Own Compositions in Piano Exams: Rules by Board

A piece you wrote yourself can count towards a piano grade with most of the big exam boards. What differs from board to board is the paperwork. One wants a fully notated score, another accepts a lead sheet at lower grades, a third barely mentions notation, and one does not mention own compositions at all. The rules below are quoted from each board's own syllabus, and they matter most for the pianist who wrote the piece at the keyboard and never put it on paper.

The rules side by side

Checked against each board's current syllabus or exam page on 16 September 2026. Where a board's documents say nothing on a point, the table says "not stated" rather than guessing.

Read the table this way: ABRSM and Trinity have written the rule down precisely, so you can work to it. LCM, AMEB and RCM leave gaps, so an email to the board costs less than a surprise on exam day. Each board also has its own page in this cluster, and all of them are collected on the exams and competitions hub.

ABRSM: the own-choice piece in Performance Grades

The route runs through Performance Grades, ABRSM's video-submitted exam, where you play four pieces in one continuous performance. At least one piece comes from each of lists A, B and C. The fourth "can be from the repertoire lists or a piece of the candidate's choice", and the syllabus adds that "The piece may be a candidate's own composition or arrangement."

The face-to-face Practical Grades are different. The 2027 & 2028 Piano Practical Grades specification has candidates "choose one piece from each of the three lists (A, B and C)", and we found no own-composition option in it. If your pupil wants to play their own piece for ABRSM, that means Performance Grades.

The notation clause is the one to plan around:

"The piece must exist in a legible and fully-notated score using standard music notation (e.g. not in tab, not a lead sheet if candidate is playing a harmonic instrument etc.) and must be performed as notated in that score."

Three more rules from the same syllabus shape the piece itself:

• Nobody marks the composition. "We will not judge or provide feedback on the structure or quality of the composition, only the performance of it." The technical demand must still be "broadly the same as repertoire set for the grade being taken".
• Minimum length per grade, for the own-choice piece: 0:20 at Initial, 0:25 at Grade 1, 0:30 at Grade 2, 0:35 at Grade 3, 0:45 at Grade 4, 1:00 at Grade 5, 1:30 at Grade 6, 2:00 at Grade 7 and 3:00 at Grade 8. The whole programme also has a maximum time, from 5 minutes at Initial to 25 minutes at Grade 8.
• The score goes on camera. "Candidates should show the opening of their own-choice piece and announce themselves and their pieces before beginning their performance." ABRSM can also request a copy if there is "a concern about the standard", which "may delay the issuing of the exam result".

The wording is the same in the 2025 & 2026 syllabus and in the 2027 & 2028 one, which applies to exams from 1 January 2027. Our guide to the ABRSM own-composition score goes through the clause line by line.

Trinity: one own composition at every grade

Trinity's Piano syllabus (digital and face-to-face, online edition February 2026) is the most welcoming of the five. Three pieces are performed, and at every stage, Initial–Grade 3, Grades 4–5 and Grades 6–8, the syllabus says candidates "may perform their own composition in place of one of the listed pieces."

The own-composition rules, quoted:

• "Own compositions are assessed in the same way as the listed repertoire. Marks are not awarded for the quality of the composition."
• "Own compositions must be comparable in technical and musical demand to the pieces listed for the same grade."
• "At Initial to Grade 5, own compositions may be notated in any easily readable form, including graphic score or lead-sheet."
• "At Grades 6–8 they must be notated on a stave. Marks will be deducted if notation is incomplete or inaccurate, or if the performance varies significantly from the notation."
• "Own compositions should be candidates' own unaided work, although teachers may suggest brief score clarifications."

How the score reaches the examiner depends on the format. For a digital exam, "A typeset or handwritten copy of the composition must be uploaded with the video." Face to face, it "must be given to the examiner at the beginning of the exam."

Trinity also publishes guideline durations and example techniques for each grade:

Trinity describes these techniques as optional examples, not a checklist. The Grade 6 line is the one that catches people: a piece that passed at Grade 5 as a chord chart needs full staff notation one grade later. Trinity's notation rules by grade covers that jump.

LCM: Leisure Play, and a syllabus in transition

London College of Music Examinations is where the calendar matters most, so read this section with the date of your exam in mind.

LCM's Music Grades Specification and its Piano Requirements for Recorded Exams both describe Leisure Play: four pieces, at least three from the set lists, and "The fourth piece may be an own choice, which may be in a jazz, popular or other contemporary style, and/or may be an original or own composition." The specification adds that "There is no requirement for own choice pieces to be pre-approved, but advice on the appropriateness of own choice pieces is available from the Chief Examiner in Music", and warns that if the piece is "significantly easier than that of the equivalent grade, this may be reflected in the marking."

