We are in our busiest time of the year for Music Scholarship enquiries for admissions to UK state secondary schools. Myself and my colleagues at the SE22 Piano School have been preparing students for these entrance exams for well over a decade and I have written many articles for music teaching-related magazines about the subject. The Music Scholarship process allows schools to select a certain percentage of their intake according to musical ability. In some instances this allows students living outside the catchment area to bypass this criteria which is why the places are very much sought after.
Many of the schools say that no musical ability is required to sit the test but this is very confusing as the test is usually in two parts, one of which does test musical performance skills and knowledge. The first being a Music Aptitude Test and then if you achieve a certain score, you will be asked back to perform on an instrument. We offer training to help familiarise students with the style of tests they will hear on the day. Whilst we cannot guarantee that we know the exact contents of the test as it changes each year, we are very well-versed with the kinds of tests used by all schools and we have an excellent success rate at getting students through to Round Two. However this is where musical ability comes under scrutiny and where many students realise they are not at the same level as the students that will be selected for the scholarship.
For the second stage you will need to play one or two pieces ideally on two different instruments, preferably one orchestral or voice. The students that achieve the full Music Scholarship (for schools such as Kingsdale) or gain one of the very small amount of places are usually very skilled musicians with an orchestral instrument/voice and a great passion and enthusiasm for music. We have very rarely seen a student around the lower grades or beginner level receive the scholarship.
We receive a lot of enquiries from students around Grade 1 or 2 level piano, for example, and have found that this is rarely sufficient to achieve the scholarship. The reason is that the piano is not an orchestral instrument so if it is not offered at a very high level such as Grade 4 to 6 then as a solo offering it does not hold much weight.
When we tutor our students at the SE22 Piano School we always encourage them to learn an additional instrument or prepare a piece for voice if they have the ability to do this. We usually advise parents to start a second instrument around Year 3 or 4 to ensure they will have a good chance of attaining the scholarship. Recently we had a student achieve a Music Scholarship to 4 schools playing the trombone around Grade 2 level. As she had chosen a less common orchestral instrument and had been prepped for the tests in advance she was very comfortable with the style of tests. In addition to this she had a lot of performing experience at student recitals plus could talk knowledgeably about various musical styles that are popular for trombonists. We would have entered her for local music festivals but at this was not an option during lockdown she gained her performance experience at our online and in-person student recitals.
What does it mean to be a music scholar?
Based on our experience the schools are looking for well above average ability in musical performance. This means achieving a higher level of playing standard than your peers combined with a passion for your instrument. If you are a student that practises your instrument diligently each week and loves performing then we always encourage you to sit the tests.
Tips for Succeeding at the Audition:
- If you are a pianist and do not have a second instrument, consider preparing a song to present as your second audition piece. Ask your teacher for assistance. We also offer Zoom lessons and Mirna teaches singing. Book a lesson here: www.se22piano.co.uk
- Don’t leave it until September to prepare for the tests. We have good availability for online lessons during the Summer holidays when our team are less busy with our regular roster of students. This is the best time to prepare. Once term resumes in September we will only have very limited spaces on Friday and Saturday to prep students for lessons.
Useful Exercises for Music Scholarship Candidates:
- Do your research about your audition pieces. Find out some information about the composer. What does the title of the piece mean? How do you convey that in your performance?
- Listen to live music. Have you ever been to a music recital, be it pop, jazz, classical or something else? You may be asked about this at the audition. If you are a pianist, who is your favourite pianist? Why do you like them? All over the UK you can hear free music recitals. Try and find a free lunchtime recital to attend and take some notes about the performance and then discuss it with your teacher.
- Write down three things that you love about your instrument.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Here are some questions I have recently received by email. Please note the text below is lifted directly from emails so I have not corrected any spelling or grammatical errors.
“I was concerned that if she prepared in July she would forget by September.”
We would hope that a student with a good level of musical ability would be able to retain information over a few months which is why we advise to prepare in July to allow some time for the style of tests to settle. You can then continue to prepare for the tests using our digital downloads with your teacher. If required you can book another lesson nearer to the actual test date but we do really encourage preparing in advance. This also avoids any last-minute panic which is stressful for a scholarship candidate.
“Can you advise how many sessions she will need and when she will need to start.”
Until we have met the student it is impossible to determine how many lessons are required as no two students are alike. We always advise allowing two or three months time to prepare. Last minute preparation is never ideal. Book a lesson here.
“My daughter need to take music aptitude test as we live outside catchment area, which test does she need to take ?? And what is it I can buy so she can practice.”
We offer a digital download that we recommend using with your teacher. It is NOT the exact same test you will hear on the day. That would be impossible to provide.
“Please could you advise if your tests are for the SW consortium?”
We have tutored many students for the Herts SW schools. The training tests are indicative of the style of MAT used in the UK although we cannot guarantee that your test will be exactly the same. These tests are to be used to gain familiarity with the variety of MAT tests used by UK schools.
“I am interested in your face to face courses for musical apptitude
Please could you send me details ?”
You can book a 1-to-1 lessons online here. If you do not see a suitable time available then keep checking back as we add more dates as we find gaps in our schedule. If your chosen day or time is not available then we cannot accommodate you as we are busy with our regular roster of students. Our teachers fit in the Aptitude Test Training lessons around their weekly teaching schedule.
“Do you have a training centre in North London?”
We are based in South London however we only offer Zoom lessons for 1-to-1 online training. This means we can tutor students from all over the UK and we have been using this method so successfully during lockdown that we now only offer this option. Book online here.
“Hi does the test include Enhanced tests with Graphic scores? The ones needed for Ashmole?”
Yes we offer graphic scores in our digital download. We only have one test for sale. This will be emailed to you after purchase as a Zip file containing MP3s and PDF test sheets plus the answers and guidance notes. Again we encourage you to use this with your teacher. Buy here.
Nb. awaiting dates for 2025 admissions. Have you got a burning question about the Music Scholarship process? Ask us anything about the Music Aptitude Test and Music Scholarship process for secondary schools here: http://eepurl.com/gfGsdH
We are offering packages for Music Aptitude Test tutoring including a 10 minute Zoom Consultation Call prior to the lessons. See here for more information:
Helping you prepare for the 2025 Music Aptitude Tests 