Aural test practice, Initial to Grade 5
An iPhone app for children (and adults) preparing for the aural tests in graded music exams. Every test is written fresh by the app, so there is always a new one to try, and each exercise is marked as soon as it ends, with what happened shown on the music.
New tests every time
The app composes each piece, echo and melody itself, in the keys, metres and ranges each grade uses, so practice never runs out.
Marked as you go
Tap the beat or a rhythm on the screen, sing into the phone or play the notes on the app's keyboard, and answer questions about what you heard. Each exercise ends with what happened, shown on the music.
A mock test
Run a grade's four tests in exam order, then see which are ready and which need more practice.
Nothing leaves the phone
No account, no tracking, no data sent anywhere. The microphone is used only during singing tests, and nothing is recorded.
What each grade practises
| Grade | Tests in the app |
|---|---|
| Initial | Tap the pulse; tap back short rhythms; sing back short phrases; loud or quiet, or smooth or detached. |
| Grades 1 to 3 | Tap the pulse and name the time; sing back phrases; spot the change between two playings; musical features (dynamics and articulation; tempo from Grade 2; major or minor at Grade 3). |
| Grades 4 and 5 | Sing or play back a melody from memory; sight-sing a few notes; musical features; tap the rhythm of an extract and name the time. |
Not covered: questions on character (Grades 4 and 5) and on style and period (Grade 5), which need real repertoire, and Grades 6 to 8.
Which exams?
The tests follow the format of the aural tests in ABRSM's Practical Grades, which apply to every instrument and to classical singing. The app describes the tests in its own words and writes every exercise itself.
Aural Ace is independent and is not affiliated with, or endorsed by, ABRSM or any exam board.