Auraldesk is not affiliated with ABRSM, Trinity College London, AMEB, RCM or any exam board. This guide describes the common syllabus in the style of ABRSM, from published teachers' guides; the exam board's own syllabus is the authority.
A. The pulse
The examiner plays a short piece. The student claps the beat, joining in as soon as they can and making the strong beat a little louder, then says whether the music is in 2 time or 3 time. This is about the feel of the beat, not the time signature written on the page.
B. Echoes
The examiner plays short phrases, usually 3, each 2 bars long, and the student sings each one back. At Grade 1 the phrases are in a major key and move mainly by step between the keynote and the third; by Grade 3 they range within an octave, still mostly by step with intervals up to a third. Singing an octave lower or higher is fine.
C. Spot the change
The examiner plays a short melody, then plays it again with one change. At Grade 1 a single note changes and the student says whether the change came near the beginning or near the end. By Grade 3 the melody can be up to 4 bars, in a major or minor key, the change can be in pitch or rhythm, and the student says which kind it was as well as where.
D. Features of a piece
The examiner plays a piece and asks about one or two of its features. At Grade 1 these are dynamics (loud or quiet, and gradual or sudden changes) and articulation (smooth, or short and detached). Grade 3 adds tempo: the speed and changes of speed.
Worked example
A Grade 1 spot-the-change question: a 2-bar phrase in G major plays (G, A, B, G, then D, B, G); then it plays again as G, A, C, G, then D, B, G. The third note moved up a step, in the first bar, so the answer is "near the beginning", or bar 1. At Grade 3 the student would add that it was a change of pitch, not of rhythm.
How the trainer matches this
- Clap the pulse: an 8-bar piece, then 4 bars of clapping after a count-in, then 2 or 3 time.
- Sing back: 3 echoes of 2 bars, in major keys, ranges as above.
- Spot the change: 2-bar phrases at every grade (the exam's Grade 3 melody can be up to 4 bars); Grade 1 changes a note; Grade 2 a note or a rhythm; Grade 3 asks which kind.
- Features: loud and quiet, smooth and detached from Grade 1; getting louder or quieter from Grade 2; speed changes at Grade 3.
Every phrase is generated by the trainer; nothing is copied from exam papers or books. The full rules are on the how it works page.
Common mistakes in the exam
- Clapping every note of the tune instead of the steady beat.
- Clapping the beat evenly with no strong beat, so the time is hard to hear.
- Waiting too long before singing back, and losing the phrase.
- Guessing the changed bar after the first notes instead of listening to the end.
Sources
- ABRSM aural tests Grade 1: a guide, an independent music teacher's website. The four Grade 1 tests: pulse and 2 or 3 time, three 2-bar echoes in a major key from the keynote to the third, a changed note at the beginning or the end, and questions on dynamics and articulation. Last reviewed 19 October 2026.
- ABRSM aural test Grade 3: a guide, an independent music teacher's website. Grade 3: echoes within an octave, mostly by step with intervals up to a third; a melody of up to 4 bars with one change of pitch or rhythm, saying which and where; questions that add tempo. Last reviewed 19 October 2026.
Auraldesk is not affiliated with ABRSM, Trinity College London, AMEB, RCM or any exam board.