For the fourth successive year a record-breaking number of candidates took ABRSM’s Music Medals assessments. Nearly 10,000 candidates participated in Music Medals in 2012, bringing the number of assessments taken to 60,000 since their launch in 2004. Penny Milsom, UK Operations Director, said 'Music Medals give teachers the flexibility to teach and assess in their own way and help candidates to bring together many of the skills needed to become fantastic musicians. We’re very proud to have reached the 60,000 mark and hope more and more candidates will benefit from them in 2013!' Since 2010 Music Medals have been made available in schools, hubs and through Music Services as well as to private music teachers. Jane Hargrave, teacher, Northamptonshire Music and Performing Arts Trust, said: 'Music Medals have made a significant impact in Northamptonshire. Being able to choose material to suit individuals’ needs and assessing our own pupils is the perfect way to encourage our students to reach new targets. Children enjoy the preparation process and the filming day becomes an enjoyable event without the need to go out of their school and familiar environment.' ABRSM has also produced a series of films for candidates and teachers exploring the Music Medals assessment programme for early stage learning. To watch the rest of the films in this series please visit our YouTube channel.

Coming soon

• On Wednesday 30 March, ABRSM will host a ‘Creative Teaching: Introduction to Music Medals’ presentation at Rhinegold’s Music Education Expo 2013 at the Barbican Centre, London. For more information please visit www.musiceducationexpo.co.uk
• From April onwards ABRSM will be offering a series of free Music Medals training sessions for teachers throughout the UK

For more information on Music Medals please visit www.abrsm.org/musicmedals.