Lorraine Liyanage is the Head Teacher at the award-winning SE22 Piano School in East Dulwich and has been preparing young musicians for the Music Aptitude Test for well over a decade to South London schools and further afield.
As a private music teacher, it is my role each year to guide many students through the State Secondary Music Scholarship process. This is very different to the private school music scholarship system and uses a test called the Music Aptitude Test (MAT) as part of the selection criteria for most UK schools. The MAT is designed to look for inherent musicality in a student. The test is designed to determine the listening skills and the ability to discern detail in pitch, texture, and rhythm.
However there is no standard MAT test used across the board and each school will use their own variety of test. Some schools include graphic scores to represent volume and tempo changes. Other schools use a variety of instruments and ask you how many different ones you can hear. Some schools will vary the test each year and not all will publish guidelines on what you will hear on the day. These variables mean that preparing for the test without the guidance of a teacher that is familiar with the MAT is a challenge.
It is entirely possible to prepare for a Music Aptitude Test if you know what to practice and allow enough time to prepare.
I am offering this service on Pensight to help demystify and guide you through the Music Scholarship process.
£25
Ask Me Anything About the Music Aptitude Test
Q&A — Video Answer
£25
£40
Quick Consultation/Assessment of a Music Scholarship Candidate
1:1 Session — 15 minutes
£40