2. Woodwind levels explained
Descriptions of assessment levels for woodwind pupils.
Level 1
Pupils begin to display an awareness of good posture and correct hold of the instrument.
They can form an appropriate embouchure and exhibit the beginnings of a good tone.
They show an elementary understanding of the beginnings of breath control.
They can produce the first three notes with a tongued action.
Pupils show awareness and respond to pulse.
Level 2
Pupils’ posture and hold of the instrument is good.
They produce a good tone on their instrument and can fairly reliably produce notes both tongued and slurred within a range of a fifth.
They can recognise and play mostly accurately from basic notation to include whole, half, quarter and eighth notes.
Their developing breath control facilitates playing in musical phrases appropriate to the instrument.
They can recognise moods in simple pieces and begin to show elements of this in their performance.
Level 3
Pupils can produce a tongued or slurred note when desired and can control its length and volume.
They can play rhythmic patterns and have a range approaching an octave.
Their breath control has developed to the point where they can perform longer phrases and technical ability imposes fewer restraints upon musical outcomes.
They can read and play accurately from basic notation and can recognise and express simple structure, patterns and styles in the music that they play.
Level 4
Pupils produce and sustain a clear controlled sound.
They have a range of a 12th and understand notation for this range.
They grasp the concept of rhythm and basic dynamics, can recognise F# and Bb and have the ability to introduce basic changes of articulation
Level 5
Pupils play with a sense of melody and can maintain the pulse despite slips.
They can identify how different markings can reflect different musical intentions and can use this to play in an appropriate musical style.
They think about the different moods of the music and use their technique to realise the desired effect.
They put their own ideas into the music and have a range approaching 2 octaves.
Level 6
Pupils play with a sense of style and show good control of dynamics, articulation and tempo.
They have a sense of ensemble and can react to others in group performance.
They can evaluate and analyse their own performance and that of others, using this skill to improve their own playing and offer advice to others.
They have a range of at least two octaves.
Level 7
Pupils can discriminate between different genres and can adjust their playing to be sensitive to the relevant style.
They play with good melodic shape and a sense of direction and can tell where musical emphasis should lie; they can improve their playing to a high degree with minimal teacher input.
Level 8
Pupils can discriminate and exploit the expressive potential of the music they play.
They pay great attention to tuning and can adjust tone and timbre to suite the desired style.
Their range covers approximately 3 octaves and they can move fluently, with good flexibility across this range.