2020 Music Assessments Online

Hello Students and Parents,

Due to COVID-19 social distancing protocols, we have changed the process for our annual Music Assessments so that the assessment can be submitted online for adjudicating. Read on below for more information about the program and the process to submit.

Music Assessments – General Information
We have been conducting these exams for over 15 years and find that it is very beneficial for both students and teachers. The NFSM Music Assessments is our in-house music proficiency performance exam which is designed to help students mark progress, set goals, and receive constructive feedback to help their growth as developing musicians. It also allows a 3rd party to give valuable feedback to the students’ instructors so that they can pinpoint problem areas that may have gone overlooked with the week-to-week lessons.

Music Assessment Preparation and Awards
Teachers help students select the two pieces to perform for a judge and work on these pieces during lessons. Pieces must be memorized and students must submit the music score along with performance (or lyric sheet for vocalists, preferred with chords marked).
Students scoring an Excellent Rating (80-89) receive a Medal of Excellence while students scoring a Superior Rating (90-100) are awarded a Superior Trophy. Every third consecutive superior score receives a 3rd Year Superior Trophy (this trophy is awarded for consecutive superiors every 3rd, 6th, and 9th years, and resets if a student does not earn Superior rating or skips a year).
There is a $15 fee per student ($10 for additional siblings on same account) which is a pass through payment to cover judge fees.

Changes This Year
This year we will be accepting Video submissions for the assessments. This will allow greater flexibility with scheduling.

The original dates of the Assessments were April 25th and 26th. Due to the recent move to online lessons and to allow more time for our students to prepare and submit, we have changed the entry period to the month of May. This means we will accept submissions from May 1st through May 31st. No entries will be accepted after May 31st.

Results from the assessments will be sent to students/parents and teachers within 2 weeks of submission. To avoid an increase in Assessment fees, Awards will be available in-person at our schools once we are open for regular studio lessons.

The judge fees will remain the same, $15 per student, $10 for additional siblings on same account. Payment will be processed on your CC on file after successful submission.

Submission Process

We will be accepting Video submissions through a website called wetransfer.com. You do not have to create an account and it is a free service, however you will need to enter an email to verify the transfer with a PIN they will send. You are to upload both score sheets, both videos, and include the student’s information in the message field. Below is a step-by-step guide and also a link with an instructions PDF that includes screenshots from a mobile device. The entire transfer process should take about 10-minutes or less to complete. For multiple students in the family, please submit separately per student.

• Talk to your teacher to know which two pieces the student is working on and get a copy of the music score (can be from music book). Most of these pieces were selected in February or early March, but we will allow students/teachers to change these on the fly (during submission) so you are not obligated to do the piece initially submitted – unless you’d like to.
• Record two videos, one for each piece. Vocalists and instrumentalists should have the camera facing directly at them. Pianists will need to either prop or have a family member hold the camera from a side angle, so that the judge can see their hands on the keys, posture, and feet if using foot pedals. We recommend using front facing camera on phones/tablets as they have better quality video.
• Once you are ready to submit, you will use wetransfer.com to send the 4 files (two videos, two music sheets) and include the student’s info in the MESSAGE field and send to nfsmassessments@gmail.com. The videos can be recorded from a mobile device and the music can be images taken with a camera phone, as long as it is legible.
• The Message field must have the following information:
  • Student Name (first and last)
  • Student Age (if under 18)
  • Teacher’s Name (first name ok)
  • Student’s level (beg, beg-int, int, int-adv, or adv)
  • Piece 1 Title, Composer, and Instrument
  • Piece 2 Title, Composer, and Instrument