The standard LCM graded exam is different. In the recorded format, all three pieces "must be selected from the set list".

Then there is the new syllabus. The LCME Piano Syllabus 2026 is "valid for Steps, Grades and Recital Grades in Piano from 1 September 2026", and "The 2021 syllabus will remain valid until 31 July 2027." Leisure Play does not appear in its list of exam options. Its Recital Grades let candidates choose, as a fifth item, "an own choice piece of similar standard", but the 2026 document does not say whether that can be an original composition.

In practice: if you are entering under the 2021 syllabus before 31 July 2027, Leisure Play explicitly allows an own composition. After that, confirm with LCME before relying on it. Neither document sets a notation standard for an own composition, so bring a clean score anyway: the 2026 syllabus says "Copies of the music must be brought to the exam and be shown to the examiner if requested." LCM own compositions tracks the change.

AMEB: Piano for Leisure

The Australian Music Examinations Board's standard Piano syllabus is list-based. Piano for Leisure is the one with room for your own piece. AMEB NSW's Grade 1 Piano for Leisure page puts it this way: "One own choice work can even be the student's own arrangement or composition, however canons and other technical exercises are not suitable to present as an Own Choice work."

The same page defines the standard: own choice works can come from the Piano for Leisure syllabus, the Piano syllabus "or any other pieces that offer the same level of difficulty and are of the same duration." For the full Piano for Leisure exams (with technical work and tests), the Preliminary and Grade 5 pages describe the pieces section as three works from the lists, or a minimum of two list works with one own choice.

What the public pages don't say is how an own composition should be notated or whether the examiner needs a copy. Those details sit in the syllabus, which AMEB sells, and in your state office's exam-day rules. Buy the syllabus for your grade before you finalise the piece. Our page on AMEB Piano for Leisure own compositions covers the grade-by-grade detail.

RCM: no own-composition option in the syllabus

This is the inconvenient one. The Royal Conservatory's Piano Syllabus, 2022 Edition has a detailed substitutions policy, and it never mentions a student's own composition.

What it does allow:

• Syllabus substitutions: a piece or etude from the level above, without prior approval.
• Teacher's Choice substitutions: at Levels 1 to 10, "one repertoire selection and/or one etude with a work not listed in the Piano Syllabus, 2022 Edition that is of comparable length, difficulty, style category, and musical quality". These are allowed only for certain lists: List B at Levels 1–2, List C at Levels 3–7, List C or D at Levels 8–9, and List C, D or E at Level 10. The syllabus notes that "The mark for the performance of a Teacher's Choice substitute selection will include an assessment of the appropriateness of the choice."
• Popular Selection List substitutions, in place of one etude.

For anything else, the syllabus says students "must complete an Examination Substitute Piece Request Form (available online) in advance of the examination registration deadline", and advises them "to prepare an alternate work in case the request is denied."

Whether an original piece can be a Teacher's Choice substitution isn't addressed, so don't assume it. If you want to try, use the request form route and have a listed piece ready. RCM own-choice pieces and scores goes into the substitution categories in more detail.

What the boards agree on

Strip out the differences and four things hold at every board that allows an own composition:

1. The piece must be at the level of the grade. ABRSM says "broadly the same standard, or above"; Trinity says "comparable in technical and musical demand"; LCM warns about pieces "significantly easier"; AMEB asks for "the same level of difficulty".
2. Nobody signs it off in advance. ABRSM states prior approval "cannot be given"; LCM says none is required. The judgement belongs to you and your teacher.
3. The performance must match the page. ABRSM requires the piece to be "performed as notated in that score"; Trinity deducts marks "if the performance varies significantly from the notation". A piece you improvise differently each time has to be frozen into one version.
4. The score is part of the exam, even when the composition is not marked. It goes to camera, into an upload, or into the examiner's hands.

For a candidate who composes by ear, that fourth point is usually more work than the composing.

From a piece in your hands to a score that qualifies

If the piece was composed at the keyboard, it may exist only in the candidate's fingers and perhaps a phone recording. Working backwards from that recording is a perfectly good route, as long as you respect the "performed as notated" rules above.

1. Settle the version

Decide the form, the repeats and the ending before anything is written down. Whatever ends up on the page is what the candidate plays in the exam. Check the length against your board's table now, not after the score is finished.

2. Record it cleanly

Record the settled version on a phone, close to the piano, in a quiet room, with no metronome audible. Play at a tempo you can hold steadily: heavy rubato makes the rhythm much harder to write down, whoever or whatever does the writing. If you are going to transcribe from this take, it is worth getting right. Our guide to recording piano with your phone covers placement and settings.

3. Choose the kind of score your board needs

This decides how much notation work lies ahead.

