Leisure Play: Performance Without the Technical Apparatus
Leisure Play exams exist for candidates who want to perform without the machinery of a graded exam: no scales, no sight reading, no aural. The candidate offers a short programme of pieces, songs or own compositions - flexible instrumentation and backing tracks are normally permitted - and is marked on performance alone. It suits adult returners, hobbyists and players whose progress is repertoire-led rather than exercise-led.
What is actually assessed
- Accuracy and continuity: right notes, steady pulse, and recovery from slips without stopping.
- Musical shape: dynamics, articulation, phrasing, and balance against any backing track.
- Control of the chosen set-up: microphone distance, pedal, track levels, count-ins.
- Style: does the performance sound like the genre it claims to be?
Worked example
An adult pianist offers a simplified pop arrangement and a Satie Gymnopédie. Reasoning: the Satie is exposed - the pulse must not sag and the pedal must change cleanly at each harmony; the arrangement rewards a clear bass line and confident dynamic shaping. One piece slightly below comfort level and one that stretches gives the examiner evidence of both security and ambition.
Traps
Assuming “leisure” means low expectations: the mark scheme still asks for phrasing and style. Unlabelled or unlevelled backing tracks that drown the player; no plan for restarting after a memory slip; three pieces in the same key and tempo, which makes a short programme feel flat.