A Best-Practice Approach to Conservatory Piano Studies
The followin article is meant to acquaint parents and potential students with a
conservatory track curriculum. It outlines what I think are ‘best practices’ for a
successful and enjoyable conservatory journey, from Lesson 1 to Associate Diploma.
Although these recommendations are not conservatory requirements, I do refer to two
institutions, with which I have experience, and to which I send my students for exams:
Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM) and Conservatory Canada (CC). Their graded
programs have many similarities in overall structure and level of development, although
specific repertoire, technical requirements, musicianship skills, and diploma
requireme
nts differ.
Details and requirements regarding Conservatory Canada’s piano examinations can be
Details and requirements regarding the Royal Conservatory of Music piano
examinations can be found at: https://rcmusic-production-strapi-media.s3.ca-central-
Recommendations for lesson time and practice time are mine, not conservatory
requirements. Based on the principle that everyone learns differently, practice times will
vary, depending on the student and their specific goals. The subject of practice
deserves its own blog, if not its own entire doctoral thesis! (There is one.) Students will
need a well-maintained piano; in my opinion, a good digital piano can be suitable
through Level 8, as long as it has touch-sensitive, weighted keys, and at least two
pedals.
Preparatory years: Grade/Levels: Pre-Grade 1 (CC) / Preparatory A and B (RCM)
Lesson time: 30 minutes minimum.
I suggest a daily practice time of 20 minutes, at least five times per week, sometimes
with parent.
Participation is everything. The lesson and follow up practice activities should include
age-appropriate activity pages to support symbol recognition and meaning, exercises or
games to develop hand strength, finger dexterity, and control over volume, an easy
piece to practise reading, and a couple of performance pieces, that can be learned in
two or three weeks with teacher coaching. If children are young (under 8), the parent
should attend the first three months of lessons (minimum) with their child, and actively
participate in the first couple of practice sessions at home, to remind the student of what
they are supposed to do, and to support them as they complete their first few
assignments. This helps maintain the child’s interest and focus, helps the parent
understand how well their child is learning the assigned material, and establishes a
routine for future practice. Once the routine has become established, parent
participation won’t be necessary, but please check in once in a while anyway, read any
messages the teacher may have sent to you, and let your child demonstrate their
accomplishments for you.
Healthy playing position is important from the beginning. Beginning students should be
encouraged to develop a relaxed, balanced hand and arm position, with appropriate
alignment and freedom of movement. I sometimes use a "puppy paw" image to helpyoung children discover and establish a rounded, flexible hand position.
Years 2 and 3: Grades/Levels 1 and 2 (CC and RCM)
Lesson time: 30 minutes minimum, including same activities as years 1 and 2.
Expected daily practice sessions to take about 30 minutes, five times per week, and to
include all the activities from the preparatory level, (instead of colouring, the student
might complete theory assignments).
Weekly tasks should be challenging enough torequire focused practice, but still be within the student’s abilities. There will be morecoordination expectations, (e.g., playing different rhythms in either hand), and perhapsdifferent, simultaneous articulations in each hand (e.g., staccato vs. legato).
As a general studio guideline, students at this level should spend three to four weeks on
learning to play a piece well, that is, with accurate notes and rhythm, a steady beat, and
with appropriate and expressive volume and articulation details. It should be noted that,
in the long run, students will learn more by bringing their pieces up to a relatively high
standard of excellence, than they will by playing them only ‘more or less’ accurately.
Also, it isn’t until a piece is physically mastered that the student can start to incorporate
interpretive details. Your child is doing well if they are playing their pieces well. Praise
them especially for the details!
Years 4 and 5: Grades/Levels 3, 4, and 5 (CC and RCM)
Lesson time: 45 minutes minimum, including theory, keyboard harmony (with CC), and
kinaesthetic development.
My suggested practice time: 30 - 45 minutes daily, six times / week, plus 30 minutes
weekly for theory homework.
As their journey continues, dexterity and coordination demands become more rigorous.
For example, playing with contrasting volumes in either hand is a difficult skill to master,
but once learned, can be integrated into student repertoire at any time, usually to
enhance expression or to clarify musical meaning. Based on my experience, and again,
as a very general rule, learning to play a piece well at this level takes about four weeks
for Levels 3 and 4, and five weeks for Level 5. If learning to play their pieces takes
substantially longer, it may be worth considering whether the piece is appropriately
matched to the student's current abilities. Although a student (or a parent), might want
to jump ahead to a more advanced level, if the student is not ready, it could ultimately
slow them down. Every carefully chosen piece they learn has its own details and
personality, and presents its own set of challenges. The most valuable learning occurs
when those challenges are met and mastered. My students at this level are usually
working at three pieces at a time, one in its finishing stage, one ‘in progress,’ and one
new one.
