One day, I was offered to take the ABRSM exam. I didn’t know what it was like, so I said yes. When I got the book for the song, I was fine with that, I could read the notes but not fluently. Then when I saw a book that contained techniques and theories, I was immediately shocked. I have a hard time reading the notes so it's tough to sight-read. I've practiced every day but I still can't do it!! I've given up. I also have trouble with the aural test, the hearing has to be really sharp. But I realized that I had to get through this so I kept practicing, practicing, and just practicing.
So during the test, everything went well. I played three songs. The first one was Minuet in G, it was such a fun song that I remember it. The second one was Study in F, the song was good but when I was playing it, it suddenly didn't go well. Honestly, it was sad but it was okay. The last one is a popular song! I think almost all of the people know what this song is. This song is called The Entertainer by Scott Joplin, it's the finest at all, and there's nothing wrong with it, I like this song. Before the exam, I was told to choose whether to play the songs of the theory first. Of course, I chose the song first which is the most fluent and I memorised them well. So when I finished playing the three songs, I switched to the Aural Test. It went unexpectedly smoothly! My hearings are sharp so I can do the echoing right.
Then, the truly nerve-wracking moment began. The examiner started giving out books containing many pieces of songs and the scales in the songs were different. I was really scared that I couldn't read the notes in the book. Even though I can read music, it takes me a long time to be able to play it correctly. When I started reading, the music bar was correct, and then the next. Then suddenly I got stuck on a beat like half, a third, a quarter of a beat I couldn't read it, it was hard I can't imagine. Honestly, I was sweating and getting goosebumps because I couldn't do it. I was stuck in that part and couldn't continue the song. I've decided to give up so I just read the notes and then I just hit the notes on the piano. I know that it's not like playing a song and it's like just playing the piano and then I just finish it.
After finishing the sight-reading part, I felt relieved, even though I had expected the result might not be fully satisfying. I admitted that I was not entirely prepared with my sight-reading skills at that moment. However, this experience taught me the importance of practicing a lot, especially in the material I don't do well, such as sight-reading. This incident showed me the importance of a lot of practice in being able to play such pieces smoothly and with minimal mistakes in future exams. I have learned that consistent practice is the key to mastering any skill, and I am committed to applying this lesson faithfully in my musical journey.
