Here is my first recording of an ABRSM Grade 2 piece šŸ  titled Angelfish. My tutor gave me this as one of the three Grade 2 pieces I’m currently working on. This piece is from the ABRSM 2021 & 2022 Piano Grade 2 syllabus (List C, No. 2) written by Anne Crosby Gaudet.

As always, it’s very much a work in progress, but I wanted to share and document my progress so far.

The Journey

This piece, while relatively straightforward in terms of notes and memorisation, it introduced some new challenges, particularly with musical expression. This song is all about how it’s played!

The main new concept for me was ritardando (abbreviated as rit. on the sheet music). This means gradually slowing down the tempo, which occurs in the second-to-last bar of Angelfish.

Challenges

My main difficulties with this piece have been:

  • Dynamics and Articulation: Getting the subtle changes in volume and the touch of the notes right to make it sound musical is harder than it looks.
  • Rhythm: Maintaining a steady and appropriate rhythm throughout, especially during the crescendo.
  • Crescendo Control: I found myself speeding up during the crescendo (bars 11-12) instead of just increasing the volume.
  • Ritardando Execution: Achieving a natural and controlled slowdown for the rit. in bar 23. I feel I need to slow down even more than in this recording.

Reflection

Angelfish is a lovely, flowing piece that’s quite easy to get under the fingers. However, the real challenge lies in the dynamics and articulation required to bring it to life. It’s a great exercise in musicality beyond just hitting the right notes.

I’ll keep working on the rhythm, controlling the crescendo, and executing the ritardando more effectively.

Sheet music for this piece can typically be found in the ABRSM Piano Exam Pieces books for the relevant years. Unfortunately it’s not available on musescore, assuming because of copyright.

What’s Next?

I’m working alongside other two Grade 2 pieces that my tutor has assigned. These are Mozzie and Ɖcossaise in G. Which I’ll post about these once I’m a bit more accurate and up to speed. I did post my first YouTube Short on Ɖcossaise in G but still not happy enough with the articulations yet.

I’m still coming back occasionally to my grade 1 peices too Allegretto in C peice, Allegretto in C peice and Sneaky Business but the focus is now on these grade 2 pieces.

That's a wrap. Spotted something incorrect? Let me know! You can comment below, create an issue on the GitHub repository or best of all, make a pull request.