an alternative to English terms (quaver, minim, etc).

Item	Parameters	Sample Question	Sample Answer
1	Note values	What is this note value?	A quaver
2	Explain key/time signatures	What does 4/4 mean?	Four crotchet beats in a bar
3	Notes on ledger lines	What is the name of this note?	Bb
4	Musical terms and signs	What is the meaning of da capo?	Go back to the start