TCL Grade 4 Orchestral Percussion
General Info
Candidates taking a Orchestral Percussion exam are required to:
- play one piece for each of Snare Drum, Timpani and Tuned Percussion, must not include the study pieces
- play at least one accompanied piece
Snare Drum Song List
Timpani Song List
Item | Works | Composer | Publication | Publisher | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Roll Up, Roll Down | Keith Bartlett | 50 Short Pieces for Timpani | United Music Publishing | |
2 | Short 'n' Sweet Samba | Keith Bartlett | 20 Short Solos for Timpani | United Music Publishing | |
3 | G Whizz! | Keith Bartlett | 20 Short Solos for Timpani | United Music Publishing | |
4 | Sweet Sixteenths | Keith Bartlett | Percussion World: Timpani | Trinity College London Press | |
5 | Ronduet #2 | Gert Bomhof | Solo Pieces for Timpani | De Haske | |
6 | Gopak | Jan Faulkner | Percussion Exam Pieces & Studies Timpani: Grades 1-5 | Trinity College London Press | |
7 | Winter Thunder | Mike Hannickel | FIRST RECITAL SERIES (Timpani) | Curnow Music | |
8 | Maple Leaf Rag | James Curnow | FIRST RECITAL SERIES (Timpani) | Curnow Music | |
9 | Galop | Jackie Kendle | Percussion World: Timpani | Trinity College London Press | |
10 | Quiere Bailar? | Brian Slawson | Dynamic Solos for Timpani | Alfred Music | |
11 | Solo Study 4 | Garwood Whaley | Primary Handbook for Timpani | Meredith Music | |
12 | Solo Study 5 | Garwood Whaley | Primary Handbook for Timpani | Meredith Music |
Tuned Percussion Song List
Item | Works | Composer | Publications | Publisher | Video |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Lain Xylo | Mark Aldous | Tuned Percussion Solos | Mark Aldous | |
2 | Tears pf a Clown | Mark Aldous | Tuned Percussion Solos | Mark Aldous | |
3 | Cool (from West Side Story) | John O'Reilly | Solos for the Percussion Player | Schirmer | |
4 | Tango | Jan Faulkner | Percussion Exam Pieces & Studies Tuned Percussion: Grades 1-5 | Trinity College London Press | |
5 | Spike Island March | David Hext | Tuned In | Southern Music | |
6 | The Bells of Notre Dame | Randy Newman | Disney Solos for Mallet Percussion | Hal Leonard | |
7 | Empty Pocket | Michael Merkins | The Sound of Pop, Rock, Blues Volume 2 | De Haske | |
8 | Charlie is My Darling | Jan Faulkner | Percussion Exam Pieces & Studies Tuned Percussion: Grades 1-5 | Trinity College London Press | |
9 | Mr John | Fons van Gorp | Big Swing Pop | De Haske | |
10 | Waltz for L | Fons van Gorp | Big Swing Pop | De Haske | |
11 | Gallop #2 | Ivos Weijmans | 13 Pieces for Mallets | De Haske | |
12 | Alla Pollacca | Nebojsa Jovan Zivkovic | Funny Xylophone (Book 1) | Gretel-Verlag |
Technical Works
One of the following options, chosen by the candidate
Instrument | List | Publications | Memory |
---|---|---|---|
Snare Drum | Orchestral Figures Multiple Bounce Roll Study |
Percussion Exam Pieces & Studies Snare Drum Book 1: Grades 1-5 | Nil |
Timpani | Sticking Patterns Roll Development Dynamics |
Percussion Exam Pieces & Studies Timpani: Grades 1-5 | Nil |
Tuned Percussion | E / Ab Major Scales and Arpeggios (One Octave) Chromatic Scale starting on E / Ab C# / F Minor Scales and Arpeggios (One Octave) |
Tuned Percussion Scales & Arpeggios | All requirements should be played from memory. |
Study List
Item | Works | Composer | Instrument | Publications | Publisher | Video |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Sticks for Six | Lorne Pearcey | Snare Drum | Snare Drum Studies | Mark Aldous | |
2 | Grade 4 Rudimental Study | Michael Skinner | Snare Drum | Percussion Exam Pieces & Studies Snare Drum Book 1: Grades 1-5 | Trinity College London Press | |
3 | Penguin Waddle | Lorne Pearcey | Timpani | Timpani Studies | Mark Aldous | |
4 | Grade 4 Study | Jan Faulkner & Jayne Obradovic | Timpani | Percussion Exam Pieces & Studies Timpani: Grades 1-5 | Trinity College London Press | |
5 | Grade 4 Major Study | Jan Faulkner | Tuned Percussion | Percussion Exam Pieces & Studies Tuned Percussion: Grades 1-5 | Trinity College London Press | |
6 | Grade 4 Minor Study | Jan Faulkner | Tuned Percussion | Percussion Exam Pieces & Studies Tuned Percussion: Grades 1-5 | Trinity College London Press |
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.
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 twice times, clap the pulse on the second playing and stressing the strong beat, identify the time signature after clapping.
2. Listen to the melody twice, identify the changing tonality and the final cadence (Perfect, Plagal, Imperfect or Interrupted)
3. Listen to two notes from the melody line played consecutively and identify the interval
4. Study a copy of the piece and listen to it once as written and once with a change of rhythm and a change of pitch (both changes in the melody line)
Improvisation
This test assesses candidates’ ability to improvise fluently, coherently and creatively in response to a musical stimulus. Candidates perform an improvisation based on a stimulus chosen from the following options:
- Stylistic
- Motivic
- Harmonic
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).