By Hugh Boyde, Frances Taylor and Barbara Pommerenke-Steel
A new mandolin exam syllabus, under the auspices of the Music Teachers’ Board, is live and has been ready to use from May 2023. There are 10 levels: two pre-Grade tests, and a complete range from Grade 1 to Grade 8. These tests are conducted by the teacher, recorded via an app and then marked remotely by specialist examiners – so you can do a test anytime, anywhere. Hugh Boyde and Iain Lennon have completed training to become the first mandolin examiners for the Board.
The new Syllabus is not, we hasten to add, a replacement for the existing Victoria College Mandolin Syllabus (which the BMG also had a big hand in developing). But it does give mandolin teachers and candidates more choice of exam format, and there are some significant differences in the form and content of the tests.
A little MTB history
The Music Teachers’ Board (MTB) was founded on the principle of putting the needs of the teacher and pupil first in the exam process. It provides an exciting new way to take instrumental grades in 26 instruments (and mandolin makes 27!) and now has over 2000 exam centres registered across more than 50 countries. An important milestone for the Board was achieving OFQUAL recognition in 2019, which means that MTB grades now carry the same weight as, for example, Associated Board tests, and can be used as evidence of achievement for further education or other purposes.
Many music teachers first discovered MTB during the lockdowns, when of course the remote examining model came into its own. Many have stayed with the Board since, and have been enthusiastic about the simplicity of the admin, the quality of the marking and good interactions with MTB staff. To get an idea what teachers of other instruments are saying about MTB, take a look at https://www.mtbexams.com/testimonials/
Developing the Mandolin Syllabus
This was a collaborative effort by the three of us. We worked on it throughout 2022, with guidance and feedback on our various drafts from Mark Kesel at MTB.
We started by familiarising ourselves with the Board’s system and their existing instrumental syllabuses – particularly the most obviously relevant ones such as Violin and Guitar. We then developed a general “Levels and Expectations” document for Mandolin, followed by specific lists of repertoire, scale exercises, and technical exercises at each level. All of these are easy to find and view on /www.mtbexams.com/syllabus/mandolin/, and the lists also have links to the sites where you can order the music.
We were able to draw on some previous work by Barbara and Frances – though at every stage we made substantial additions and revisions, in order to ensure a good alignment with other MTB instrument syllabuses.
At each level, we aimed for a list which was appealing and user-friendly, with stylistic diversity and a good choice of solos and accompanied pieces of all kinds. We hope that we have succeeded in creating lists which will enable teachers and pupils in many mandolin traditions to find something that they can recognise and identify with, but which also fit into a recognisable common progression plan.
We strove to keep the materials as affordable and accessible as possible. Wherever we could, we used music which is easily available in the UK. We made good use of the increasingly long list of classical mandolin materials published by Astute Music. On the folk side, we drew on some of Nigel Gatherer’s material from Pigpipe Press – and at the middle and higher levels Simon Mayor’s books provided attractive repertoire, featuring techniques such as hammer-ons and slides which might not feature in a classical piece. Another volume which features in the early grades was “Microjazz for Mandolin” by Christopher Norton (which includes guitar versions of the accompaniments, prepared by Barbara) which is an excellent source of simple accompanied solos in contemporary styles.
Whenever we used a collection of music, we tried to recycle it at several levels, in order to keep pupils’ and teachers’ costs down. We tended to avoid large expensive compendia – though in the interests of diversity we did include one or two from Hal Leonard and Mel Bay, to make sure that styles such as Brazilian mandolin and bluegrass were represented on our lists.
Do take a look!
BMG mandolin teachers, please consider using these tests with your pupils and in your planning. Of course, grade tests are not for everyone, but it can be so motivating for pupils to have progressive levels to work towards. The fact of not having to play in front of an examiner might attract pupils who might otherwise be daunted by the process. It has never been easier to book a test, and because you conduct the test yourself, you can do it whenever the pupil is ready – rather than having to book a date in advance, and then getting stressed as the time draws near and the desired progress has not been achieved!
And we also think this should be of interest to ANY mandolin player, regardless of age or musical background. We live in the age of life-long learning, and many adults find it interesting and motivating to have an external benchmark. Maybe you already own some of the books on the lists? Which grade would you say you were? Perhaps you could work through the rest of the syllabus for that grade, and if you wish to, you could take a test at the end of the process. Remember that the BMG maintains a list of excellent teachers who could help. And if you have remote lessons via Zoom, there is even a way of doing the test via a Zoom call.
Further information
Finally, if you want a quick taster of some of the repertoire, Hugh has created a YouTube channel dedicated to the new exams. You can find it on this link https://www.youtube.com/@mtb-mando. Do get in touch with any feedback on the content and layout, and we’d be very grateful if you could SUBSCRIBE to the channel (once it has 100 subscribers it can have a nicer URL). At each level there is a curated playlist with a variety of performances from round the world.