Students learn more overall, by learning three or four pieces well in two or three
months, than by taking two or three months or more, to learn one piece. Again, there
are students who need or want extra time to really learn to ‘wear a piece like a favourite
shirt.’ But, in a conservatory program, I’m not sure if there is much value in habitually
taking ten or more weeks to learn a piece at this (elementary) level. It means that in one
year, a student would only (sort-of) learn four or five pieces overall. Unless they wish to
spend another year preparing more pieces, these four or five pieces would be their
exam pieces, and although they will pass, they will not be adequately prepared for the
next level. Also, they could get bored by working on the same piece for so long.
My own studio recommendation is that students learn a minimum of ten pieces at each
grade level. Then, if they wish to take an exam, we carefully choose the required four
exam pieces to present a variety of skills, showcasing their strengths, and including one
piece that is their favourite. If they don’t wish to take an exam, I still require them to
learn ten pieces before trying to learn pieces at the next grade level.
Years 6 and 7: Grades/Levels 6, 7, and 8 (CC and RCM)
Lesson time: 60 minutes minimum, including theory, keyboard harmony (CC) and
kinaesthetic development.
My suggested practice time: 60 - 75 minutes daily, 6 times per week, plus 45 minutes
weekly of theory homework.
At this level, coordination, agility, flexibility, strength, and fine motor control become
increasingly important. Students should develop these skills gradually and with careful
attention to ease and freedom of movement. Pain, persistent cramping, numbness,
tingling, or other physical discomforts should never be ignored. If a student experiences
these symptoms, practice should be stopped and the student's teacher should be
consulted; recurring symptoms should be assessed by an appropriate health
professional.
Ideally, (and again in my opinion), Level 6 pieces should take about six weeks to learn
to play well, Level 7, seven weeks, and Level 8, eight weeks from start to finish. I still
ask my students to learn ten pieces minimum at each grade level, in a variety of styles,
in order to be adequately prepared for the next level.
In several Canadian provinces, conservatory examinations at these levels can be
applied toward secondary school music credits, subject to provincial requirements.
Years 8 and 9: Grades/Levels 9 and 10 (CC and RCM)
Lesson time: minimum 75 minutes, including co-requisite keyboard harmony (CC),
theory (harmony and counterpoint), and history exam preparation.
My suggested practice time: 75 - 90 minutes daily, 6 times per week, plus 60 minutes
weekly for harmony, counterpoint, and history homework.
The repertoire for these exams could require more than nine or ten weeks to learn to
play well. Pieces are not only more demanding, but considerably longer, with greater
potential for expressive details. For more comprehensive preparation, I still recommend
learning ten pieces from each grade level, with two pieces representing each of the
following areas of repertoire: Baroque, Classical, Romantic, 20th Century, and
Canadian, before choosing exam repertoire. It is not uncommon for students to spend
more than one year preparing for exams at these levels.
Years 10 and 11: Associate: ACCM (CC) and ARCT (RCM)
Lesson time: minimum 90 minutes, including co-requisite keyboard harmony (CC),
theory (harmony, counterpoint, and analysis), and history exam preparation. Lessons
could be taken twice per week, for 45-minutes each.
My suggested practice time: 90 - 180 minutes daily, 6 times per week, plus 60 minutes
weekly for co-requisite homework.
Conservatory Canada offers ACCM diplomas in Piano Teaching and in Piano
Performance.
The Royal Conservatory offers ARCT Diplomas in Piano Performance and in Piano
Pedagogy.
Both programs have additional theory, history, and/or pedagogy requirements at the
Associate level. These requirements differ between the Royal Conservatory and
Conservatory Canada; students should consult the current syllabus for the diploma they
are pursuing.
Hopefully, these general guidelines will help you understand and thrive in the
conservatory process, and keep you or your child on track for success. As well as
evaluations, both conservatories provide detailed examiners’ comments, which are
great indicators of your or your child’s progress year over year. The comments will
congratulate student’s specific strengths and achievements, (e.g., excellent right hand
fluency) and will then indicate areas that could be improved, (e.g., use more variety of
pedal techniques to achieve colour and variety of tone). You might see similarities in
examiners’ comments over the years, (e.g., more attention to technical requirements is
recommended). You can use their comments to praise their efforts, and to encourage
your child to improve various aspects of their playing.
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