Month: July 2020

In view of the longevity of the Covid-19 crisis, ABRSM has announced that they will be delivering Music Theory assessment at Grades 1 to 5 as an online exam. The first online Music Theory Grade 5 (pilot) exam will take place for candidates in the UK on 26 August 2020. Among the selected territories, candidates in Singapore will sit for their Grades 1-5 Music Theory exam on Nov 7, 2020

ABRSM has also updated some questions at Grades 1 to 5 and made some small changes to the syllabus. These changes apply to online exams from 2020 in all territories where they are available.

Download Syllabus summary for Grades 1 to 5 (online exams from 2020): https://sg.abrsm.org/media/64639/music-theory-syllabus-outline-grades-1-5-from-2020.pdf

Download Grade 5 Sample Paper (online exams from 2020):
https://sg.abrsm.org/media/64672/music-theory-grade-5-sample-paperv2.pdf

Download Grade 5 Model Answers (online exams from 2020):
https://sg.abrsm.org/media/64648/music-theory-grade-5-sample-model-answers.pdf

Along with these changes, a new suite of Music Theory publications will be released from 8 October 2020, namely:
Discovering Music Theory – workbooks and corresponding answer books to build understanding of music theory at Grades 1 to 5, step by step. The workbooks provide an all-round preparation for the updated Online Music Theory exams.
Music Theory Sample Papers & Model Answers – contains the layout of the new online exams at Grades 1 to 5, preparing candidates for the updated question types they will experience in the online exam format.

In the coming weeks, we’ll be shedding more light with regards to these new materials, so check back soon.

As for Music Theory exams at Grades 6 to 8, they will continue as paper-based assessments for all candidates worldwide. There are no changes to the questions or syllabus for these grades. ABRSM will offer these exams when possible, safely and in line with all local government guidance.

In an unprecedented case, we have just been informed by ABRSM UK of an important change to the Grade 1 editions of the new 2021 & 2022 Piano Exam Pieces. 

These are the exact text from ABRSM UK:

I am writing to let you know about an important change to the Grade 1 editions of the new 2021 & 2022 Piano Exam Pieces.  We are committed to reflecting a world of underrepresented talent and musical stories through our commissioning and publications. We have recently made a change to the Grade 1 Piano syllabus to make it more representative, and this means the Piano Exam Pieces Grade 1 (both with and without CD) will now publish on a later date to the rest of the syllabus. We will communicate this new publication date and a new delivery schedule as soon as possible. Due to this change to Grade 1, we will also be updating the Piano Syllabus 2021 & 2022. We will make this available as a downloadable PDF – there will be no printed edition of this syllabus.
Affected titles: 
• 9781786013187 Piano Exam Pieces 2021 & 2022, ABRSM Grade 1 
• 9781786013279 Piano Exam Pieces 2021 & 2022, ABRSM Grade 1, with CD 
• 9781786013842 Piano Syllabus 2021 & 2022

All orders already received for the Grade 1 books will be supplied when available, and there is no need to re-order them. Any backorders recorded from 1 July will be supplied with standard freight charges applied and shipped as soon as stock is available. 
Please refer to the new ISBN numbers below for the Grade 1 books when placing orders and updating your systems.
• 9781786013873 Piano Exam Pieces 2021 & 2022, ABRSM Grade 1 
• 9781786013880 Piano Exam Pieces 2021 & 2022, ABRSM Grade 1, with CD

The publication date for all new Piano Syllabus 2021 & 2022 publications exceptGrade 1 will remain 9 July 2020. This includes the Piano Exam Pieces Grades Initial and 2-8, and the new Piano Scales books. These books remain under embargo until 9 July 2020. We will communicate the new publication date and embargo date for the new Grade 1 books as soon as possible.

What Does this mean to you?

This changed of event has affected all students and teachers globally. At Ensemble Music, we have already taken the necessary steps to “swap out” the Grade 1 books order. All affected customers will be notified separately. Rest assure that we will make our best effort to deliver your books, pre-order or not, in the shortest possible time. Your understanding and patience are greatly appreciated.

Best regards,
Ensemble Music Team