I frequently hear this in the instrumental teaching industry: We are using the ABRSM or Trinity ‘method’. I am always very bewildered by this claim. Instrumental practical exams held by various exam boards, including the popular ABRSM and Trinity College, are meant to assess the students’ level of competence on the element of performance. They are not meant to be teaching methods. In the quest of developing a ‘whole musician’, instrumental educators have to develop, adapt or