Since April I have come on leaps and bounds. Gareth wanted me to take the Grade 3 exam in July but I wasn't confident enough so I worked and worked on the songs I was doing to make sure they were near perfect for the exam in December.
There was no backing out - on 29th September 2015 I booked my exam. I was determined that anything less that a distinction would not be good enough so I went to Mill Hill Music Complex to rehearse when I could.
You may recall back in April I posted part one of this blog. At that time I was playing Chain of Fools at a slower than regular speed! I had also thought that I might play All Day and All of the Night by The Kinks as my technical piece. I found it quite challenging so decided on a folk song called John Barleycorn instead.
 |
| Sheet music with helpful tips from Gareth |
I bought some smaller drumsticks to be able to play this song's dynamics better. They were purple (of course) and shiny.
Gareth also notated one of the songs I wrote with Mark Holland (The Game). I initially wanted to do "Cards" because it's in 3/4 time but because we recorded it without a metronome I couldn't be sure that it was strictly the correct BPM the whole way through.
 |
| Neatly transcribed by Gareth |
The date I was given for the exam was Monday 7th December. Leading up to this date I was getting more nervous so I practised more at Mill Hill and made sure I had at least one lesson a week with Gareth.
Here are some videos of me playing these songs at Mill Hill. There's a tiny mistake in John Barleycorn because there's one bit I hadn't perfected until the lesson before my exam (cutting it fine). You might not notice it but Gareth will and I certainly won't forget it.
Chain of Fools
John Barleycorn (Technical Focus)
The Game (free choice)
On the day of the exam I left a lot of time to get to Hatfield just in case of traffic so I ended up arriving incredibly early. I went off to another room in the school with Gareth to have a quick rehearsal. I absolutely NAILED the songs in the rehearsal. There was no way it was going to be that perfect in the exam!!!
I was my usual cheery self walking into the exam but I was a bag of nerves inside. The drum kit was in front of the examiner and when I sat at the kit, my back was to him.
The exam went so quickly. I knew there were a couple of things I could have done better but all in all I was pretty confident. A few days later I received my Examination Report.
I GOT A DISTINCTION!!!
There were some great comments on the report.
Chain of Fools - A solid groove at the opening with generally excellent timing and fluency. Fills played with accurate sync to backing. Dynamics observed well on the whole. Overall, an excellent attempt.
The Game - Excellent dynamic contrasts in this piece. Good rhythmic control. An engaging rendition overall.
John Barleycorn - Coordination was handled well with even kick/snare interplay. Rolls executed smoothly with a good sound. Improv fills tastefully judged. This was a musical and well communicated performance.
Improvisation - An appropriate groove chosen here with some tasteful fills and variations employed. A musical shape to the test with a good build.
Then under general comments he wrote: Congratulations!
I was over the moon! I knew if I worked hard enough that distinction would come to me!
I am now a Grade 3 level, Rock & Pop Drummer. Will I continue? I won't be doing any more exams in a hurry but I may still have the odd lesson when I can!
 |
| Me and my certificate (that I need to get a frame for) and a purple drumstick |