• Trinity, Initial to Grade 5: a lead sheet or other readable form is allowed. If the piece is melody plus chords, a lead sheet may be all you need. See how to make a lead sheet from a recording.
• Trinity Grades 6–8, and ABRSM at every grade: full staff notation, both hands, every note and rhythm.
• LCM and AMEB: the documents don't set a standard, so aim for full staff notation. It is never the wrong answer.

4. Get a first draft, then correct it

You can notate by hand, type it into notation software note by note, or start from an automatic transcription. If you take the last route, keep the MusicXML file as well as the PDF, because that is the file you can correct in MuseScore, Sibelius or Dorico. Piano to Sheet Music turns one recording into an engraved PDF, a MIDI file and MusicXML for $4.99 per piece, no subscription, and you can try it on your own recording.

Be realistic about the draft. Expect to fix the time signature, the key signature and note spelling, which hand plays what, rhythms around pedalled passages, and anything played with rubato. Then add what no recording can give you: title, composer name, tempo, dynamics and pedal marks.

5. Test it on a stranger, then on the candidate

Give the printed score to a pianist who has never heard the piece. If they can play it close to how it sounds in the recording, the notation is legible and complete. Then have the candidate learn the piece from the page. That catches the places where the hands and the score quietly disagree, which is precisely what Trinity deducts marks for at Grades 6–8.

6. Keep both files

Keep the PDF for the upload or the examiner, and the editable file for next year's grade, when the piece may need to grow.

Does the score have to be typeset?

No board we checked requires software. Trinity explicitly accepts "A typeset or handwritten copy", and ABRSM asks for legibility and standard notation, not a particular tool. A neat handwritten manuscript can meet every rule above.

Engraving earns its place in two situations. The first is video exams, where the opening page has to be readable through a phone camera. The second is Trinity Grades 6–8 and ABRSM generally, where every rhythm and accidental must be unambiguous, and a correction in software doesn't leave a smudge.

Frequently asked questions

Which piano exam boards let you play your own composition?

ABRSM allows it as the own-choice piece in Performance Grades. Trinity allows one own composition in place of a listed piece at every grade from Initial to Grade 8. AMEB's Piano for Leisure pages allow one own arrangement or composition. LCM's wording depends on the syllabus year, and RCM's 2022 Piano Syllabus does not mention own compositions.

Does the examiner mark the quality of my composition?

Not at ABRSM or Trinity. ABRSM says it will not judge the structure or quality of the composition, only the performance. Trinity says marks are not awarded for the quality of the composition. Both still require the piece to be comparable in technical demand to the listed repertoire for the grade you are taking.

Can I use a lead sheet for my own composition?

At Trinity, yes up to Grade 5: Initial to Grade 5 may use any easily readable notation, including a lead sheet or graphic score. From Grade 6 Trinity requires staff notation. ABRSM rules a lead sheet out for a pianist, asking for a legible, fully-notated score in standard music notation.

Do I have to send the score of my own composition?

It depends on the board and the format. Trinity requires a typeset or handwritten copy uploaded with a digital exam video, or handed to the examiner at a face-to-face exam. ABRSM Performance Grades ask you to show the opening to camera and may request a copy later if the standard is in question.

Can I get my own composition approved before the exam?

Usually not. ABRSM's syllabus says prior approval cannot be given for an own-choice piece. LCM says its own-choice pieces need no pre-approval, though advice on suitability is available from its Chief Examiner in Music. Judging whether the piece meets the grade is left to you and your teacher.

How long does an own composition need to be?

ABRSM sets a minimum per grade for the own-choice piece, from 20 seconds at Initial Grade to 3 minutes at Grade 8. Trinity publishes guideline durations, from half a minute to a minute at Initial up to 3.5 to 5 minutes at Grade 8. Always check the table for your grade in the current syllabus.

Sources

• ABRSM Music Performance Grades: Piano, Syllabus 2027 & 2028 (PDF)
• ABRSM Music Performance Grades: Piano, Syllabus 2025 & 2026 (PDF)
• ABRSM Practical Music Grades: Piano Syllabus 2027 & 2028 (PDF)
• Trinity College London Piano Syllabus, digital and face-to-face assessment (PDF, online edition February 2026)
• LCME Piano Syllabus 2026 (PDF)
• LCM Examinations Music Grades Specification: Grades, Recital Grades, Leisure Play (PDF)
• LCM Examinations Piano Requirements for Recorded Exams (PDF)
• AMEB NSW: Piano for Leisure Repertoire Grade 1, Piano for Leisure Preliminary and Piano for Leisure Grade 5
• The Royal Conservatory of Music: Piano Syllabus, 2022 Edition (PDF)

Syllabus wording checked 16 September 2026. Boards revise their syllabuses on their own cycles, so check the current document for your instrument, grade and exam date.