All About the AMEB (Australian Music Examinations Board)

[@bethanygreenwood8655]

It's A Em E Bee :)

[@zavierfabijan4055]

I'm australian and I learned more about the AMEB from you than I have from actual piano teachers. hah. I started being graded and started some theory when I was 10-12 but I was pulled out from not practising as much as my mum liked and jumping to the present I can now say I can play a AMEB level 8 piece and good lord it was hard to do it by myself! Piano became a hobby rather than a passion but after you described it all for me it seems like something I'd be interested peeking into :) thank you

[@KeepingOnTheWatch]

I would tread very lightly and simply call it ‘the Australian Music Examinations Board’. After disrespecting their country Bart Simpson was forced to travel to Australia to get ‘The Boot’ in parliament. It was a very big boot.

[@christinagreen3024]

What a great introductory video - thank you! Echoing others, it is pronounced as single letters, A M E B (unlike other more recent acronyms here like ‘NAB’ for National Australia Bank, pronounced as a word). I did grades 1-6 AMEB piano exams before university and have also taught - regular grades, piano for leisure, contemporary guitar. It has grown and has a lot to offer, and holds a lot of sway in the Australian music scene. I also recently enjoyed your video on sonata form - thanks so much!

[@dincerekin]

Thank you for doing this video even though it didn't get too many views. It is much appreciated

[@TheALIMARS]

Yes, it’s A.M.E.B. Each letter said separately....I have done 8th grade with Grade 6 Musicianship...

[@pukulsrod3070]

thank you for this!! I am from Australia so this was very helpful

[@volcano83]

Thank you for taking time to talk about AMEB. I have passed my preliminary and Grade 1 exams with HDs for Piano for Leisure, working on Grade 2, and am sitting my Debut exam for Rockschool this weekend. I want to learn to play classical style (without going too heavy) and pop/rock songs, hence happily taking both courses.

[@pianodudeler]

Great video! The syllabus is a great help for self-directed learnign with graded pieces in categories and a comprehensive list of teaching and study resources.

[@tubbie0075]

I did ABRSM piano and music theory up to grade 5 when I was a teenager. After migrating to Australia, I did AMEB violin then piano both up to grade 8 and music theory up to grade 5 as a adult. You are right that ABRSM and AMEB are very similar. A while ago I compared the technical requirements and found that in general, AMEB asks for more in less keys while ABRSM asks for less in more keys. For exam pieces, I remember that up to grade 7, you need to prepare 2 extra pieces of equivalent or higher level in addition to your 4 pieces. The examiner may ask you to play an excerpt of 1 or 2 of your extra pieces. After grade 8, I decided I’m done with exams but not lessons. It’s been 12 years of piano lessons and still going. What can I say. I’m a slow learner 😅

[@Earlofmar1]

I have been enjoying my journey through the A.M.E.B. grades as an adult learner for about five years now. I have two main gripes though: one is the need to pay just for the syllabus itself, which currently I have had to buy three times. The second is I feel the Music Craft theory books are poorly written for the self learner, which has required me to seek out specialist teaching. However, one of the great bonus's is the large selection of pieces I can choose from, I always find something in each list that I truely want to learn. The recent changes in Series 18, which have added technical exercises and other improvements is also a great move forward.

[@Margate2535]

Have you done any theory exams? If so, what experience have you had? Thanks 😊

[@CaptainCaveman782]

100% agree, I am not interested in the actual exam but love a structured approach, otherwise I would get bored and stop practicing

[@morganyuen4231]

Just an update to your video, the old syllabus are available until the end of 2021 because of the covid pandemic disrupt lessons. So, they have added one more year to do the old syllabus.

[@cicicinca]

watching this instead of practicing for my A.M.E.B exam

[@sharonxiang6797]

cincachai lol same

[@madness8556]

The AMEB is the oldest and most popular music examination syllabus in Australia, but it's certainly not the only option for public music examinations. There's also the AGME (Australian Guild of Music Education) established in 1969, ANZCA (Australian and New Zealand Cultural Arts) established in 1983 and St Cecilias Music Examination, amongst others including Trinity College of Music. The AMEB does have very high standards but it's IMHO not the best option for modern examinations where both ANZCA and AGME beat it with their modern stream examinations.

[@helenlittle2058]

agree - it is good to explore other options as well as AMEB. The standards are similar across the board - many pieces can be found across the syllabi. All are accredited year 12 certificates - and I know most offer both a video and online option. I do know that AGME offers this - plus it leads directly into a degree programme for those interested

[@madness8556]

@@helenlittle2058 I did all my practical and theoretical exams through the AGME (then AGMS) and their standard of marking was very similar to the AMEB. The AGME and ANZCA both give numbered grades for their piano exams which I much prefer to the letter only gradings that the AMEB gives. I've been using both ANZCA and AMEB syllabi over the last 6 years and the more I use ANZCA, the more I prefer it because of the way you can so easily combine pieces from both classical and modern streams. I also dislike the AMEB's extra list requirements. It's alot of extra work and it's barely acknowledged in the exam!

[@scottredford4801]

This was a really informative video, thank you

[@musicbyAnu]

educational as always thanks

[@velcroman11]

The prices of the Series 18 have increased, so that by 2024 not AU$30 + but AU$40+ to almost AU$50.

