spinbug Posted January 18, 2005 Report Share Posted January 18, 2005 Yeah! I just got back from a ballet workshop where I took my grade 2 exam. My teacher just called to inform me that I passed with commendations (highly commended is the highest you can get)! Now I'll get to start on my grade 3 and possibly take the exam in April. Probably that is a little early but it doesn't hurt to think big. I'm sure my teacher won't send me if she has any doubts about my passing it. I'm so tickled! Candi Quote Link to comment
Dance_Scholar_London Posted January 18, 2005 Report Share Posted January 18, 2005 Well done! How long have you been studying the syllabus? I want to take my RAD Intermediate in the summer, but I dont think I will be ready by then Quote Link to comment
Jaana Heino Posted January 18, 2005 Report Share Posted January 18, 2005 Congratulations! It must be nice to have such a concrete proof of one's ability. Quote Link to comment
cassy Posted January 18, 2005 Report Share Posted January 18, 2005 That is good news Just wondering how long you have been dancing (cecchetti ballet) and your age? The reason I ask is that im 24 and only started cecchetti last year, I assumed everyone regardless of age started exams from scratch. My teacher said I wouldnt take an exam for some time because it will be grade 6 - intermediate!! welldone, its nice to feel that you are progressing and extra nice to receive good grades Cassy Quote Link to comment
Dance_Scholar_London Posted January 18, 2005 Report Share Posted January 18, 2005 I wouldnt mind a low grade as long as I pass Quote Link to comment
spinbug Posted January 18, 2005 Author Report Share Posted January 18, 2005 I'm 36 years old and this is my third year studying ballet . Cecchetti is the only style of ballet that I've learned and I started working on the grade 1 syllabus after Christmas last year and took that exam in the spring. I started studying grade 2 this fall and took that test just this past weekend. I really enjoy the cecchetti curriculum because it doesn't seem to leave any gaps in my training. It progresses from simple moves into more difficult ones in very predictable and buildable ways. You learn degages and then you learn jete's and move up to assembles, etc. I don't know much about RAD but I assume it would be the same. I know that I am too old to ever become a professional dancer but I really enjoy perfecting ballet just like I would if I wanted to become a professional. The good thing about it is that nothing so crucial like a career is riding on my successes or failures. I can truly enjoy what I'm doing. I just love it to the depth of my dancing heart. Everyone in my town has surely seen me chasse up and down the aisles when I get groceries and I've been known to throw in a jete just for the fun of it! Quote Link to comment
Mr Robin Posted January 18, 2005 Report Share Posted January 18, 2005 Congratulations Spinbug! I sometimes wonder whether I'd have been better off given the chance to work through the low grades, rather than being thrown in at the deep end and starting with Intermediate. I guess the basics get drilled into you better, and that it's far more rewarding to pass an exam every few months than spend years building up to a higher-grade one! When I started ballet it was in RAD grade 3, which I remember being a world away from Intermediate. I also remember that some of the syllabus (the more 'dancey' part) was also a bit childish, not that I ever got far enough to consider taking the exam before switching to my current Cecchetti class. I guess this may be why adults tend to be started at the higher grades... What was your experience of grade 2, Spinbug? Did you find any of it childish?! Quote Link to comment
spinbug Posted January 18, 2005 Author Report Share Posted January 18, 2005 Congratulations Spinbug! I sometimes wonder whether I'd have been better off given the chance to work through the low grades, rather than being thrown in at the deep end and starting with Intermediate. I guess the basics get drilled into you better, and that it's far more rewarding to pass an exam every few months than spend years building up to a higher-grade one! When I started ballet it was in RAD grade 3, which I remember being a world away from Intermediate. I also remember that some of the syllabus (the more 'dancey' part) was also a bit childish, not that I ever got far enough to consider taking the exam before switching to my current Cecchetti class. I guess this may be why adults tend to be started at the higher grades... What was your experience of grade 2, Spinbug? Did you find any of it childish?! <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Mr. Robin, Well, not exactly "childish"...I had to slow things way down and that was a little hard. In grade 2 we had an enchainement of turns in fifth that seemed to go soooo slow. I had been doing those in my regular class very quickly. Now I found that I had to break down the plie, the degage front, the demi-ronde jamb to second and then the tiny saute onto the right foot etc.... And it had to be done with the precise beats of the music! Aaaagh! Like you I progressed pretty rapidly in my regular, non syllabus class at our studio. I felt that I had a pretty good grasp on most of the basics in class but when I started studying for my test my efforts became much more "precise". It was a little tedious for me and still is. However I think it has been tremendously good for me both mentally and physically. I've become more detail oriented in my dancing and try to actually slide that foot along the floor in my degages and chasses instead of just placing it out there like I did before. I've become a much more patient learner, too. Our teacher, as far as I know, does not let us skip any testing and we have to progress up through the ranks. The difference may be that perhaps you dance with other adults and your teacher assumes that you may be uncomfortable taking exams with the kids . I'm the only adult in our studio so I'm very used to dancing with kids half and less than half my age. Cecchetti also seems to be less "flowery" than other ballet styles so the exams reflect that (That is just my personal observation and I admit it is not without bias). Perhaps they get more stylistic as one moves past the basics. I hope you consider taking your exams or at least taking a syllabus class. It has really improved my dancing. The fun thing, though, I still get to take that other class and spin through those turns with glee. One needs just a little abandon when it comes to dancing don't you think? Quote Link to comment
