TCL Grade 1 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
- are encouraged to play their pieces on the instruments specified, although Glockenspiel / Xylophone / Vibraphone / Marimba will be acceptable.
- may use Hand or pedal-tuned timpani.
- are responsible for providing their own accompanists.
Snare Drum Song List
| Item | Works | Composer | Publication | Publisher |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 | Jamie's Two-Step | Carol Barratt | Bravo! Percussion (Book 1) | Boosey & Hawkes |
| 4 | Pamp's Rag | Carol Barratt | Bravo! Percussion (Book 1) | Boosey & Hawkes |
| 5 | Just a Minute March | Keith Bartlett | 50 Short Pieces For Snare Drum | United Music Publishing |
| 6 | Three and Easy?! | Keith Bartlett | 50 Short Pieces For Snare Drum | United Music Publishing |
| 7 | Accent Patrol | Michael Skinner | Percussion Exam Pieces & Studies Snare Drum Book 1: Grades 1-5 | Trinity College London Press |
| 8 | Stepping Out | Michael Skinner & Jan Faulkner | Percussion Exam Pieces & Studies Snare Drum Book 1: Grades 1-5 | Trinity College London Press |
Timpani Song List
| Item | Works | Composer | Publication | Publisher |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 | Alpenstock | Carol Barratt | Bravo! Percussion (Book 1) | Boosey & Hawkes |
| 4 | Kettle Waltz | Carol Barratt | Bravo! Percussion (Book 1) | Boosey & Hawkes |
| 5 | Basically Beethoven | Jan Faulkner & Jayne Obradovic | Percussion Exam Pieces & Studies Timpani: Grades 1-5 | Trinity College London Press |
| 6 | Landler | Jan Faulkner | Percussion Exam Pieces & Studies Timpani: Grades 1-5 | Trinity College London Press |
| 7 | Lazy and Long | Jan Faulkner | Percussion Exam Pieces & Studies Timpani: Grades 1-5 | Trinity College London Press |
| 8 | Spiky and Short | Jan Faulkner | Percussion Exam Pieces & Studies Timpani: Grades 1-5 | Trinity College London Press |
| 9 | Sticking to the Point | Lorne Pearcey | Team Percussion | International Music Publications |
Tuned Percussion 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 | Backyard Beat | Lorne Pearcey | Snare Drum | Snare Drum Studies | Mark Aldous | |
| 2 | Grade 1 Rudimental Study | Michael Skinner | Snare Drum | Percussion Exam Pieces & Studies Snare Drum Book 1: Grades 1-5 | Trinity College London Press | |
| 3 | Big and Bold | Lorne Pearcey | Timpani | Timpani Studies | Mark Aldous | |
| 4 | Grade 1 Study | Jan Faulkner & Jayne Obradovic | Timpani | Percussion Exam Pieces & Studies Timpani: Grades 1-5 | Trinity College London Press | |
| 5 | Grade 1 Major Study | Jan Faulkner | Tuned Percussion | Percussion Exam Pieces & Studies Tuned Percussion: Grades 1-5 | Trinity College London Press | |
| 6 | Grade 1 Minor Study | Jan Faulkner | Tuned Percussion | Percussion Exam Pieces & Studies Tuned Percussion: Grades 1-5 | Trinity College London Press |
Technical Works
One of the following options, chosen by the candidate
| Instrument | List | Publications | Memory | Video | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 | C / F / G Major Scales and Arpeggios (One Octave) Chromatic Scale starting on C A / D / E Minor Scales and Arpeggios (One Octave) |
Tuned Percussion Scales & Arpeggios | All requirements should be played from memory. |
Sight reading
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 tuned percussion, snare drum or timpani.
Aural
Candidates answer questions based on a single musical example played on the piano by the examiner.
Improvisation
Candidates perform an improvisation based on a stimulus chosen from the following options:
- Stylistic, motivic or harmonic for tuned percussion
- Rhythmic for snare drum or timpani
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).
| Parameters | Sample Question | Sample Answer |
|---|---|---|
| Note values | What is this note value? | A quaver |
| Explain key/time signatures | What does 4/4 mean? | Four crotchet beats in a bar |
| Notes on ledger lines | What is the name of this note? | Bb |
| Musical terms and signs | What is the meaning of da capo? | Go back to the start |
| Parts of the instrument | What is the top head of the drum called? | The batter head |