[@dangerousateveryspeed]

oh good god just the acronym gave me flashbacks

[@sasanof23]

ANZCA is also a relatively popular music examinations board in Australia

[@danielrennie6582]

Hi, I love your videos but I take my music exams for LCM (London college of music) so I was wondering if you could cover a video on that music school

[@minecrafter_3155]

Wow that's pretty interesting! I found this video because im about to take my RCM level 2 exam 😄 I had one important question in mind though. I have prepared for two repetoire list A songs, one of which is considerably simpler than the other. If I played the challenging song, will the examiner grade me easier? Or will they just mark both songs on an equal basis?

[@KeepingOnTheWatch]

Rahul Atre I take it you also have pieces selected from list B and C? (+ the 1 etude as well) If so then I would select one of your pieces from list A that has the greatest contrast to your other pieces from the B and C list. I personally wouldn’t worry if one of your A pieces seems more simple than the other. Sometimes easy songs are deceptive and are challenging to play with grace and nuance. Plus, your examiner wants to see you play works that are varied in style and period.

[@minecrafter_3155]

Interesting. I have prepared for all required songs to take the rcm exam. They all contrast quite well, but I was worried if the examiner graded me on a harder level if I selected a more basic song. Thanks for your answer

[@KeepingOnTheWatch]

@@minecrafter_3155 I'm actually working on RCM level 2 as well. The exam pieces I've selected are: (A) Écossaise in G Major, (B) On a Quiet Lake and (C) Invention no. 3 Canon.

[@musicalneptunian]

I never did anything with AMEB. But from a long time ago I remember that at Australian schools you can sit the AMEB exams at school until about level 6. Back in the 80's the general music textbook was by Dorricott and called listen to the Music. That was the non controversial part. Prepare for rant: I hate the Australian classical music scene. As an adult I have had to teach myself theory; I couldn't find a teacher. They only want to teach kids. I don't form their kids market.

[@roslynluyt7284]

AMEB, is usually pronounced A-M-E-B. Melbourne is pronounced Mel-bin, and Adelaide you got right :)

[@amoryblaine2123]

The hardest pieces I play are Liszts Liebestraum 3 and Un Sospiro but I struggle with Un Sospiro with speed and articulation. Would Chopins Scherzo 2 be to hard for me?

[@jasonlin9380]

Chopin Scherzo 2 is an AMEB LMusA piece. You can give it a shot if you want. When I was doing my Certificate of Performance I played Liszt's Liebestraum and was also learning Scherzo 2 for fun. I managed to get through about the first five pages in about a month until recently I wanted to focus on my AMusA and HSC pieces. So it's definitely doable, but it just depends if you want to play it for fun like me or to play it at concert level. Hope this helps

[@amoryblaine2123]

@@jasonlin9380 Thanks for your answer but I dont even know what AMEB LMusA and all that is. Im no professional I just play alone in my room. I just meant if Im mechanically or technically at the level of learning the piece efficiantly. Im playing since 1 and a half years now maybe

[@jasonlin9380]

@@amoryblaine2123 Oh sorry for my misunderstanding, but basically LMusA is the highest achievable level in AMEB (it's the second diploma of AMEB). How did you learn Liebestraum and Un Sospiro? because only having 1.5 years piano expereince to learn Liebestraum is quite impressive as it is an AMEB Certificate of Performance piece (the one after grade 8)

[@amoryblaine2123]

@@jasonlin9380 I dont know. Im pretty sure I dont play it very good. With a lot of articulation etc. I mean I just remembered the notes on the sheet and I looked at some midi videos and once I knew the notes I just had to practice long enough until my hands were able to play the correct notes. I dont know which level or grade Im at. How can i check this?

[@jasonlin9380]

@@amoryblaine2123You would basically have to sit a piano exam because that basically determines what grade you are for piano. But just keep in mind if you can play Liebestraum perfectly with dynamics, articulation, expression etc. you'll be around a little above grade 8 level.

[@erickenn96]

How much does it cost to earn a ABRSM or an RCM certification?

[@williamstuart9557]

Are there any of these examination boards that have examinations via Skype for those that live far away from testing centers?

[@velcroman11]

People that use A-MEB in lieu of A-M-E-B are burnt at the stake.

[@nicolequesnel4691]

You say each letter, they are not used to create a word. 🙂

[@ThomasMulliganFlute]

It's not a music school it's an examinations board

[@SaraMGreads]

Wow you are up early. Or maybe you schedule these uploads?

[@jacksonsmith785]

I say “ Amy b “ like a m e b but joined

[@rohansgalaxy9465]

Literally I'm meant to be doing amen theory but nope I'm watching about it.

[@rachaelryan7499]

ayyemmeeebeee

[@jathebest1234]

Where did you get the list of repertoire from?

[@piotrszmyt106]

www.ameb.edu.au/shop/syllabuses-study-resources/manual-of-syllabuses-2084/piano-syllabus.html

[@piotrszmyt106]

I bought it right after watching this video, and for 10$ you get digital version of syllabus with the list of repertoire. It is awesome. So many great pieces to discover at your level of playing.

[@jathebest1234]

@@piotrszmyt106 is there a way to see it for free?

[@lillycorrell4838]

Jathebest123 I don’t believe so, unfortunately :(

[@吃颗草莓糖]

It's Amy Bee UwU

[@_Fluffy_kitsune]

🤷🏾‍♀️

[@DrLisaDeG]

It's pronounced Mel ban not Mel born fyi but love the video

[@cabal4171]

Noice

[@jakesim5818]

Jake from ENHYPEN part of ameb

[@velcroman11]

A.M.E.B. Never “A-MEb”. Brrrrrrrrrrrr horror. 🥴🥴