Dance_Scholar_London Posted January 18, 2005 Report Share Posted January 18, 2005 I hope you consider taking your exams or at least taking a syllabus class. It has really improved my dancing. The fun thing, though, I still get to take that other class and spin through those turns with glee. One needs just a little abandon when it comes to dancing don't you think? <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I am so much better in my RAD class as it is very predictable. But I dont think that it makes me a better dancer. I can execute certain movements à la RAD Intermediate, but this does not help me at all in an open class. The opposite might be true (at least for me) as I feel constraint by the syllabus work (when I do an open class). However, I still prefer syllabus as I am not good at memorising steps and new combinations very quickly. Hence, a predictable class is much less stressful Quote Link to comment
cassy Posted January 18, 2005 Report Share Posted January 18, 2005 I was just wondering spinbug, how spaced out are your exams - time wise? I thought it would be lovely to work through each exam, as I think it would be rewarding, although how did you feel about it? How long will it be untill you are ready for the next one? Or does your teacher tell you when? Cassy. Quote Link to comment
spinbug Posted January 18, 2005 Author Report Share Posted January 18, 2005 Our exam schedule seems to be spaced out as twice a year. Once in the fall/winter and once in the spring. We don't actually take them here in my town, we have to travel to Sioux Falls, SD. I think it is because the teachers there are the ones certified to do the testing or they are somehow connected with those who are in some way. For more answers you might look up the Cecchetti Council of America website. Our teacher usually arranges a syllabus class in the spring and takes only those students to the exams who she feels are ready. I, however, am taking two private lessons a week and asked if I could work on the syllabus and if she would consider letting me take the exams in the winter during the cecchetti workshop. (Fewer students test at that time, I think it is because of "Nutcracker Season" etc.) I think how fast you progress is a very individual issue. If I had not requested to work on the syllabus on my own I'm not sure that my teacher would have encouraged me to do so. In fact, I asked before I tested if I could also work on grade 3 and she seemed doubtful that I could learn it in time. She even said she didn't consider taking me in the spring. After testing so well in grade 2 I asked her again if she could please consider letting me test in the spring for grade 3. This time she said I could at least give it a try and she would decide closer to the testing time. That was good enough for me! I can't say for sure how I'm going to do. But I don't like to think of it as whether I'll be able to pass or not. I like to just try as hard as I can and see what happens. So far, when I have a goal that I commit myself to, even sometimes going against what others think my potential might be, I have risen to it. That's not to say that I don't have my limits. It's just that I like to experience my limits firsthand instead of just believing what others say my limits are. Failure is not a problem for me, it only lets me experience what my limit is. (I say it's not a problem. Of course, it feels awful at the time.) Not trying seems to me to be a much sadder fate. Then I not only feel like a failure but I can't let go of the "what if" thoughts bouncing around in my head. I know I've said a lot here but it feels good to express some of my deep thoughts on this issue. Thanks for listening. Quote Link to comment
Mr Robin Posted January 19, 2005 Report Share Posted January 19, 2005 Cecchetti also seems to be less "flowery" than other ballet styles so the exams reflect that (That is just my personal observation and I admit it is not without bias). Perhaps they get more stylistic as one moves past the basics. I hope you consider taking your exams or at least taking a syllabus class. It has really improved my dancing. The fun thing, though, I still get to take that other class and spin through those turns with glee. One needs just a little abandon when it comes to dancing don't you think? <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Hi Spinbug I think maybe 'flowery' is what I was getting at when I said 'childish'! Glad to hear that Cecchetti is less so than RAD, though. I've been taking an Intermediate syllabus class for a couple of years, and definitely want to take the exam at some point. I also take private classes, but I'd not thought of doing lower-grade work in those. Perhaps I should look at working my way through the low grades in privates, and maybe it'll speed my progress towards the Intermediate exam! Robin Quote Link to comment
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