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Alan Coady

Wednesday 17 May 2006

Recent changes to Higher Music mean that pupils are allowed to offer:

  1. pieces from the list of suggested works for each instrument published by the SQA
  2. any piece from the appropriate grade of any of the exam boards in the UK – including past syllabuses
  3. other pieces submitted in advance by the instructor to the SQA for approval

There exists some duplication in the third option for instructors who work in many secondary schools – but with good reason. The written proof that a piece has been approved (the glorious SQA red stamp) must, for practical reasons, be kept in the school where the exams are to take place. Therefore, each piece requires written approval for each school where it may be used. The fact that submitting multiple copies of the same pieces to the same building leaves us at some remove from the paperless era may be addressed at a later stage.

There are two principal ways in which a pupil can come to grief during an SQA practical exam:

  1. performing below par on the day
  2. a piece being deemed not to be of a sufficient technical standard for Higher – an error on the part of the instructor.

This second possibility, although extremely rare, will now be impossible. This, together with the broadening of the syllabus is welcome news.

There is one other change to existing exam conditions which seems to have received a mixed response. In all other subjects, it is considered normal for pupils to study material which is not guaranteed to appear in the exam. Previously, Higher Music students amassed the requisite amount of minutes playing – all of which were heard. Now a sample of the work prepared will be requested. Guidelines are in place to make sure this does not present difficulties which are not realistic performance experiences. Candidates will always begin at the beginning, and will not be asked, while playing, to jump forward in the music – although if following wedding singers is to feature in later life, one cannot develop this skill too soon! Whether this was designed to bring Higher Music into line with other highers, or to overcome a shortage of visiting examiners is not entirely clear. Is that what is known as making a virtue out of a necessity?

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